The Cornucopia Institute is a non-profit organization

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 headquartered in Cornucopia, Wisconsin

Cornucopia, Wisconsin

Cornucopia is an unincorporated census-designated place in the Town of Bell in northern Bayfield County, Wisconsin, United States. It is situated on Lake Superior at the northern end of the Bayfield Peninsula, on Wisconsin Highway 13. As of the 2010 census, its population was 98. The community...

, with the mission of "Seeking economic justice for the family-scale farming community."

It has published several reports, including one on hexane

Hexane

Hexane is a hydrocarbon with the chemical formula C6H14; that is, an alkane with six carbon atoms.The term may refer to any of four other structural isomers with that formula, or to a mixture of them. In the IUPAC nomenclature, however, hexane is the unbranched isomer ; the other four structures...

 used in processing soy products. It also filed legal action against Dean Foods

Dean Foods

Dean Foods is an American food and beverage company with two operating divisions: Fresh Dairy Direct and WhiteWave-Morningstar. The company maintains plants and distributors in the United States and the United Kingdom. Dean Foods products are sold throughout the USA.-History:In 1925, Samuel E...

 (White Wave), based on the use of the term organic

Organic certification

Organic certification is a certification process for producers of organic food and other organic agricultural products. In general, any business directly involved in food production can be certified, including seed suppliers, farmers, [food] processors, retailers and restaurants.Requirements vary...

. It challenged a USDA marketing order related to almond

Almond

The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...

s, and has filed complaints with the USDA about certain practices of Aurora Organic Dairy

Aurora Organic Dairy

Aurora Organic Dairy is an American company, based in Boulder, Colorado, which operates large factory farms, each with thousands of dairy cows, in Colorado and Texas...

, Horizon Organic

Horizon Organic

Horizon Organic®, founded in 1991 in the United States , is a certified dairy that produces and supplies organic milk products. Horizon Organic is owned by Dean Foods and its products are distributed by WhiteWave Foods.-Current status:...

, Silk

Silk

Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...

, and others, as they relate to organic standards and regulations.