In 1997 an outraged public flooded the USDA with nearly 280,000 comments opposing the agency's proposal to allow factory farming, sewage sludge, genetic engineering, and irradiation in organic food production. The USDA responded favorably to public comments by stating that the "Big Three" would not be in any reproposed national organic rule. The Secretary went a step further indicating that the rule would respect the authority of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) (the citizen's board given legal authority to provide recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture) over the National List of allowed and prohibited substances and that a final regulation would be completed by the end of the year 2000.
On March 7, 2000, The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a revised proposed National Organic Program rule.
Despite promises from the USDA, the "Big Three" are not dead! The Center for Food Safety has outlined a detailed analysis of the primary areas of concern including:
