If your products are USDA Certified organic, why don’t you have that circle green and white logo that accompanies that distinction on the products?

Quick question. I was thinking about this last night while using one of the organic liquid castile soaps from your company. If your products are USDA Certified organic, why don’t you have that circle green and white logo that accompanies that distinction on the products? Thanks!

–Julie

Hi Julie,

Many thanks for your question. The answer is that in this country there are 3 levels of organic. 100% Organic (self explanatory), 95% Organic (These can be labeled as Organic, as in Organic Soap. The remaining 5% has to be natural, but not certified organic); and Made with Organic.

In the US, soap is always a “Made with Organic” product. When we sell soap in Europe our products are almost all 95% to 100% Certified Organic.

What’s the difference? In Europe, alkali, the processing aid that is used to convert organic oils to organic soap, is NOT counted as an ingredient. In the US it IS. Since soap products use up to 16% alkali by weight, they always fall into the Made With category stateside.

Only products in the 95% or 100% organic content category are allowed to sport the nifty USDA logo on them.

This does make it harder to separate ourselves from the muck and the mire of ordinary wannabe fake organic products. It is what we have to work with at present!

Keep it clean and natural!

The Soapman

 

 

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