Organic Produce Information Ames IA

Look at those bountiful stacks of fresh fruit and vegetables - apples, bananas, peaches, and plumbs - oh my! And so many organic varieties as well. Can I really trust the organic stickers at my local grocer? And what if some other customer takes an ordinary apple and then decides to put it back in the organic stack? Certainly that happens, on purpose and by accident. So how do I know which is which?

Fortunately, there are ways to tell nowadays, from the label on every piece of fruit, the marked band on every head of lettuce, and the stamp on every bag of spinach. While the items can be misplaced or mislabeled by the grocer, the PLU code tells you the true origin of your edibles - USDA organic, genetically modified (GM), or diesel (just kidding).

Here’s a little insider information concerning your produce:

Now that you know about the PLU, you’ll notice them on everything. For instance, regular old bananas generally have the code 4011 - notice that’s four digits. Organic bananas, or any other organic items, will have five digits that start with the number 9; therefore, organic bananas will be labeled 94011.

Genetically modified bananas will be marked accordingly as well, starting with an 8; therefore genetically modified bananas will be marked 84011.

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