March 6, 2000

New rules on organic produce will be proposed within days and will resolve earlier controversies in favor of organic advocates, THE WASHINGTON POST reported. Activists briefed on the new proposals told the paper that the new rules will prohibit genetically engineered grains in foods labeled organic. The rules will also ban pesticides on crops labeled organic, bar the use of sewage sludge as fertilizer, prohibit irradiation and restrict the use of antibiotics in farm animals, THE POST said.

Rules for labeling organic products grow out of legislation Congress passed nearly 10 years ago. After finally issuing proposed rules, USDA was stunned by an unprecedented outpouring of hundreds of thousands of comments, most opposed to aspects of its original proposal. Demand for organic food, though still a small part of total U.S. food consumption, has been growing rapidly.