Organic: What the label means to you.
Stop! Drop that apple. Before you put it in your mouth, think about where that apple has come from. Where was the apple grown? How many harmful insecticides have been sprayed on it? What chemicals does the ground it was grown on contain? Who packed and shipped it to your local grocery? A little scared to eat that apple now, considering all the contaminants it may contain?
Statistics are not encouraging. Though the evidence is not conclusive; breast cancer rates appear to have risen I % a year since 1940. Prostate cancer and cancer in children also seem to be on the rise. The age of sexual maturity is declining. Meanwhile, more than 80% of the most commonly used pesticides today have been classified by National Academy of Sciences researchers as potentially carcinogenic; yet, they are routinely found in mothers' mill"
There is another way. Everyone is either raving or ranting about the steadiest craze in the food market- organic products. Let's see what all the hoopla is about. After the Second World War it was considered essential to increase our food production to ensure that there would never be a need for rationing again. There was also the beginning of the desire for cheaper food. Farmers responded by increasing the volume of food grown. In order to do this, they had to combat agricultural threats like disease and insects, and it was commonly accepted that the only way to do this was with chemicals. Over time, chemical use became so widespread that today when you bite into an apple, bite into a burger or pour milk on your cereal, a meal isn't all that you're getting. Crops and animals absorb the chemicals with which they're sprayed or fed-and next in the food chain to absorb these chemicals is you. In a short space of time, food grown traditionally became the exception rather than the norm- mainly because there have been few incentives for farmers to switch to organic methods.
Now the tide is turning. In October 2002, the term "organic" gained official sanction, with passage of the National Organic Foods Production Act. Under this law, anyone who sells a product as "organic" must be certified by a USDA-accredited certification agency. In general, a "certified organic" label is your guarantee that a product was grown, raised, or processed without harmful pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), irradiation, or sewage-sludge fertilizers. Under the law:
"100% organic" means all individual ingredients are organic. .
"Organic" means 95% of the ingredients are organic. .
"Made with organic ingredients" means at least 70% of the ingredients are organic. .
Other processed products with less than 70% organic ingredients may not advertise the word "organic" on the front of the panel, but may list organic ingredients on the information panel as being so.
According to Nell Newman and Joseph D' Agnese, writing in The Newman's Own Organics Guide T0 a Good Life, proponents of organic food claim that it is more nutritious, safer to eat, and usually tastes better because it contains no synthetically compounded fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, hormones, medicated feed, antibiotics or chemicals. Although mainstream food growers and processors continue to dispute these claims, organic foods have become steadily more popular as the public has become more concerned about health risks associated with chemicals in food products.
In fact, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) 2004 Manufacturer Survey (prepared under contract by Nutrition Business Journal) shows that organic food sales . nearly tripled-from $3..6 billion to $10.4 billion-in the six years from 1997 to 2003. At the same time, Organics' penetration into the overall food market grew from 0.8% to 1.9%.
In another study - the Fourth National Organic Farmers' Survey-conducted by the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), 33% of the respondents noted that their sales remained steady in 2002, while 44% reported market expansion.
Organic produce is now available in many food outlets, including major supermarket chains. Organic food is generally more expensive because organic farming requires more manual labor and attention. Yet, organic farming is the fastest growing segment of U S. agriculture, with sales rising 20% a year. According to the Food Marketing Institute, more than half of Americans now buy organic food at least once a month. Organic products such as clothes and beauty aids are also on the rise. Some say organic cotton is the most suitable material for clothes for comfort and durability.
Consumers may argue that eating organically is expensive and time consuming. Until recently, just finding a marketplace that even offered such products was an adventure. But organic proponents might argue that the price of an organic product more accurately reflects what cleaner, safer food is worth. Remember, even if there is no incontrovertible evidence that Organics are any more healthful or better for you than conventional products, there is also no denying that market growth is in their favor. And the new government standards could go a long way toward increasing the legitimacy of organic products among mainstream consumers. WF
References: The Newman's Own Organics: Guide to a Good Life by Nell Newman with Joseph D' Agnese, 2003 Nutrition News, vol. XXVIII,No. 6 Material provided by the Organic Trade Association (OTA) Material provided by the Organic Farming Research Foundation OFRF)
SOURCE: WHOLE FOODS. SEPTEMBER 2004