037 GGW – Organic Labeling with OMRI CEO, Peggy Miars

Click the Arrow to Listen Now

Organic labeling is becoming more common on the food and products we buy these days. While “Certified Organic” has become well know when it comes to selecting chemical-free edibles, there’s another label that matters just as much when it comes to identifying the products that go into making those edibles certified. In this podcast, host Joe Lamp’l has a conversation with OMRI’s (Organic Materials Review Institute) CEO, Peggy Miars, who walks us through the role that OMRI plays when it comes to organic labeling, and why it matters to household consumers.

GGW037 Show Notes

Organic Labeling with OMRI’s CEO & Executive Director, Peggy Miars

OMRI's CEO & Executive Director, Peggy Miars

Our guest today is Peggy Miars. As OMRI’s newly appointed Executive Director & CEO she’s well poised to keep OMRI growing and pointed in the right direction. She’s the former Executive Director/CEO for California Certified Organic Farmers and she’s also held marketing and management positions with Earthbound Farm, Whole Foods, Granary Market, and various nonprofit organizations, as well as running her own marketing consulting business.

Organic labeling, and specifically the OMRI listing from the Organic Materials Review Institute is becoming more important to people all over this country as we search for ways to know the food we’re putting in our bodies and the products we’re using to grow it are safe for us and our environment. At this point, we’re all pretty much familiar with “Certified Organic” that you see on certain food products. Yet the OMRI listing is showing up more and more these days on many of the products that are used to produce the food that ultimately become Certified Organic.

OMRI is a national nonprofit organization and their main job is to determine which input products are allowed for use in organic production and processing. The reason that’s important is that OMRI Listed—or Approved—products can be used on operations that become certified organic under the USDA National Organic Program.

If you have a question or comment, you can call our comment line and leave a recorded message any time at 202.337.0375 or send me an email at heyjoe@joegardener.com. And be sure to check out our website for all the podcasts and show notes in this series as well as all the episodes from our television series by the same name. You can also watch Chef Nathan Lyon’s cooking videos, get the recipes, read articles and so much more. Lastly, we’re on Facebook and Twitter and I hope you’ll follow us there as well.

Thanks for listening and we’ll be back soon with another brand new podcast episode.

Joe Lamp’l

Special Thanks:

MSC Certification Label

This podcast episode was made possible thanks to the support of the Mulch & Soil Council. If you want to know that the bagged mulch or soil that you’re buying is free of unacceptable contaminants, such as arsenic from pressure treated wood, make sure that it has the certification seal on the bag. Learn more at their website; mulchandsoilcouncil.org.

Special Request:

If you like this podcast episode or series, would you mind taking the time to leave a favorable comment in the iTunes Store saying so? It really helps us get the word out about our show. The more great reviews we get, the more we get noticed by the folks at iTunes and the better our chances of others finding us. Thanks in advance!