Only Certified Organic Dog Food Products Are Regulated

December 13, 2008 by tdomf_ef7f5
Filed under Eco-Friendly, Health, Shopping

As an organic pet food business owner, I want to share a little known fact:
In the US, only certified organic pet food claims are regulated and enforced by law. All other (non-certified) organic claims are not regulated or enforced by law – all these other organic claims can be ab-used freely and without consequences by pet food manufacturers. This means that an organic dog food may or may not contain organic ingredients, but no unbiased third party can verify any of these (non-certified) organic claims.

All certified organic dog food claims have undergone the same stringent verification processes as they apply to certified organic foods for human consumption. This means among others: Full disclosure of records and books including organic and GMO-free status and sources of used ingredients, manufacturing processes (no GMOs or toxins are allowed during ingredient growth or product processing), and repeated inspections of the manufacturing facility.

Certified organic dog food products (foods and treats) are inspected by an independent USDA-accredited organic certifying agency and contain at least 95% certified organic ingredients, the remainder are allowed ingredients such as calcium carbonate and currently still all fish. In certified organic dog food products, no non-certified organic ingredients are allowed if such ingredients are available in organic form. No synthetics, and no food ingredients are allowed which cannot be traced back to their source (this excludes automatically any undefined animal fats, byproducts, or rendered meats, or products that contain external hormones or antibiotics).

Signs of verified organic (i.e., certified organic) dog (and other pet) food products are: the USDA organic seal, the name of the organic certifying agency (this has to be on the label), and the certified organic claim.

An organic claim by itself may or may not buy you a truly organic dog food, it certainly is not substantiated by an unbiased party.

As one State compliance officer at CDFA (California Department of Food and Agriculture) wrote in 2008: It is buyer be ware of any pet food product that does not show that it is certified by one of the NOP (National Organic Program) certification agents. A Green Seal certifier noted in 2008, that (USDA) organic certification is the best and most credible label for pet and human food products, also in respect to any green claims.

Now, only consumers need to be properly informed to be able to make a wise decision!

If interested, you can read more about this or similar topics on our blogs or News page at www.onestaorganics.com