By John Lawrence
To be labeled as “USDA organic,” 95% of the ingredients must be organically grown and the remaining 5% may be non-organic agricultural ingredients or synthetic substances that have been approved for use in organics by the USDA.
The 5% of non-organic products are usually derived from GMO corn which is highly sprayed with Monsanto’s Roundup.
It’s a little known fact that some organic packaged foods contain GMOs and pesticides thanks to the lobbying efforts of Big Organic corporations.
For example, consider a container of O organic Tomato Basil soup, a product of Canada, purchased at Sprout’s. The ingredient list includes organic tomatoes, organic tomato pulp, citric acid, calcium chloride, organic tomato paste, citric acid, organic cream, a long list of other organic ingredients and finally citric acid. Why you might ask is there so much citric acid listed and is it organic? Evidently not or it would have been listed as “organic citric acid.”
The fact is that citric acid does not even come from citric fruit like oranges or lemons. You might have envisioned workers pouring vats of freshly squeezed lemon or orange juice into the product. No, my good friend, citric acid is a product derived from GMO corn! Cheap corn permeates every facet of the American diet … even organics! Its derivatives including citric acid are used as preservatives, taste enhancers and a whole variety of other things.
Citric acid is produced using a mold, Aspergillus niger. The mold is grown in the presence of a carbohydrate to produce citric acid. In order to get higher yields, genetically modified Aspergillus niger is employed. Besides the genetically modified mold being used, the carbohydrate “food” that the mold metabolizes is often genetically modified corn.
Why, you might ask, is an ingredient derived from GMO corn allowed to go under the name of “citric acid”? This is from cornucopia.org:
On September 26, 2012, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a rule that continues its policy of allowing the indiscriminate and illegal addition of synthetic nutrients to organic foods. Nutrients occur naturally in foods, and many are essential for good health. But organic consumers expect the nutrients in their foods to be naturally occurring rather than added synthetics that are mass produced in factories by chemical corporations, often using hazardous petrochemical substances.
So USDA policy allows the “indiscriminate and illegal use” of synthetic products such as those derived from GMO corn and they also allow the description of those products on the packaging in a deceptive manner as long as it is chemically identical to the real thing. Even if you buy organic, the citric acid in that organic food is most likely made with GMO products and processes unless explicitly stated to the contrary.
Why is citric acid used in foods? It sharpens taste and acts as a food preservative. That’s why it’s in so many organic packaged food products. Citric acid is found in a huge number of products and is used in numerous processes: from shampoo to soda to cheese to beer making to candy to medicine to varnish remover.
Citric acid has been linked to gastrointestinal problems and also to problems associated with the loss of dental enamel. In a study at the University of Bristol, UK, the increasing incidence of enamel erosion was causally connected to the high amounts of citric acid added to drinks and food.
It is important to check the nutrition list on the labels of packaged organic products to avoid exposure to GMOs. Citric acid is one of the worst offenders. It may be chemically identical to citric acid from oranges and lemons, but it was produced in an industrial process not involving any citric fruits whatsoever. In fact it was probably produced using a GMO mold and GMO corn.
It is better to deal with local farmers since most organic products found in stores come from food giants which have bought out what started as small organic operations. In 1995 there were 81 independent organic processing companies in the United States. A decade later, Big Food had gobbled up all but 15 of them. Many iconic organic brands are owned by the titans of junk food, processed food and sugary beverages—the same corporations that spent millions to defeat GMO labeling initiatives in California and Washington. General Mills (which owns Muir Glen, Cascadian Farm, and LaraBar), Coca-Cola (Honest Tea, Odwalla), J.M. Smucker (R.W. Knudsen, Santa Cruz Organic), and many other corporate owners of organic brands contributed big bucks to deny citizens’ right to know what is in their food.
