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Appendix 7: Organic Agriculture: Main Principles and Worldwide Growth Organic agriculture is a term used to include all systems of agriculture that support the healthy and life supporting production of food through environmentally and socially sound production methods. It adheres to globally accepted life supporting principles, which are implemented in the local economic, geo-climatic, and cultural settings. Organic farming promotes health in the farmer, the food, and the environment. It uses methods that respect and uphold the natural capacity of plants, animals, and the landscape. Organic producers seek to reduce or eliminate reliance on practices and inputs that harm life, deplete resources, and pose hazards to air and water purity. In general organic systems rely on local soil fertility as the key to successful production. Thus health and life of the soil remain one of the key focuses of organic farming. Soil fertility practices balance physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the soil through such methods as crop rotations, livestock grazing, cover crops, intercropping, green manures, recycling of plant and animal wastes, tillage, and occasional application of essential mineral nutrients. Biological diversity is another central principle of the organic system. Natural diversity promotes balance in plant and animal systems, allows for healthy, synergistic relationships and thus reduces the need for external inputs. Diversity includes varied crops, livestock breeds, rotation cycles, pest management strategies, and the allowance for natural habitat for wild species.
Local and regional self-sufficiency is another foundation of sustainable agriculture. Organic agriculture, which is more of a closed system of agriculture, dramatically reduces external inputs such as chemo-synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals. Materials and resources are to be re-cycled within the farm and the immediate surroundings to prevent costly and wasteful transportation and processing costs. Animals in the organic system are to be treated kindly, with proper consideration to their health and behavioral requirements. Organic feed, natural grazing conditions, comfortable housing, and the absence of fear in any form are the necessary requirements. Organic productions systems emphasize maintaining the integrity and nutritional value of the food throughout the process from planting to consumption. Finally organic systems develop and adapt new technologies with careful consideration to their long-range ecological and social conditions. The following articles from the world press help to illustrate the growing demand for organic products. These articles are reprinted with the publisher’s permission. Demand for Organic in an Upward Swing despite high consumer prices Despite high consumer prices, agricultural experts say that the demand for organic food is in an upward swing. According to the Executive Director of IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements), Bernward Geier: ‘Nobody can deny that organic trade is a growing reality all over the world. Growth is certainly something very natural, and the growth rates of the organic sector are indicating that we are heading towards what can be called at least a boom. A condition for the further development of the organic food sector is fast increase of conversion to organic on the farm level. It is impressive to have about 8,000 organic farmers in Germany. In Switzerland the "organic" share has reached 7%, with the largest Canton, Graubünden, having around 30%. Austria, with more than 20,000 organic farmers, totals to around 10% organic farming. Sweden and Finland have reached the level of Switzerland. The latest statistic from Italy shows 18,000 organic farms were in conversion in 1996, growing to an incredible 40,000 only two years later. Similarly, impressive developments can be seen in countries like Uganda, where 7,000 farmers choose to cultivate organic cotton, or Mexico, where tens of thousands of small farmers (campesinos) produce organic coffee, as well as staple food the organic way for the local market.’ Mr Geier presents interesting data in his conclusion: ‘Today the reality of the organic trade sector also comes up with impressive data. The organic market in the USA is in the range of six billion DM and foreseen to double in the next two or three years. In Germany, we can see how the whole baby food sector is on its way to becoming more or less exclusively organic. Also the fact that more than 30% of the daily bread in and around Munich is certified organic gives a clear indicator that we’ve conquered mainstream markets. Surprising is the fact that even in a country like Egypt, organic produce is becoming mainstream. There the biodynamic SEKEM initiative, employing about 1,000 people, delivers its products to 7,000 pharmacies and to 2,000 shops. Rapidly growing consumer demands are also reported from countries like Argentina, Japan, Poland, and Australia. Especially encouraging is the fact that local markets for organic food are also getting increasingly established in so-called "developing" countries.’ Organic food sales booming The Guardian/The Observer Tuesday September 7, 1999 Consumer demand for organic food is fuelling a boom that has led to a 20-fold increase in sales in just three years for the supermarket giant, Tesco, and a 125-fold rise since 1995 for (another supermarket giant) Sainsbury’s. Organic food now accounts for 3—4% of all food sold in supermarkets. Both companies yesterday announced they would soon have more than 500 different organic lines.