What exactly does "organic" mean? Technically, organic foods are those made without the use of external products (like pesticides or hormones, for instance). However, that's not necessarily what the "organic" label means on the products you purchase. Those labels are certified by the USDA, and their definition of "organic" has loopholes that allow companies to misrepresent their products.

It's mostly due to a clause in USDA rules that allows for manufacturers to use nonorganic ingredients if organic versions are not "commercially available." But because this language is vague, and because the organizations enforcing this rule are ineffective, big companies have easily found their way around this barrier.

In response, the USDA is trying to create a specific list of nonorganic ingredients that will be allowed in USDA-certified organic products. While this would make the distinction between organic and nonorganic more cut and dry, the USDA has proposed a list of 38 ingredients -- thus allowing for a wide variety nonorganic products to carry the coveted label.

This is a huge setback for consumers, who will now have no way to determine which products are actually organic, and which are simply labeled that way.