Organic Standards Board to enforce claims
This article was originally published in The Rose Sheet
Executive Summary
In a 12 to 1 vote the National Organic Standards Board decided it will urge the agency to "enforce the law for organic personal care just like they do for organic food," taking action against brands that claim to be organic but are not certified to standards established under the National Organic Program, according to Nov. 5 release by the Organic Consumers Association. "Brands that are using the word 'organic' improperly should be on notice that USDA enforcement is imminent," said OCA Executive Director Ronnie Cummins, who added that during the NOSB meeting this week NOP Director Miles McEvoy announced a "new age of enforcement" in organic. Cummins said he believes NOP will make "organic cosmetics fraud a top priority." OCA has kicked off its boycott of brands it deems misleadingly marketed as organic, coupled with a "buycott" of "honest" organic brands (1"The Rose Sheet" Sept. 28, 2009). Lists of brands in those categories are posted on the association's Web site