What does it mean to be organic? If the USDA’s proposed new regulations are approved, maybe a little bit less than it used to.

A short public comment period was closed last Friday on new regulations that have watchdog organizations up in arms over the failure to close loopholes that they say would allow milk labeled as organic to come from cows that were raised conventionally. In addition to closing these loopholes, they say, pasturing requirements for dairy cows need to be clarified and enforced in order to maintain consumer confidence and demand for milk labeled "organic."

Dean Foods’ Horizon Organics, the largest producer of organic milk in the US, is one company that has come under criticism and is now being boycotted by several consumer coops and other organizations for raising their animals in confinement conditions on starchy diets that lead them to produce more milk. Though Horizon milk is still a far cry from conventionally produced milk, which may contain hormones, antibiotics, and other unsavory substances, critics say that these methods violate the intent of organic regulations, and make it difficult for producers who follow more stringent standards to survive, despite demand for organic milk outstripping supply by some 15%.

An intriguing recent report on organic milk (1.5MB PDF) issued by the progressive farming advocacy group The Cornucopia Institute rated organic milk producers’ performance based upon a voluntary survey completed by the producers themselves. Predictably, Horizon and Aurora, another company founded by the original founders of Horizon, received low marks for failing to complete the survey, but 81% of the respondents did. One nationally available brand, Organic Valley, received a high 4-out-of-5 rating, and several other smaller producers received high marks as well.

Photo: The Cornucopia Institute