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Are OMRI Listed® products available to help remove ethylene from my processing facility?
By Doug Currier
Ethylene gas, a natural plant hormone, is biosynthesized naturally by many parts of a plant. It has multiple biological functions, which include stimulating fruit ripening. Ethylene production within a plant increases when stressors such as cutting or chilling occur during harvest and post-harvest handling. Where some organic growers purposefully add ethylene gas in post-harvest handling to ripen tropical fruits (...
A processor wants to use a baker’s yeast that lists sorbitan monostearate as a component of the yeast. Is sorbitan monostearate synthetic, and is it allowed?
By Lindsay Fernandez-Salvador
Sorbitan monostearate is a synthetic ester that is commonly used in the manufacture of food and health care products as a surfactant with emulsifying, dispersing, and wetting properties. It is used in yeast manufacturing to protect the yeast from excess drying and also helps rehydrate the yeast cells. Most of the baker’s yeast on the...
I know that glycerin is listed as an allowed nonorganically produced agricultural ingredient for food processing, but I have also seen it in products used as crop inputs for organic agriculture—does glycerin have a nonsynthetic form?
By Sam Schaefer-Joel
Glycerin, also known as glycerol, is a small molecule with a large variety of uses. Its viscosity, polarity, solubility, and hygroscopic (water absorbing) properties give it a wide range of applications in agriculture, food processing, medicine, microbiology and...
How do the National Organic Program (NOP) regulations apply to the manufacture or use of metal proteinates in livestock feed?
By Amber Lippert
A metal proteinate is a mixture of a mineral (such as zinc sulfate) with a protein carrier (such as hydrolyzed soy protein meal). During mixing the metal compound (mineral) and ligand (protein source) bond together and create a chelate complex with more than one binding site. The chelated trace mineral is stable and protected during digestion from chemical reactions that would...
Is reverse osmosis permitted to treat water used in organic food processing?
By Brian Baker
Reverse osmosis (RO) is a technique that moves water under pressure through a semi-permeable membrane to remove impurities. RO membranes are permeable to the water and impermeable to the impurities. These membranes are comprised of synthetic substances such as cellulose acetate or polyamides.
Because water is not an agricultural ingredient and is netted out of the organic content in processed food, RO treated water does...
What is colloidal silver and can I use it for organic livestock?
By Brian Baker, Ph.D.
Silver naturally occurs in small concentrations in colloidal clays. These clays are called colloidal silver. Natural mineral deposits such as colloidal clays are permitted for use in organic livestock production under the NOP. To determine that it is natural, an interested user should demonstrate that the material is mined and mechanically processed without any additional chemical processing or synthetic additives.
Users...
The OMRI Generic Materials List© says that rockwool is synthetic and thus prohibited for use in organic agriculture. After doing some research, it looks to me like it is made from a natural basaltic rock. Why does OMRI consider it synthetic?
By Lindsay Fernandez-Salvador
Rockwool, also called mineral, rock, or slag wool, is one of the most popular growing mediums in hydroponics operations due to its versatility and water retention characteristics. It is manufactured from melting basaltic rock...
Can nonorganic yeast be used in organic processing?
By Corinne Kolm
Nonorganic yeast may be used in organic processing under certain conditions. In October 2012, the National Organic Program (NOP) rules for the use of yeast in processed goods changed to include a commercial availability clause when the yeast is used in a product for human consumption. This change means that organic yeast must be used in human food products unless organic yeast is not “commercially available,” defined as “the ability to obtain a...
I see maltodextrin on the ingredient lists of various livestock feed additives. What is maltodextrin and is this material allowed for organic production?
By Sam Schaefer-Joel
Maltodextrin molecules are composed of short chains of glucose units. These chains, or polymers, are generally 3 to 17 glucose units in length. Maltodextrin and other short chains of sugars are referred to as oligosaccharides. Commonly spray dried and sold as a powder, maltodextrin may also be purchased in a syrup form dissolved in water.
To...
Is sodium bicarbonate allowed in organic processing from any source, or are only some forms acceptable?
By Brian Baker
There are two common processes used to make sodium bicarbonate: the Solvay process and the Trona process. In the Solvay process, limestone is mined and heated to produce carbon dioxide and quicklime (calcium oxide). The carbon dioxide is reacted with a saturated solution of ammonia in salt brine, resulting in the formation of ammonium bicarbonate. Continuous injection of carbon dioxide to the ammonium...
