Organic foods are produced by farmers that do not use many of the conventional synthetic pesticides, rather they use only specific pesticides defined by the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP). Organic food production under the NOP is defined by the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) of 1990. In addition to regulating the pesticides and other chemicals that can be used in organic food production, the NOP also regulates the harvest and handling of those foods as well as the organic claims on the product labels.

Additional Resources

• Consumer and Labeling FAQ - Oregon Tilth
• Organic Regulations - US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• Organic Certification - US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• Labeling Organic Products - US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances - US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) of 1990 - US Department of Ag (USDA)
• National Organic Program - US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• The Certification Process - Oregon Tilth
• OMRI Certified Product List - Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI)
• Labeling Packaged Products under the National Organic Standards - US Department of Ag (USDA)
• Labeling of Pesticide Products under the National Organic Program - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Organic Production Surveys - US Department of Ag (USDA), National Agricultural Statistics Service
• eOrganic - eXtension Resource Area for Organic Agriculture - eOrganic

If you have questions about this, or any pesticide-related topic, please call NPIC at 800-858-7378 (8:00am - 12:00pm PST), or email at npic@ace.orst.edu.