We Need a New Definition for Organic
Recently, I went to the Bristol Organic Food Festival. The South-West of England is a major producer of organic and artisanal foods, and in previous years, this has been a bustling, busy event, overflowing with produce of all kinds.
This year, the Organic Food Festival was about half its normal size. There was still a decent number of companies, but it was the multiple smaller ones selling lower cost goods, like fruit and veg, or bakery, that simply hadn’t bothered this time. Whether this is because the festival no longer provides a good deal, or because some of these companies have already gone out of business, I couldn’t tell.
The Organic Food movement rocketed during the turn-of-the-century boom period, as people became more aware of issues surrounding food and farming. Organic was seen as representing something healthy and wholesome, both in terms of food, and the environment. Nonetheless, around 10% of consumers account for most organic purchases. As the British economy moves into recession, people’s food budgets are being squeezed. And that means that the extra cost of an organic purchase makes people think twice.
Producing organic food is also more expensive for the producer. Not only in terms of the inputs, but also in terms of complying with the certification process. This can make it difficult for small producers to meet the strict requirements required. For some indication of how difficult it can be, I suggest reading reading this blog on the Soil Association’s website.
I know of at least two producers in my local farmers market who meet what one might call the ‘popular’ definition of organic, which is to say that they do not use chemicals on their products. However, they do not comply with the official definition as they have, for various reasons, declined to register. One, an apple juice producer which uses apples from old orchards across the Cotswolds, would have to obtain certification for several dozen different locations, none of which they own. So they simply describe their produce as ‘unsprayed’.
Many of these smaller producers provide many of the attributes that attracted people to the idea of organic in the first place. They are local, family-owned businesses or co-operatives. They produce sustainably, sell to consumers within the region, and treat their staff and livestock with respect. Personally, I find these criteria more important than a label saying organic, and I was surprised to find goods at the Organic Food Fest, such as soap, which had been imported from Germany. How is importing German soap helping me, or the region I live in?
Much food labelled as organic is sold through supermarkets, and may come from multinational producers. It may be produced in any part of the world, under any type of labour regime, and air-freighted in. For me, this means that a local producer without a label may trump one which has gone through the certification process. I feel ten times better about eating a piece of Welsh lamb than, say, imported Canadian ‘Organic’ salmon. Selling the surplus from your allotment, probably the most community-friendly, environmentally friendly trade you could find, will not qualify for the ‘organic’ label.
Arthur Potts Dawson, founder of the People’s Supermarket in London, a supermarket owned and run by the community, describes the discussions about organic which took place when they set up the supermarket. “Around 10-15% of people definately wanted organic. However, when we asked what everybody wanted, ethical far outstripped organic. 100% of people wanted ethical, free-range. Fairtrade was also a big issue, then we have localism; do we know the farmer, can we visit his land, and see for ourselves what he’s doing? All of a sudden organic was 4th in line.”
Potts Dawson is now an ambassador for the Sustainable Food Trust, a new organisation set up by Patrick Holden, former head of the Soil Association. The Sustainable Food Trust says that: ‘real and lasting change is best delivered through the actions of individuals at local level, inspired and supported by a collective global vision. Our intention is not to replicate the work of existing organisations, but to work with them.’
I hope this new organisation manages to reframe the debate, because, like the members of the People’s Supermarket, I feel that in tougher times, we need to rethink what our priorities are around food. The issue of cost, and who controls the point of purchase, can no longer be ignored. As Potts Dawson points out, you have to pay to get your products onto the shelf of a supermarket. There are a whole list of things which consumers care about – employee rights, local economies, animal welfare, and maybe most importantly, whether they can afford to buy it – which just aren’t covered by the label ‘organic’.
At the moment, consumers have to make a guess about about many of these factors when deciding where to spend their food budget. I personally would like to see some kind of new system, which might involve producers applying for some kind of ‘Sustainable’ label. This would not involve punishing small producers with paperwork, and restricting their decisions, but would maybe award points – of which a minimum would need to be reached – for being employee-owned, regional, fairtrade, or environmentally friendly in other ways, such as protecting bees or allowing public access to land. I feel that the current idea of ‘organic’ isn’t acknowledging many of the things that are important, and judging by the turnout at the Organic Food Fest, I wasn’t the only one.
Images are author’s own.
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