2014-04-12: Replay of Interview with Jane Wade about the certification processes of organic food

Summary: History of organic food regulations in the United States; The "links in a chain" of regulations from the origin of the seed through farmers and processors; The "organic system plan" customizes the regulations and inspections for individual organic farmers; Isolation between organic foods and non-organic is monitored at all steps from growing to processing and distribution; Organic products cannot be contain GMO or be irradiated; All ingredients from all over the world have to meet the same standards to be accepted as US organic; California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) covers all of North America and originated by merging standards from many separate organic certifiers; The USDA regulates the organic certifying organizations with yearly audits; The organizational structure of the national standards board and the politics of big agribusiness; The origins of organic farming in the 1970's and the difficult process of setting national standards; Reasons for organic farming, from not eating pesticides to soil health, like all farming was a few generations ago; Traceability of farming details is important for food safety; The US farm bill needs to support small organic farming; Environmental advantages to reducing pesticides and the important issue of loosing bees for pollination; Organic is healthier because plants resist bugs using chemicals defense such as vitamins and antioxidants that are good for us; Explaining why organic food cost more and the advantages of farmers' markets and sourcing locally