How to Check the Origins of Regional American Foods

What to take away

The two claims behind the word regional

Start with the checkable half. Where was the raw material grown, where was it processed, and are those the same place? Producers who ship nationally often buy in one region and pack in another. That is not dishonest, but you should know it before you pay a regional premium.

Regional carries two claims at once. One is geographic: the thing came from a specific place. That claim can sometimes be checked against a federal order, a state program, or a producer record; there is no single register covering every regional food. The other claim is cultural: the thing tastes as it does because of that place. An origin record does not verify that claim.

Where a boundary is actually written down

For a small set of crops, the federal government has drawn the map. Vidalia onions are covered by Marketing Order 955, which defines the production area as a 20-county region of South Georgia and took effect in 1989. That order funds research and promotion. It does not, by itself, tell you the onion is good. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA AMS) administers federal marketing orders. You can read the current text of Order 955 in the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), at 7 CFR Part 955; the Vidalia Onion Committee is the order's committee.

Order 945 does a different job. It covers potatoes grown in Idaho and Malheur County, Oregon. It took effect on September 3, 1941. It authorizes grade, quality, maturity, and size rules. It sets container and pack rules, which means it constrains what may legally ship under the name. The current text is in eCFR, at 7 CFR Part 945. The Idaho-Eastern Oregon Potato Committee is the order's committee; the Idaho Potato Commission is a separate promotion body.

Florida citrus is a third case. Marketing Order 905 covers oranges, grapefruit and tangerines grown in Florida. Its current text is in eCFR, at 7 CFR Part 905.

One order pays for advertising; the other constrains what may legally ship. States draw lines of their own on a smaller map, and a few reserve a name by statute rather than only funding a promotion program. New Mexico chile certification works this way, and so do several state maple and apple programs.

Kona coffee shows how a state rule works. Hawaii's coffee labeling law lets a blend use the Kona name only if at least 10 percent of its beans are Kona.

What the box changes

Shipping is a process step, not a delivery detail. A jar kept at room temperature on a truck must be formulated for that. Soft cheese must be packed cold and moved fast, and a subscription that ships in July is a different product from the same subscription shipping in January.

When a producer sells the same name in a shop and in a box, ask whether the recipe matches. Sometimes it does not. Shelf-stable reformulation is the usual reason, and it shows up as a sweeter, denser or flatter version of the thing you liked.

The five lines to check on a producer page

A page that answers all five is doing more work than a page with a story on it. A page that answers none is selling you the word regional and nothing behind it.

Use these five checks on a producer page:

Reading a label against a register

Two federal rules cover claims that can help identify origin. The FTC sets when a product may say Made in USA: an unqualified claim must meet the FTC's “all or virtually all” standard, set out in the Made in USA Labeling Rule at 16 CFR Part 323. USDA's Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) requirements appear at 7 CFR Part 65 and apply to specified covered commodities, not every processed food. State agriculture departments license and inspect food processing within their borders.

Cottage food laws are the third piece, and they vary by state. A jar legal to sell at a farmers market in one state may not be legal to ship across the line.

Confirm with the relevant state agriculture department before you buy in quantity. For the examples in this article, that means the Georgia Department of Agriculture, Idaho State Department of Agriculture, or New Mexico Department of Agriculture; use the department's official contact or program pages. Take labeling or licensing questions to a food law attorney rather than to a supplier's sales sheet.

Why you will not find a best-of list here

We have not toured any plant, and a ranking would be a guess wearing a number.

We can point to records independent of the seller: federal marketing orders in eCFR, USDA AMS order information, state program rules, and the producer's own written claims. These can be checked against each other, using the method in what labels can tell you and the sourcing questions that shops and bars ask. For covered commodities, also check the federal Country of Origin Labeling rule in 7 CFR Part 65.

When you cannot confirm a claim, identify the record or organization you checked. For a Vidalia claim, consult Marketing Order 955 and the Vidalia Onion Committee; for an Idaho-and-Malheur County potato claim, consult Order 945 and the Idaho-Eastern Oregon Potato Committee. The Idaho Potato Commission is a separate promotion body. For a state-program claim, check the relevant state agriculture department and the program's own rules.

Common questions

Does a marketing order mean the food is high quality?

No. Some orders set grade and size rules; others only fund promotion and research. Read which kind you are looking at before you treat the name as a quality signal.

Is a state name on a package legally meaningful?

Sometimes. It may reflect a marketing order, a state program with rules, or nothing but the address of an office. The package usually tells you which, and the state agriculture department can confirm the rest.

Why do the same brands taste different by mail?

Different pack format, different age on arrival, and sometimes a different recipe built for shelf stability. Ask the producer directly which version you are buying.

Where should a beginner start?

With one category rather than one brand. Start with maple syrup, and check two lines on the jar: the color grade (Golden, Amber, Dark or Very Dark) and the state or province where it was packed. Learn what varies inside maple syrup or dry-cured pork first, and the brand comparisons get much easier.