Other Big Food operators who have found it lucrative to get into the organic market are the following. The amounts they’ve contributed to fight GMO labeling in California (Prop 37) and Washington State (I-522) are in parenthesis:
- PepsiCo ($4.8M) – IZZE, Naked Juice, Simply Frito-Lay, Starbucks Frappucino
- Coca-Cola ($3.2M) – Honest Tea, Odwalla
- Nestle ($3M) – Gerber Organic, Sweet Leaf tea
- Kraft/Mondelez ($2.4M) – Boca Burgers, Green and Black’s
- General Mills ($2.1M) – Cascadian Farm, Larabar, Muir Glen
- ConAgra Foods ($2M) – Alexia, Pam organic cooking sprays
- Kelloggs ($1.1M) – Bear Naked, Gardenburger, Kashi, Morningstar Farms
- Campbells ($980k) – Plum Organics, Wolfgang Puck organic soups
- Smuckers ($900k) – R.W. Knudsen, Santa Cruz organic, Smuckers Organic
- Hershey’s ($880k) – Dagoba
- Bimbo Bakeries ($560k) – Earthgrains bread
- McCormick ($400k) – Simply Asia, Thai Kitchen
On a positive note:
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2014 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA is making a historic $78 million investment in local and regional food systems, including food hubs, farmers markets, aggregation and processing facilities, distribution services, and other local food business enterprises.
“The 2014 Farm Bill has given USDA new tools, resources and authority to support the rural economy,” Vilsack said. “Consumer demand for locally-produced food is strong and growing, and farmers and ranchers are positioning their businesses to meet that demand. As this sector continues to mature, we see aggregation, processing, and distribution enterprises across the local food supply chain growing rapidly. These historic USDA investments in support of local food give farmers and ranchers more market opportunities, provide consumers with more choices, and create jobs in both rural and urban communities.”
Russia is considering legislation to criminalize GMO foods describing GMO food producers as terrorists. France, the largest agricultural producer in Europe, is preparing to restore a GMO maize ban in their country. Twenty-six countries, including Switzerland, Australia, Austria, China, India, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Greece, Bulgaria, Poland, Italy and Mexico, have a total or partial ban on GMOs. Significant restrictions on GMOs exist in about sixty other countries.
On May 8, Peter Shumlin, Governor of Vermont, signed a historic bill requiring food manufacturers to label genetically engineered (GE) foods, and to drop the practice of labeling GE foods as “natural” or “all natural.” Monsanto and the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) has threatened to sue the state of Vermont. New research has found that glyphosate, the primary ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup, is actually found in the breast milk of women, leading to damage to underdeveloped human beings.
In 2014, half the states will likely consider placing special labels on food that use genetically modified organisms (GMOs), according to Pamela M. Prah at PEW’s Stateline. “Big Food” is ready for the challenge though and will use its influence and resources to protect profits gained from GMOs that are found in 80 percent of the food America consumes.
John Lawrence
Latest posts by John Lawrence (see all)
- Economist Kenneth Arrow, Nobel Laureate, Dead at 95 - March 22, 2017
- Container Ships Burn Dirtiest Fuel: the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Could Change That - March 15, 2017
- Cities and States Prefer Public Banks To Wall Street - March 7, 2017
You have your facts wrong. The 5% of allowed non-organic ingredients cannot be derived from GMOs, and this is verified during an organic inspection. The same is true of the 30% non-organic ingredients allowed in a “Made With Organic” labeled product. There is no basis for the assertion that synthetics allowed for use in organic products is ‘illegal.’ Small organic processors also use citric and ascorbic acid, as do home canners.
You say that “The 5% of allowed non-organic ingredients cannot be derived from GMOs”. However, the citric acid which is used in organic products is derived from GMO corn.
You are correct, John. The organisms that are used to produce the citric acid must be shown to be of a non-genetically modified origin, but the substrate itself, which is considered to be m/l consumed in its entirety by the organism, does not have to be from non-gmo material, although it certainly can be.
Thanks Grace. The facts in this article are indeed false. Per the NOP Organic Regulation, all products labeled as “Organic – 95%” must have at least 95% Organic content, the remaining 5% of ingredients must be on the National List ( NOP Manual section 205.605 and 205.606) and all processing aids must also be on the National List. In addition, the non-organic ingredients must provide verification of Non-GMO and that Irradiation and Sewage Sludge were not used in the production of the ingredient.
http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&SID=9874504b6f1025eb0e6b67cadf9d3b40&rgn=div6&view=text&node=7:3.1.1.9.32.7&idno=7
The fact that citric acid is on the National List of Allowed Substances is testimony to the fact that lobbyists have managed to place there a substance derived from GMO corn.
