Consumers Union Criticizes Proposed Organic Seafood Standards

WASHINGTON — Ninety-three percent of consumers say that fish labeled “organic” should be raised while consuming a 100% organic diet, just like other certified organic poultry and livestock, according to a recent survey from Consumers Union, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group and publisher of Consumer Reports magazine.

The group cited this survey yesterday in a critique of a new set of standards recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Organic Standards Board that will allow seafood to carry the USDA Certified Organic label.

Consumers Union said that these recommendations, which will allow the use of open-net cage systems in organic aquaculture operations, and will not require a 100% organic diet for farmed fish, will “dilute the meaning of the trusted organic label.”

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