The US Composting Council (USCC) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) are attempting to address confusing definitions and conflicting state regulations regarding the wide range of bio-based soil amendments, fertilizers, nutrients, plant foods, and mulches. The National Organic Program (NOP) currently uses three main terms to define organic agriculture materials or substances which support the growth and production of crops. These three terms range from the general to the specific, describing the content of the materials and processes by which the materials are made; however, these definitions do not describe how the materials function. The purpose of this poster is to propose that bionutrient plant products be defined by three functional terms. ‘BOKASHI' is a microbial amendment made of fermented organic materials and a symbiotic group of bacteria, fungi, and yeasts. Its content does not fall into the definition of a fertilizer or compost, but rather is made from a compilation of plant or animal-based waste materials and microbes which have gone through the process of fermentation. By defining Bokashi on how it functions within the soil-plant rhizosphere a greater understanding of the product is achieved. Three functional terms are suggested: 1.) Theoretical Function: Based on known soil-plant paradigms, 2.) Empirical Function: Based on trials under a variety of environmental conditions, 3.) Field Function: Based on visual cue(s) which indicate product activity or viability.