Stringent. Tough. Nit picky. Rigid.

Ask anyone in the natural beauty biz about getting the official seal from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Organic Program, and those are the adjectives that you'll hear. Either that, or they just throw their hands up in frustration since the USDA repeatedly changed their rules.

Confusing. Inconsistent. Inaccurate. Overblown.

Ask anyone who's ever tried to shop for natural beauty products, and those are the adjectives that you're likely to hear.

For years now, eco-conscious shoppers have had to sort through the claims and hype on the packaging just to figure out if a lip gloss or moisturizer is actually as pure and harmless as it appears to be.

The USDA Organic seal guarantees that products actually are made from all-natural, non-synthetic ingredients that are free of chemicals, pesticides, fertilizer, biotechnology or radiation. So ideally, the seal would make shopping easier by guiding us to toward the lotions and potions that live up to their claims.

But that hasn't happened yet. A few years back, the USDA yanked their seal from all cosmetic products, saying it didn't have the authority to regulate non-food products. A couple months later — after being threatened with lawsuits from cosmetic companies — the USDA reversed its decision, reasoning that regardless of whether you eat a product or put it on your face, the department could still regulate how that product is made. Natural beauty products can use the seal, provided they meet the USDA's strict criteria.

I'm glad to see Origins emerge as the first major mainstream company to win the seal and guarantee that their products are officially, certifably, 95% organic.

Their new line Origins Organics — which is small, but still includes lotions, lip balms, massage oil, and more — is coming to a department store near you. I'm glad that they'll be so widely available and easy to find.

Of course, Origins, which is a subsidary of cosmetics giant Estee Lauder, has the bandwidth to pull this off. It's also clear that other heavy hitters, including L'Occitane en Provence (which makes my favorite shea butter hand cream) and Juice Beauty are jumping in to green up the industry.

In the meantime, I'm waiting for the day that a lot of smaller companies — which probably meet the USDA's criteria now — will get a seal and splash it on their packaging. (Until then, check out Lime's Guide to Buying Moisturizer to shop smart.)