Organic Versus Conventional Food: The Real Cost of Unconscious Choice

What is organic food? Who ensures the integrity and quality of the “USDA-organic” brand?

According to the USDA (2007), “Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation.”

Passage of the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA), enacted under Title 21 of the 1990 Farm Bill, established uniform national standards for the production and handling of any and all foods labeled as “organic”. OFPA led to the creation of a new USDA National Organic Program (NOP); NOP now acts as the judiciary of organic food production as it sets national standards for the production, handling, and processing of organically grown agricultural products (Gold, 2007). NOP also manages the mandatory certification process undergone by all organic food producers in the United States. As a part of the USDA’s efforts to ensure the integrity of the “USDA-organic” certification brand, and as a result of OFPA, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) —an advisory agent to the Secretary of Agriculture, as Congress is to lawmaking — sets the foundation and functional standards for the NOP. Only food producers who meet the standards of the NOP obtain the right to label their food “organic” (Gold, 2007).

Organic farming relies on natural, chemically-free methods of crop cultivation to create food with as little human intervention and manipulation as possible for the optimal nourishment of the end-recipient, which promotes and generates holistic compassion toward the environmental ecosystem. As is noted by the Mary V. Gold’s USDA article (2007), “Organic agriculture is an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony.” While USDA standards and regulation, in addition to the most earnest efforts of farmers, cannot guarantee absolute purity of the end-crops, this is especially true with the increased use of GMO-seeds and crops, and air-borne pesticides that create uncontainable air pollution — organic farming and food products are still a significant step in the direction of conscious agriculture and clean eating from seed to harvest.

Privately-owned Organic Certification Agencies: Aside from the USDA, there are many privately-owned certification companies. The Rodale Institute provides a comprehensive database of US-based and international certification agencies through which farms, factories, and food producers may obtain their organic certification. The certification agencies listed are all bound by the NOP’s certification standards, but the Rodale Institute, founded by J.I. Rodale, and the producer of the longest running US-based comparative trial to measure the quality and ecological effects of organic vs. conventional farming, may hold its certifiers to even higher standards. The Rodale Institute has been in operation since 1947, way before the USDA established any measure of organic standards, and remains true to its creed and mission through the present day. As the RI site states (2010), “Our findings [via the Farming Systems Trial®] are clear: A global organic transformation will mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in our atmosphere and restore soil fertility. Our mission: We improve the health and well-being of people and the planet.”

How is organic different from conventional food? The major difference between conventional and organic farming is fundamental. Organic farming omits the use of any chemicals in the form of pesticides, insecticides or fungicides to eliminate pests with the thought that doing so harms the consumer, farm animals and the environment. Conventional farming, in contrast, readily uses a variety of chemicals and forms of genetic modification to alter, and control the end crop and increase harvest yield. Some in the conventional-farming community would indicate that they are benevolent in their tactics since their yields may be larger in quantity, and can be augmented to contain increased variable tolerance or enhanced levels of essential nutrients not found in naturally-occurring like crops.

Related website resources:
NOP Homepage: This is the USDA’s dedicated section for additional information regarding the National
Organic Program and data related to certification, standards and regulation of organic food processors.

Guide to International Trade in Organics: Laws and Regulations: What isn’t it? This data set is the definitive
information source for all things related to the legal and regulatory aspects of organic food production,
handling and trade.

Codex Alimentarius - Organically Produced Foods Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2001: The Codex Alimentarius (CA) document is a joint venture between the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide the public with an in-depth look at many aspects of organic agriculture, including definitions, import regulations, the current inspection and certification systems and much more; what’s great is that each section is accessible via a hyperlink for easy navigation through this informative and massive document.

Related essays, articles:
Next Course in Organic Debate: There’s been some debate over whether organically-grown food is superior
to its conventional counterparts; this article takes a look into the debate and attempts to shed some light on
the matter.

The Winner: Organic: As I stated, there is a robust debate being waged over whether organically or conventionally-grown food is superior. This article has a definitive stance and makes an argument for the superiority of organically-grown food.

Change has come big-time to USDA National Organic Program: This article discusses the additional measures the NOP plans to implement to guarantee the quality and integrity of the foods produced by farms and factories certified under the “USDA-organic” brand with the use of unannounced inspections, increased investigation of those who might seek to cheat the system and the public by cutting corners, and increased regulatory staff.

Rodale Institute Press Room: This page on the RI site provides links to current happenings in the organic community and provides newsworthy articles regarding organic legislation, practices and precedents.

References:

Bowman, G. (2010). Change has come big-time to USDA National Organic Program. Rodale Institute. Retrieved from http://rodaleinstitute.org/20100208/Organic_program_head_lays_out_strict_and_sensible_approach_to_strengthen_integrity_ease_producer_barriers

Gold, M. V. (2007). Organic Production and Organic Food: Information Access Tools. USDA: Alternative
Farming Systems Information Center. Retrieved from http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/pubs/ofp/ofp.shtml