Trademark protection of USDA organic seal creates new enforcement tools
The USDA has new law enforcement authority to protect the agency’s organic seal.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service final trademark approval for the USDA organic seal, according to a news release.
The trademark approval gives USDA greater authority to penalize those who attempt to misuse the organic seal, according to the agency,
“With official Trademark protection, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Service and the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center may seize and destroy shipments when fraudulent claims are found to have been made, significantly raising the risk and cost of crime,” the USDA said in the release.
“In the coming months, (the National Organic Program) will work with our accredited certifiers and federal enforcement partners to begin using this new authority to better safeguard the integrity of the organic seal and deter fraudulent activities involving the organic seal.”
The USDA said more details on how the agency will use the increased authority will be released in the spring.
The success in winning trademark approval is tied to the collaborative work of the Organic Agricultural Product Imports Interagency Working Group, established by the 2018 Farm Bill, according to the release.
