It's hard to know what’s actually in your
BreadFruitMilkFlourPoultryCerealCottonYogurtVegetablesMeat
It doesn’t have to be.
Think organic is just about fruits and veggies? Think again!
You can find the USDA Organic seal on everything from your morning cereal to the chicken you’re having for dinner.
Wherever you shop, just look for the seal.
Skip the guesswork. Get the good stuff.
Good for You, Great for the Planet
Your choice makes a difference beyond your kitchen:
Shopping made simple
You don't need to research every brand or memorize ingredient lists.
Just look for the USDA Organic seal.
Whether you're filling your fridge or restocking your bathroom shelf, just look for the seal—it’s your trusted guide to choose products that are good for you and your family.
From your weekly grocery run to stocking up on personal care items, the seal takes the guesswork out of shopping with your values.
Ready to give it a try?
Want to Dive Deeper?
Explore research and stories behind the seal at The Organic Center.
The Organic Trade Association’s (OTA) Data Policy refers to our commitment to treat information of members, stakeholders and other interested parties with the utmost care and confidentiality.
With this policy, we ensure that we gather, store and handle data fairly, transparently and with respect towards individual rights.
If you have any comments or questions about this notice, contact us with the subject “Data Policy Inquiry” at info@ota.com.
Scope
This policy refers to all parties (members, product purchasers, etc.) who provide any amount of information to us.
Who is covered under the Data Protection Policy?
Employees of our company and its subsidiaries must follow this policy. OTA Member Community leaders, contractors, consultants, partners and other external entities ("data users") are also covered in accordance with their own policies. Generally, this policy applies to anyone we collaborate with or who acts on our behalf and requires access to data to further the mission and values of the OTA.
Policy Elements
To fulfill our mission, we need to collect and use information from our members. This includes offline or online data that makes an organization and its employees identifiable such as names, titles, addresses, facility data, etc.
We collect this information transparently:
At the start of an organization’s membership
During event registration
Through website forms
Via third-party vendors
Once collected, the following rules apply:
Data will be accurate and updated as needed
Collected fairly and for lawful purposes only
Processed within legal and moral boundaries
Shared minimally with authorized data users
Stored securely with MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication)
Our data will not be:
Sold to third parties
Shared informally
Transferred to entities with inadequate data protection
Distributed beyond the mission of OTA (except for law enforcement)
OTA has responsibilities toward data subjects, including to:
Inform them about what data is collected
Explain how and why data is processed
Clarify who has access to it
Provide provisions for compromised data
Allow access to modify or delete personal data (via OTA Member Portal in 2025)
How We Use Collected Data
We use your data in ways appropriate to the original collection purpose. OTA data users access member data only to provide and operate services.
Dept/Data Users
Purpose
Data Available for Use (Key Elements)
Example(s)
Note: The examples stated below are not to be considered an exhaustive list as there may/will be other departmental uses for the available data.
Industry-specific email notification on an issue with a product/item
General information emails such as bi-weekly News Flash
Photographs taken of speakers and participants at Organic Week
Events (In person, virtual)
Registration and Event Outreach
Invitations to OTA events (general or industry-specific)
B2B connections via event apps and/or breakout sessions
Attendance information for other attendees or sponsors
Photographs taken of speakers and participants at Organic Week
Speakers presentations
Finance & Administration
Invoicing
Payments
Grant Reporting
Auditing
Payment captures via our merchant vendor apps
Receipts
Legislative
Outreach
Congressional Information Sheets
Aggregate publishing for OTA membership footprint by district
Contact information for congressional staff for in-district members
International
Outreach
Grant Reporting
Industry Presentations
Federal Market Access Program (MAP) grants require detailed trip reports of attendees
Media/Press
Press Releases
Press Hearings
Contact information for media-screened outreach
Membership
Outreach for Membership Information and Engagement Opportunities
Meeting outreach for sponsorship and engagement opportunities
Communicating digital advertising opportunities
Member Communities
Council Participant direct communication
Communications sent through OTA’s member communities’ listserv
Peer-to-peer outreach related to council/task force business
Regulatory
Outreach
Industry Presentations
Surveys
Aggregate publishing of survey data collected for regulatory commenting
Contact information for regulatory authorities on screened topics
The Organic Center
Outreach (Fundraising and Research)
Grant Partnerships
Research Partnerships
Surveys
Invitations to meetings and conferences as speaker or attendee
Solicitation of letters of support for grant proposals
Invitations to participate in research activities including advisory committees, surveys, focus groups, etc.
Actions
To exercise data protection we're committed to:
Restrict and monitor access to sensitive data
Develop transparent data collection procedures
Train employees in security measures
Maintain secure networks to protect online data from
cyberattacks
Establish clear procedures for reporting privacy breaches or data misuse
Include contract clauses or communicate statements on how we handle data
Establish data protection practices (document shredding, secure locks, data encryption, frequent backups, access authorization, etc.)
Our data protection provisions will appear on our website.
Disciplinary Consequences
All principles described in this policy must be strictly followed by OTA data users. A breach of data protection guidelines will invoke disciplinary action.
* Data will be shared as part of group (e.g. industry member make-up where organization/contacts are anonymous)
