The USDA, in the spirit of “If you can't beat 'em, join 'em,” has jumped on the 'organic' bandwagon, changing what that word used to mean. While the 'organic' label used to stand for quality and agricultural integrity, the standards set down by the government are geared toward large corporations' bottom lines, rather than nutrition, flavor and social benefits. The focus now is almost exclusively on the removal of toxic chemicals. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, it is backwards to define organic by what it does not contain, rather than to focus on the superior health benefits provided by properly grown food. As a response to the disintegration of the original meaning of 'organic,' Maine farmer Eliot Coleman has suggested an alternative word: 'authentic.' This term, Coleman suggests, should be used to describe products from growers who are concerned with providing food that is “fresh, ripe, safe and nourishing,” as well as being free of genetically modified elements. He suggests several criteria by which a product can be defined as 'authentic,' but essentially, he says, it would mean that “all agricultural practices used on farms selling under this label are chosen to produce foods of the highest nutritional quality.”

To read more about Eliot Coleman's definition of 'authentic,' please see his article which appeared in Mother Earth News: www.motherearthnews.com.