How the USDA Defines Organic

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And what this means for soap and skin care

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DON'T BE FOOLED!
Organic certification is the only way you can be sure a company's products truly comply with organic standards. No certification = No proof = Not organic.

 

Sales of organic products are on the rise, with growth rates averaging over 20% per year. Not surprisingly, many companies are trying to catch the wave by offering their own "organic" products for sale – so many that it can become unclear what the word "organic" means when it's used. And it raises the question: How do organic standards apply to soap and skin care products?

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The USDA's National Organic Program (NOP) provides the benchmark, global standard for defining organic. Within the NOP, there are three levels of certification. A product's classification is based on the total percentage of its organic ingredients (without counting water or salt). Here's what they mean, and then we'll discuss how the standards apply to soap and skin care.

 

USDA Organic Definitions

 

1) "100% Organic"

This means just what the name implies.

 

2) "Organic"

The term "organic" applies to products that contain a minimum of 95% organic contents by weight. Usually, these are products that contain a small amount of a natural preservative or processing aid that prevents them from reaching the 100% mark. For example, many fixed oils (such as palm and coconut oil) contain a trace amount of citric acid to increase their shelf life. Importantly, these trace ingredients must conform to the USDA's list of approved ingredients that can be used in organic products.

 

3) "Made with Organic..."

"Made with Organic..." applies to products that contain a minimum of 70% organic content but do not reach the 95% mark. The USDA has determined that 70% is the minimum amount of organic content a product can have and still use the term "organic" in its labeling and marketing. Here, too, a product's ingredients that are not-certified organic must conform with the USDA's list of allowable products.

 

How this Applies to Soap and Skin Care

Because of their chemistry, bar soaps can never reach the 95% level of organic content. Organic soap and skin care products are among the most misrepresented organic products. This has to do with formulation issues, labeling requirements, and a misrepresentation of the standards. All bar soaps, and most skin care products, fall short of the 95% organic mark. Bar soaps require sodium hydroxide (NaOH, or lye) for their production. Sodium hydroxide is on the allowed list of non-organic ingredients that can be used in making organic products, and it accounts for approximately 10-15% of the ingredients, by weight (not including water or salt and depending on the recipe). Even if every other ingredient in a bar soap were certified organic, the soap would never have an organic content of more than 90%, as this is the maximum level of organic content in a bar soap.

 

Sometimes, manufacturers "cheat" a bit to reach higher organic content levels. Take lotion for example. A typical lotion has water among its ingredients, which does not count in any way toward organic content levels. However, by steeping organic herbs in this water first, some manufacturers claim their water is "organic," thus counting it as an organic ingredient and raising their products' organic content levels. As always, it is crucial to understand the standards and read the labels.

 

It is also important to verify whether or not a company's products are certified according to organic standards. Many companies claim to use organic ingredients or call their products organic; however, few have actual certification, which is the only proof for the claim. Part of the certification process includes proving an audit trail and showing the ability to trace any organic product sold back to its original organic ingredients.

 

At LUSU Vital Essence, we maintain a minimum organic content level of 85% in all our bar soaps. We have also taken the additional step of becoming certified under the USDA National Organic Program. Our certifying agency is the Montana Department of Agriculture.

 

Organic options

 

Organic Certification

LUSU Vital Essence Soap maintains an organic certificate issued in accordance with the USDA National Organic Program. As our customer, you have access to this powerful marketing tool and can piggy-back on our organic certificate. Please note: even though you are using our certificate, this process still requires a lot of work and compliance with policy from you as well as an additional cost per item sold. We will help you through each step of the process.

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Clarification About Organic

The term "organic" is often misunderstood as it applies to soap. Soap (all soap, even transparent glycerin soap) is the product of a full chemical reaction that limits its organic content percentage. As such, it falls into the USDA’s organic category called "Made with Organic…" for products with organic content between 70% and 94%. It is chemically impossible to reach levels higher than about 90% in a true soap, and any company claiming to do so does not understand the organic certification process. All our bar soaps come in at approximately 85% organic content by weight, and our liquid soaps are 81-82%. Both fully qualify in the USDA National Organic Program.