The Cornucopia Institute is a national food and farm policy
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...
non-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
watchdog group with the stated goal of upholding the integrity of
organic,
local
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...
, and other forms of alternative agriculture.
Cornucopia has exposed factory-farming conditions at organic egg production facilities confining tens of thousands of hens per building with inadequate outdoor access, and at organic dairies, where thousands of cows have no access to pasture in
concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO).
Their ongoing “flyover project” has resulted in high-resolution aerial photography of unethical organic livestock facilities across the country.
Cornucopia produces reports and consumer scorecards that rate organic and natural brands of eggs, pet food, yogurt, soy foods, and breakfast cereals. They have also reported on the food additives
carrageenan
Carrageenans or carrageenins ( ; ) are a family of natural linear sulfation, sulfated polysaccharides. They are extracted from red algae, red edible seaweeds. Carrageenans are widely used in the food industry, for their gelling, thickening, an ...
and
DHA. In addition, Cornucopia has released white papers and reports covering current issues in organics such as a
Hydroponics
Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of #Passive sub-irrigation, hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral Plant nutrition, nutrient Solution (chemi ...
White Paper (2015), a Children’s Health Report (2015), and an Organic Watergate White Paper (2011). They also have produced a scorecard of
organic certifiers, the organizations responsible for ensuring organic producers have followed the USDA’s organic rules.
The Cornucopia Institute also takes legal action on organic integrity issues, for instance having filed complaint against
Dean Foods
Dean Foods was an American food and beverage company and the largest dairy company in the United States. The company's products included milk, ice cream, dairy products, cheese, juice, and teas. It processed milk in the United States under a numb ...
(White Wave), based on the use of the term
organic.
It challenged a
USDA
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...
marketing order related to
almond
The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...
s, and has filed complaints with the USDA about certain practices of
Aurora Organic Dairy
Aurora Organic Dairy is an American company, based in Boulder, Colorado, which operates large factory farms, each with thousands of dairy cows, in Colorado and Texas. The company supplies and packages private-label, store-brand, organic dairy pro ...
,
Horizon Organic
Horizon Organic is an American company that produces organic milk and other organic food products. The largest supplier of organic milk in North America, its products are sold in supermarkets and grocery stores.
Founded in 1991, it produces org ...
,
Silk
Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
, and others, as they relate to organic standards and regulations. In 2016, Cornucopia filed suit against the USDA alleging that
agribusiness
Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy,
in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise.
The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit ...
personnel were improperly appointed to seats reserved for organic farmers on the
National Organic Standards Board The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) is an advisory board that makes recommendations to the United States Secretary of Agriculture on organic food and products. Members are appointed by the Secretary and these make recommendations, one of the ...
.
Notes
External links
*{{official website, http://www.cornucopia.org
Non-profit organizations based in Wisconsin
Agricultural organizations based in the United States
Bayfield County, Wisconsin