Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 27, 1995 TAG: 9509270026
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
But what does it mean? In the spirit of September - Organic Harvest Month - here's a little bit about what that increasingly present "O" word is all about.
In this context, organic basically just means food that's grown without man-made fertilizers or pesticides. Processed foods can be organic, too, as long as they're made with organic ingredients.
Of course, it can't be quite that simple. As with any food products, organic foods are subject to all kinds of production and processing regulations. The federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 sets up uniform organic guidelines, but the law won't be fully implemented until late 1996 or early '97. For the time being, each state has its own rules governing the more than 4,000 certified organic farms in the United States.
In Virginia, for instance, organic producers must follow the Virginia Organic Food Act of 1990. The act sets up regulations for organic farming: Crops can be called organic, for instance, if they're grown on land that hasn't been treated with synthetic pesticides for at least three years or synthetic fertilizers for at least a year. Many natural pesticides and fertilizers are allowed.
The state Department of Agriculture monitors compliance with the act, but two private organizations, the Tidewater Organic Growing Association and the Virginia Association of Biological Farmers, are in charge of certifying organic producers. Anyone who wants to use the word "organic" on a food label must be certified, says Donna Whitmarsh of Floyd County, the organic certification coordinator for the biological farmers' group.
That group has certified 25 organic farms, Whitmarsh says, and more farms are in transition from conventional to organic, a process that takes about three years.
Farmers who want to be certified must submit applications that detail their farming plans - irrigation, natural pesticide use, crop rotation - for the next year, Whitmarsh says. Organic farms must be inspected every three years by independent inspectors, which costs $250 the first year and less in following years.
That certification cost is one of the reasons that organically grown fruits and vegetables usually run from a few cents to more than a dollar higher per pound than conventionally grown produce. Processed organic foods also are more expensive than their conventional counterparts - that 10-ounce can of organic vegetable soup, for instance, may cost more than $2.
Some of the cost difference is caused by organic farming practices, says Cameron Hackney, a professor in Virginia Tech's department of food science.
"When you're not using [synthetic] fertilizers and pesticides, your yield per acre is down," he says. "You're paying for that label."
But part of the price problem is an image thing, says Katherine DiMatteo, executive director of the Organic Trade Association in Greenfield, Mass. Organic foods and the stores that sell them often can be found in upscale neighborhoods, where sulfite-free, organically processed vegetable soup is sold as gourmet fare at gourmet prices.
But at stores such as the Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op, organic products aren't just the food fad du jour. About 85 percent to 90 percent of the co-op's produce is organic, says manager Robynn Onyett, and many of the processed foods contain organic ingredients.
A number of Roanoke-area grocers also carry some organic products. Bob Coates, produce merchandiser for the Kroger Co., says the chain's stores started selling organic produce in March and processed organic foods several years ago.
If you're shopping for processed organic foods, package labels can give an idea of how organic something is.
According to the 1990 law, a can of "organic vegetable soup," for instance, must contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients. Soup "made with organic vegetables" must contain at least 50 percent organically grown vegetables. Soup containing less than 50 percent organic ingredients can identify certain organic ingredients - like "organic carrots" - but only on the ingredients panel.
Until the federal law is implemented, there will be no uniform labeling standards, but DiMatteo says that the law has been around long enough that many of the major organic producers already are following its guidelines.
DiMatteo attributes the steady growth of the organic industry to consumer education. "People are becoming more aware of what pesticides are used," she says. There are federal laws that regulate the amount of pesticide residue acceptable on produce, but these laws don't go far enough for many people, she says.
But the real selling point for organic products isn't personal health or taste, she says. The organic industry was developed by people who were concerned about the environment - about protecting soil and water from synthetic chemicals that build up over the years.
"There's no way that any one group can clean up everything that's happened," she says. "But it's all about the environment."
For more information on Virginia's organic programs, call Donna Whitmarsh at (540) 651-4747.
by CNB