There are a few different organic labels out there. Only one relates directly to foods: the USDA Organic seal. However, as a health conscious consumer, you’re likely also concerned about the organic standards of other products as well, such as personal care products. Here’s a rundown of the four main organic labels out there and what they mean.

USDA Organic Seal – The USDA Organic seal is your best assurance of organic quality, and it's the international gold standard for organic personal care. Where personal care products are concerned, if you don’t see the USDA Certified Organic seal, the word “organic” doesn’t mean a thing. It must specify USDA to be meaningful. The ingredients in USDA certified beauty products are certified organic for food, adhering to much stricter standards as they are intended specifically for human consumption.

Growers and manufacturers of organic products bearing the USDA seal have to meet the strictest standards of any of the currently available organic labels.

The USDA's National Organic Program (NOP) took effect October 21, 2002, and regulates the standards for any farm, wild crop harvesting, or handling operation that wants to sell an agricultural product as organically produced. The labeling applies to raw, fresh products and processed products that contain organic agricultural ingredients.

In order to qualify as organic, a product must be grown and processed using organic farming methods that recycle resources and promote biodiversity. Crops must be grown without synthetic pesticides, bioengineered genes, petroleum-based fertilizers, or sewage sludge-based fertilizers.

Organic livestock must have access to the outdoors and cannot be given antibiotics or growth hormones.

• Products labeled "100 percent organic" must contain only organically produced materials
• Products labeled simply "organic" must contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients, whereas
• the label "made with organic ingredients" can contain anywhere between 70 to 95 percent organic ingredients

Organic products cannot be irradiated, are not allowed to contain preservatives or flavor enhancing chemicals, nor can they contain traces of heavy metals or other contaminants in excess of of tolerances set by the FDA.. The pesticide residue level cannot be higher than 5 percent of the maximum EPA Pesticide Tolerance.

Personal care products bearing the USDA organic seal must contain at least 95 percent certified-organic ingredients, and cannot contain added sulfites.