This is from the website, Is Organic Always GMO Free?:
“If USDA certification requires at least 95% of content to be organic, and a GMO ingredient can’t be included in that 5%, then USDA Organic is GMO-free, right? Not always. Depending on the product, sometimes there are tiny loopholes.
“Says Barry Estabrook (author of Politics of the Plate) in this excellent article: “The casings for those tasty USDA Organic sausages can come from conventionally raised animals that have been fed antibiotics (or GMO-laden corn). The hops in your favorite organic beer can be sprayed with all manner of chemical pesticides and fertilizers.”
“The USDA’s loophole list also includes two far more common ingredients: non-organic cornstarch (which in our opinion is long overdue for removal from the “acceptable” list, considering how many sources of organic cornstarch are now readily available to commercial food manufacturers), and soy lecithin (though only one form of soy lecithin is allowed, and only when an organic option is not available).
“The loophole list includes a few surprises too, such as the use of antibiotics on organic apples and pears, in order to prevent fire blight. Fortunately the National Organics Standards Board recently decided to disallow this practice effective October 2014.
“How are these organic loopholes possible? Typically it’s because there is no readily available, commercially manufactured organic option for that particular product or ingredient (though in the case of organic cornstarch, we beg to differ).
“But sometimes there’s another reason… says Barry: “The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), which has the power to determine what materials can — and cannot — be used in organic production, too often weakens regulations in the face of intense lobbying by corporations who are more interested in the higher profits conferred by the word “organic” than in strong and meaningful standards.” And let’s just remember how much Monsanto has invested in corporate lobbying dollars…”
I think this explains how the National List of Allowed Substances violates the USDA’s own policy. The GMO Aspergillus niger mold that is combined with number 2 GMO corn to produce “citric acid” (which is really a misnomer) is definitely a GMO product that violates the USDA’s own policy thanks to the Big Food lobbyists that slipped this one (and probably a lot of others) by the USDA.
This is exactly the reason there was such a ruckus at the recent NOSB meeting in Texas. The NOP does not understand, or want to understand the simple fact that the “Organic” food movement began with people simply not wanting any unnatural or synthetic ingredients in their food. That simple fact is not conducive to big business, so this is another example of how corporations have become oppressive and unconcerned with anything other than their profit margins. Is this a surprise? The questions for me, are “Why do so many people not care about what they are forced to eat?”, and, “What will it take for people to wake up?” Thanks for your honest reporting.
Hi John Thanks for the news article about GMOs and organics. Why does this not shock me? Because every move in business in the country {and others also
} goes back to “the bottom line”, the almighty dollar. The religion of materialism has won again! gracie
Why is it that US Citizens cannot get the various food agencies( USDA, FDA, EPA ) to function as they were conceived to function?
Why is it that we cannot purge these organizations of the BIG FOOD corruption and influence in their ranks?
Why is it that numerous presidents continue to appoint ex-Monsanto employees and others that are not supportive of a healthy and safe food supply?
Why? Because it appears that our agencies are so very corrupted by the monetary influences that provide personal gain for the various bureaucrats running the agencies.
What a terrible situation that our own government doesn’t care about the health and food safety of USA citizens. It looks like the government only cares about itself. Sad, sad, sad. I don’t think this is ever going to change in my lifetime.
Roc Rinaldi
Baltimore, MD
These alphabet agencies of the corrupt U.S. government are put there to protect the profits of corporations ,not you and me!
The organic misinformation campaign falsely alleges that organic food is pesticide free. Here is a list of approved ‘natural’ organic pesticides, many od which are more toxic than synthetic alternatives. http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/CoopExt/4DMG/VegFruit/organic.htm its ironic that activists are urging the epa to ban neocontinoids, which are approved for use on organic farms.
Here is a blog discussing the cost implications of labeling. Hint: its more than ink.http://thefoodiefarmer.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-costs-of-gmo-labeling.html?m=1
It seems that the author wants people to consume less nutritious food in his rAnt against citric acid. Those who want to avoid gmos should avoid cheese is from gmo bacteria and insulin for diabetics.
Some countries are still testing gmos and have not approved them, which is different from a ban. Europe imports tons if gmos from the us. Monsanto is off patent coffee, alcohol, aspirin and table salt are more toxic to humans than roundup.