RENEE MONTAGNE, Host:
Now, the government is pushing nonpetroleum alternatives, as NPR's Elizabeth Shogren reports.
ELIZABETH SHOGREN: Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan says people will start seeing the logo this spring.
MONTAGNE: Consumers want to know, with the plethora of labeling claims in the marketplace, that what they're investing their dollars in is meaningful; that it's backed by some sort of certification.
SHOGREN: Companies already have introduced thousands of products made from plants or animals instead of petroleum. That's because of a law that requires the federal government to buy such products - if they exist and are affordable.
MONTAGNE: We probably would not see the growth of these products without this program.
SHOGREN: Stephen Censky is the executive director of the American Soybean Association. His group pushed Congress to require the switch.
MONTAGNE: That helps drive demand, and then it scales up manufacturing so then it can be available to the general public.
SHOGREN: Elizabeth Shogren, NPR News, Washington.