Not All Organics Created Equal
Photo by Craig Lee/San Francisco Chronicle
From the San Francisco Chronicle: “Green Giants: Mega-producers tip scales as organic goes mainstream.”
Consumers who think they’re buying from a small local farm may actually be buying from a company moving up to half-a-million pounds of lettuce a day. Their organic milk might come from cows grazing on lush spring grass near Bodega Bay—or it might come from a barren 5,000-cow feedlot dairy in Colorado.
Organic convenience foods and snacks might be manufactured by Northern California companies from local ingredients. But, increasingly, they’re being made from ingredients bought cheaply from as far away as South America or China.
“I think organic is not quite what people think at this point,” said Michael Pollan, a UC Berkeley journalism professor whose new book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” takes a hard—and ultimately critical—look at what he calls “industrial organic.”
Whether it’s salad—or milk, or eggs, or cookies—these kinds of differences come into play up and down the organic food chain. And with stores like Safeway and now Wal-Mart packing their shelves with organic products, which style consumers buy—the yin or the yang—may determine what organic will look like in the future.
The differences don’t mean the food isn’t organic. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s green organic seal means that it’s certified—that it was grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides and processed without forbidden chemicals.
However, critics of large-scale organics say that while mega-producers follow the letter of the law, not all follow its spirit. They worry that the movement is sacrificing its soul, that it’s strayed from its original ideals of creating a new food system that helps small farms, connects consumers with producers, and cleans up the environment.
Related stories:
1. “Organic Milk Goes Corporate,” Mother Jones
2. “Western Montana Growers Go Beyond Organics & Get Local,” New West Missoula [via the Organic Consumers Association]
Annabel said,
May 1, 2006 at 7:26 am
Yeah this is why I don’t buy much organic. I prefer to focus my efforts on buying local instead. (Although obviously local AND organic is best!) If my food comes from halfway around the world then it’s not so good for the environment after all.
Liz said,
May 1, 2006 at 8:25 am
At my co-op the other day, I saw a bag of Cascadian Farms frozen organic spinach, clearly market “Product of China” on the back. No system that will ship delicate frozen greens halfway across the world is sustainable, no matter what anyone says. Those delicate greens should be eaten where they’re grown.
The Worsted Witch » USDA Organic Classifications said,
September 13, 2006 at 5:27 pm
[...] We now know that not all organics are created equal, and so it’s important to get to know your local farmer, as well as read the labels of products you pick up at the store. The USDA certifies products as: [...]
The Worsted Witch » The Organic Myth? said,
October 6, 2006 at 12:42 pm
[...] Related articles: 1. Organic/Eco Classifications 2. Unfair Organics 3. Organic’s Edge Questioned 4. Eat Shoots and Leaves 5. Not All Organics Created Equal 6. Chekhov’s Eco Tip: Local or Organic? 6. Blog Love: Pocket Farm 7. The Oy in Soy [...]
The Worsted Witch » Chicken Vs. Chicken said,
December 20, 2006 at 6:08 pm
[...] Without knowing more about the magazine’s methodology, there’s not much I can say about its results, which seem to run counter to what we’d expect from organic animal husbandry. (Should we blame big-box organics for the dilution of stricter standards, who knows?) I mean, it’s no skin off my nose personally since I’m vegetarian, a position that’s proving increasingly merited in light of news that cows, pig, sheep, and poultry are the world’s greatest environmental threats. [...]