Imported food, beverage and dietary supplements offered for sale as “organic” in the United States must be certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP), or under a program with equivalent standards. Labeling products as organic that are not certified can result in refusal of entry into the U.S., fines for each violation and/or criminal enforcement actions. 

Imports can meet these standards in one of three ways:

1. The product was certified by an agency accredited through the NOP. Accredited agencies are listed in the USDA’s INTEGRITY database, available online.
2. The product was produced under an equivalency arrangement with a foreign country. The only countries with equivalency agreements with the U.S. are Canada, the European Union, Japan, Korea and Switzerland.   
3. The product was produced under a recognition agreement, which is an agreement with foreign countries that do not have equivalent organic standards. These agreements allow specifi...