…Huge rises in the sales of organic baby foods were also reported. The phenomenal growth of organic products produced without the routine use of pesticides and antibiotics has occurred since the BSE disaster of 1996 and coincides with public concern over soon-to-arrive genetically modified foods. Supermarkets say organics are fast entering the mainstream in customers’ buying habits and are desperately seeking to improve home-grown supplies which provide less than 30% of food on the market. Sales may reach the £500m a year mark next year and supermarkets and organics campaigners hope that will double by 2002, taking 7%—8% of the total market. They have set a 10% target for 2005… Tesco said organics now accounted for over £100m a year in sales–up from £5m three years ago and expected to rise to £150m next year. New organic lines included ready-made meals, dairy products, and organic champagne. ‘This is a clear sign for all British organic farmers looking to secure long-term business opportunities,’ said Andrew Sellick, the store’s organic buyer. The store said just under half its 649 shops would carry all organic lines. The rest would have a core of 100 lines. Sainsbury’s, which plans 20% discounts on many lines next month, said organics were the fastest growing area in its stores, with sales running at £130m a year. ‘I think we have all been surprised by the huge rate in growth,’ said Ian Merton, its trading director for organics. ‘As we get increased volumes, costs can come down and we can pass this on to the customer.’ But he said farmers deserved a proper return on their extra time and labour. Waitrose, another big player, said turnover was up 100% in the last year, with sales running at £2m a week in its 117 stores. Its organics consultant, Louise Cairns, said 10% of its fruit and vegetable sales were of organic produce, which should rise to 13% by the year end. Organics also accounted for 40% of baby food sales. Last year the amount of organically farmed land increased five-fold, but still only accounts for 1.5% of the total. And this year’s £6m government aid to help farmers convert to organic methods ran out after just four months. The Soil Association, which represents organic growers and food processors, said it would be a pity to lose out to imports when so much could be grown in Britain. Global Food Security Requires Organic Agriculture More than 1,000 farmers, scientists, government officials and others from 92 countries convened this past summer in Copenhagen, Denmark for the 11th Scientific Conference of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). The conference stressed that organic practises are viable worldwide, and issued a statement demanding that organic agriculture be prioritized as a strategy for creating global food security. (IFOAM represents 530 farmer, food security and consumer organizations worldwide.) The conference’s Copenhagen Declaration criticized the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for failing to adequately emphasize the importance of food quality and safety, local food self-reliance, and environmental protection, in planning for the upcoming World Food Summit in Rome. In addition, it stated that FAO has neglected the importance to food security of access to resources, equitable land tenure, and women’s rights. FAO is sponsoring the World Food Summit in November to determine international strategies for reducing hunger and undernutrition. FAO estimates that there are approximately 800 million undernourished people worldwide. The Declaration asserts that organic agriculture can produce sufficient high quality food to ensure long-term food security while protecting both human health and the environment. Signatories to the Declaration urged FAO to set local, regional, and national food self-sufficiency as its goals, and to draw on IFOAM’s organic production expertise in reaching these goals. In press releases, IFOAM stated that in developing countries where food has not been intensively produced with high input industrial agriculture techniques, training farmers in organic practices can increase yields 200 to 300 per cent over previous levels. Healthier, Tastier, and More Nutritious Scientific Research Verifies There is growing evidence that organic food not only tastes better but is also more nutritious than conventionally produced food. A November 2000 article in Acres USA, ‘Nutritional Quality: Organic Food Versus Conventional’, reports on a research study in the Journal of Applied Nutrition that contrasts the chemistry of conventional food to organic: ‘On a per-weight basis over a two-year period, average levels of essential minerals were much higher in the organically grown apples, pears, potatoes, and corn as compared to conventionally produced products. The organically grown food averaged higher in calcium, chromium, iron, magnesium, molybdenum, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc, and lower in mercury and aluminium. A more recent study in Australia showed a similar difference between calcium and magnesium levels in organic and non-organic food.’ The article cites the research (among others) of Dr Franco Weibel of the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture in Switzerland, who compared a variety of parameters in apples grown under organic and conventional conditions, such as mineral elements, sugars, phenols, malic acid, selenium, dietary fibre, and vitamins C and E. Weibel found that organic fruit had significantly firmer flesh and better sensory taste evaluations. He also found interesting correlations between the microbial activity in the soil, a condition closely associated with organic management, and the nutritional status of the apples, especially the phosphorous level. He also found that organic fruit was considerably higher in phenols. The article explains: ‘Plants naturally synthesize phenols for defence against pests and diseases. Possibly, the unsprayed organic plants were stimulated to make higher levels of these critical molecules in response to pest attack. These phenolic compounds that protect the plant also have been shown to be disease protectants in humans.’ Demand for Organic Food Is on the Rise According to the 1999 Organic Food and Farming Report, launched at the Royal Society of Medicine, London, on 11 October 1999, there has been unprecedented growth in the consumption of organic food in Britain. The Soil Association’s Agriculture Development Director, Simon Brenman, spoke of this growing phenomena: ‘Organic food and farming has struck a chord with the public and there is now an unprecedented level of demand which is currently not being met by UK producers. We are importing 70% of all organic food sold in the UK. The Government needs to respond to public opinion and recognise that the development of sustainable agriculture cannot be left to market forces alone. The Soil Association is therefore calling for genuine commitment and significantly increased support for organic farming. We are challenging the Government to set a target of achieving 30 per cent organic production in the UK by the year 2010.’ A MORI Poll showed that in the UK one third of the public had bought organic food within a 3-month period in the fall of 1999. This surge in demand for organic food has specifically affected the baby foods sector. The Soil Association’s Agriculture Development Director went on to say: ‘The extraordinary rise in demand for organic food is particularly evident in baby foods, where a staggering one fifth of all products now sold are organic, with one third of all babies eating some organic food in the first year of their lives. Leading the challenge to satisfy this unprecedented demand is Organix Brands PLC. Founded in 1992, the company grew 49% in 1998 alone, selling seven million jars of food.’ Growing Organic is ‘a subject that concerns everyone’ Increasing demand for organically grown food is rapidly changing the food industry. Growers and farmers are changing over to organic; food processing and production companies are now, on demand, sourcing the purest ingredients; and retailers world-wide are expanding their quantity and range of organic products to keep up with growing demands. According to an article in Eurostar magazine (April 2000), ‘Consumer’: ‘With an annual growth rate of 30% in Europe, organic farming can no longer be regarded as just a fad. In France alone, where 600 farmers a year decide to go organic, this sector had a turnover of 4,000 million francs in 1999. Nowadays, eating organic food is neither elitist nor just a lingering reminder of 1968, but a subject that concerns everyone…Today there are 6,200 organic farmers in France, all under the umbrella of the official AB label and subjected to regular, compulsory controls by four recognized organizations.’ Many other European countries–Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland, and Austria, to name a few, are also competing for their share of the organic food industry, as more and more consumers demand the organic label. Austria reserves 8.3% of its cultivated land for organics, and in Switzerland, in some Cantons up to 35% of the farms are organic. Consumers Worldwide Demand Organic Agriculture Despite higher prices, demand for organic food is rapidly increasing and, according to Natural Life magazine, issue 67, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization sees this demand as having a global impact: ‘Consumer demand for organically produced food is on the rise and provides new market opportunities for farmers and businesses around the world, according to a new report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).’ Commenting on how this growth affects developing nations, the Natural Life article continues: ‘Under the right circumstances, the market returns from organic agriculture can potentially contribute to local food security by increasing family incomes. Some developing countries such as Egypt have small domestic organic markets and have begun to seize the lucrative export opportunities presented by organic agriculture, the FAO says. In several developed countries organic agriculture already represents a significant portion of the food system: 10 percent in Austria and 7.8 percent in Switzerland. Other countries such as the U.S., France, Canada, Japan, and Singapore are experiencing growth rates in the organic industry that exceed 20 percent annually.’ The FAO report recommends that conversion to organic agriculture be supported by: local organic certification organizations which adhere to international standards in order to avoid high costs of hiring outside organizations; participation in local field research once training and technical assistance is established; and stringent local tracking and enforcement of organic standards in order to maintain consumer confidence. Natural Life quotes the conclusion to the FOA’s report: ‘The FAO has the responsibility to give organic agriculture a legitimate place within sustainable agriculture programmes, and to assist member countries in their efforts to respond to farmer and consumer demand in this sector. Organic agriculture may contribute to the overall goals of sustainability.’ Demand for Organics Despite Higher Prices As documented by the Washington Post in its 22 July 2000 article, ‘What on Earth’, organic agriculture is becoming one of the fastest growing agricultural sectors in the world: ‘Organic agriculture is thriving, driven by consumer demand and growing dissatisfaction with conventional farming practices. More than 18 million acres are now devoted to certified organic agriculture in 130 nations, according to a recent U.N. survey. As a result, the world market for organic food grew to an estimated $22 billion last year. Some specialists expect the American market to expand rapidly in the next five years, possibly to as much as $100 billion.’ Despite higher prices, consumers continue to call for organic food, and the world market continues to respond. The same Washington Post article goes on to give the following statistics: ‘Estimated acreage under organic cultivation, in millions of acres: European Union 9.88 million acres Australia 4.19 million acres Canada 2.47 million acres United States 1.35 million acres Argentina 0.86 million acres Japan 0.01 million acres Estimated market in organic food products in billions of dollars: USA/Canada $10 billion European Union $7.3 billion Japan $3.5 billion Australia $0.13 billion’ Clearly, consumers of organic food are not concerned with the higher premiums they have to pay to secure high quality, naturally healthy and nutritious food. New Export Opportunities for Developing Nations According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), demand for organic products has created new export opportunities for the developing world. In the article ‘Organic Farming’ on the FAO website (www.fao.org), entering the organic agriculture business can be a challenge to developing nations in the beginning years, but can eventually be very lucrative: ‘Typically, organic exports are sold at impressive premiums, often at 20% higher than identical products produced on non-organic farms. Since demand for a variety of foods year-round makes it impossible for any country to satisfy all its organic food needs domestically, many developing countries have started to tap lucrative export markets for organically grown products–for example, tropical fruit to the European baby food industry, Zimbabwe herbs to South Africa, African cotton to the European Community, Chinese tea to the Netherlands, and soy beans to Japan.’ But the rewards of organic farming go further than ecomomic considerations, positively affecting the environment, health, and even employment. The ‘Organic Farming’ article goes on to say: ‘Properly managed, organic farming reduces or eliminates water pollution and helps conserve water and soil on the farm. A few developed countries (e.g. Germany, France) compel or subsidize farmers to use organic techniques as a solution to water pollution problems. Also, the diversification of crops typically found on organic farms, with their different planting and harvesting schedules, may distribute labour demand more evenly, which could help stabilize employment. As in all agricultural systems, diversity in production increases income-generating opportunities and can, as in the case of fruit, supply essential health-protecting minerals and vitamins for the family diet. It also spreads the risks of failure over a wide range of crops.’ Organic Farming Enhances Soil Fertility and Biodiversity One country that stands out among organic agriculture pioneers is Switzerland, where a 21-year research study brings to light many benefits of organic farming previously not considered possible by agricultural scientists or farmers. Many of these benefits relate to the positive effect of organic agriculture on the soil itself. As soil depletion is a growing concern resulting from overuse of pesticides, herbicides, and other ‘modern’ farming techniques, these results are being hailed as one more reason to convert to organic. Some questions and answers in the August 2000 issue of FiBL Dossier (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture) highlight their findings that, ‘Organic Farming Enhances Soil Fertility and Biodiversity’: Q: Is organic farming energetically sound? A: Organically grown crops use less fossil energy than conventional crops. Q: Is organic farming healthy for the soil? A: Fertilization in organic systems has a positive effect on the content of organic matter and helps to avoid soil acidification. Q: Does organic farming improve soil structure? A: Organic soil management improves soil structure by increasing soil activity, thus reducing the risk of erosion. Organic management promotes the development of earthworms and above ground arthropods, thus improving the growth conditions of the crop. More abundant predators help to control harmful organisms (pests). Earthworms work hand in hand with fungi, bacteria, and numerous other microorganisms in soil. In organically managed soils, the activity of these organisms is higher. Thus, nutrients are recycled faster and soil structure is improved. Organic crops profit from root symbioses and are better able to exploit the soil. Q: How does species diversity contribute? A: Organic fields accommodate a greater variety of plants, animals, and microorganisms. The organic agroecosystem is thus more resistant to stress and disturbance. Enhanced microbial diversity improves the utilization of the available energy and resources. Organic Farming Will Feed the World An artiacle in Ecology and Farming (the international magazine of IFOAM–International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements), September—December 2000 issue, quotes Steve Smith, a director of the world’s largest biotechnology company, Novartis, who suprisingly informs us that: ‘Organic farming will feed the world’ … ‘Astonishingly, it’s more productive than high-tech agriculture’ … ‘If anyone tells you that GM is going to feed the world, tell them that it is not… To feed the world takes political and financial will–it’s not about production and distribution.’ Mr. Smith was voicing a truth which most of his colleagues in the biotechnology companies have gone to great lengths to deny. The article continues: ‘On a planet wallowing in surfeit, people starve because they have neither the land on which to grow food for themselves nor the money with which to buy it. There is no question that, as the population increases, the world will have to grow more, but if this task is left to the rich and powerful–big farmers and big business–then, irrespective of how much is grown, people will become progressively hungrier. Only a redistribution of land and wealth can save the world from mass starvation.’ This statement, of course, is not what most biotech companies would have us believe. Yet that may be changing. Recent experiments have indicated that production may in fact have a very important role. A series of remarkable experimental results have shown that the growing techniques that biotech companies have been trying to impose on the world are less productive than methods developed by traditional farmers over the past 10,000 years. The article continues documenting a recent article in Nature magazine which reported on the results of one of the largest agricultural experiments ever conducted. A team of Chinese scientists had tested the key principle of modern rice-growing–planting a single, high-tech variety across hundreds of hectares–against a much older technique: planting several breeds in one field. They found that reverting to the older traditional method resulted in enormous increases in yield. Rice blast–a devastating fungus, which normally requires repeated applications of fungicides to control it, actually decreased by 94 per cent. The farmers were able to stop applying the fungicides altogether, while producing more rice per acre than before. The article also mentions that farmers in India, Brazil, Honduras, Guatemala, and Kenya have doubled or trippled their crop yields by converting to semi-organic or organic techniques, according to a study by Essex University Professor, Jules Pretty. Another study in the U.S. found that small farms growing a wide range of plants could produce ten times as much money per acre as larger farms growing only single crops. The article also cites other examples: in Hertfordshire, England, wheat grown with manure has produced consistently higher yields for the past 150 years than wheat grown with artificial fertilizers; and Cuba, forced into organic farming by economic sanctions, has adopted organic farming as a policy, discovering that organic agriculture actually improves not only the quality of the crops but also the productivity. Modern hi-tech farming, in contrast, is yielding increasing problems. In two Indian States well known for the success of their modern farming methods–Haryana and Punjab–cultivation has collapsed. The new crops the farmers were encouraged to grow demanded more water and nutrients than the old ones, with the result that in many areas, the soil and the ground water have been exhausted. Not only do these and other examples indicate that traditional farming methods are still the best, they also show that the public has been deceived into believing otherwise! The conclusion to the article is startling: ‘Traditional farming has been stamped out all over the world not because it is less productive than monoculture, but because it is, in some respects, more productive. Organic cultivation has been characterized as an enemy of progress for the simple reason that it cannot be monopolized: it can be adopted by any farmer anywhere, without the help of multinational companies. Though it is more productive to grow several species or several varieties of crops in one field, the biotech companies must reduce diversity in order to make money, leaving farmers with no choice but to purchase their most profitable seeds. This is why they have spent the last ten years buying up seed breeding institutions and lobbying governments to do what ours has done: banning the sale of any seed which has not been officially–and expensively–registered and approved. All this requires an unrelenting propaganda war against the tried and tested techniques of traditional farming, as the big companies and their biddable scientists dismiss them as unproductive, unsophisticated, and unsafe. The truth, so effectively supressed that it is now almost impossible to believe, is that organic farming is the key to feeding the world.’ UN Report Lauds Organic Agriculture According to an article in the December 2000 issue of Acres USA, ‘UN Report Lauds Organic Agriculture’, a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization report (July 2000) concluded that organic farming practices, by keeping the nutrient cycle closed, can actually reduce E. coli infection, which causes food poisoning, and can also reduce the levels of contaminants in foods. The UN report further states: ‘Considerations like ethical values and production principles are gaining weight as integral product values. In this context, organic agriculture’s contribution to cleaner drinking water, and to higher wild plant, insect, and bird diversity or general environmental quality are positive values that are appreciated by consumers. … Considering the potential environmental benefit of organic production, its suitability for the integrative role of agriculture in rural development, and its aptness to current farming input and production levels in many countries, organic agriculture should be considered as a development vehicle. The FAO Committee on Agriculture agreed in 1999 that properly managed organic farming contributes to sustainable agriculture and therefore organic agriculture has a legitimate place within sustainable agriculture programmes.’
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