What is organic food?
Organic food is produce that has been grown or animal flesh that has been farmed, without the use of chemicals pesticides or genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Organic farming
The aim of organic farming is to produce food that is free from all artificial, man-made additives and preservatives. Organic farming is a much more time consuming and risky business than conventional farming. Organic farmers work with nature and not against it. A fully functioning organic farm is a balanced, self-contained ecosystem, wherein animals, birds and insects actually help to control pests.
Organic farming makes use of the following natural methods:
- Crop rotation – crops are rotated from one season to give the soil a chance to renew itself
- Natural animal and plant manures
- Approved environmentally friendly pest control
- Good animal welfare – animals should enjoy a comfortable, free-range life
A fertile soil is very important. Organic farmers are concerned with the "bigger picture," namely, the health of the soil and the ecosystems on their farms. This is why organic farming is touted as sustainable and conventional farming has been labelled unsustainable.
Natural, untouched soil is teeming with microbiotic organisms. These organisms live happily amongst the natural plant life and the inorganic minerals that make up the soil's substrate. Pesticides and inorganic fertilisers destroy these microbiotic organisms and the soil becomes merely an anchor for plants.
Now the conventional farmer will constantly have to tend to his soil and crops by using man-made chemicals, because the crop cannot survive on its own and the soil cannot regenerate. Soil fertility becomes an imported commodity.
On an organic farm, soil fertility is a biological process. Although his start-up costs are very high, the organic farmer saves money in the long run as his farm will naturally generate the necessary nitrogen and nutrients. The nutrients that are consumed by the animals are returned to the soil as manure.
Benefits of organic food
Exactly how and whether organic food is more beneficial is a hotly disputed topic. But if one looks at the basics, organic food has many benefits over non-organic food, quite simply because the crops are grown and the animals are reared naturally.
- Organic farming lowers water pollution and builds soil fertility.
- By eating organic food, you cut down on the chemical load that you take in, as it contains no insecticides, pesticides, growth hormones, antibiotics, fertilisers and toxic artificial additives, flavourings, colourings and preservatives.
- The food reaches you in a natural state with its nutrient content intact.
- Organic food is often fresher than non-organic food, because it has no preservatives so it is rushed straight to the shops.
- Natural food has more flavour
Organic Meat
Eighty percent of South African meat comes from animals that are either fed with feed that has been grown in artificial fertilisers and has been sprayed with pesticides, or they are reared in a feedlot or battery system where they are fed a cocktail of hormones and antibiotics. There is a debate as to how many of these additives actually reach our plates, but organic proponents say that the potentially dangerous chemicals do not pass through the animals systems, but actually accumulate in the fatty tissue.
Animals that provide us with organic meat and dairy roam and graze freely and never receive hormones, growth promoters or antibiotics. Instead, they are only treated with homeopathic remedies.
Organic meat also lowers the risk of another outbreak of "mad cow disease" as there is less chance of organically fed and raised cattle having Bovine Spongiform Encephalitis (BSE) that can cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans. CJD is a rare, degenerative, invariably fatal brain disorder.
CJD came under the spotlight in the late 1980's when British farmers added recycled meat and bone meal from infected cows into cattle feed and caused an epidemic.
Organic vs free-range
All organic livestock are free range, but all free-range animals are not necessarily organic. "Free range" means that the animals are allowed to live natural lives. They are free to roam the fields, interact with other animals and eat a plant-based diet. But often these free-range animals are treated using conventional veterinary methods and the plant-based food that they eat may contain artificial additives. Organic farmers use only 100% natural feed and treat their sick livestock with approved homeopathic remedies.
Is South Africa going organic?
Guess what was on the plates of the 60 000 delegates at the 2002 World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg? Organic food and only organic food. This was an attempt by organisers to raise awareness about organic food and also to emphasise, in the spirit of the Summit, the sustainability of the alternative farming method. South Africa is actually very far behind when it comes to organic food development, although the Organic Agricultural Association of South Africa says that there has been a 300% to 600% increase in the number of organic producers in the country in 2002.
There is, at present, no legislation in place in South Africa regarding organic farming, but a new version of the Agricultural Products Standards Act 1990 (119) is in the pipeline. For this reason, farmers stick to International Organic Standards. Organic farmers from South Africa are certified by regulatory bodies that adhere to European Union requirements.
Why do SA farmers use genetically modified plants?
However, South Africa is still one of the few countries in the world where the government supports the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to boost the quality and quantity of food crops.
The National Department of Agriculture (NDA) says that South Africa needs artificial assistance when it comes to growing crops, because the country itself does not have ideal growing conditions. Less than 15% of South Africa's land is arable and climatic constraints like periodic droughts make natural growth too risky to ensure food security for its people.
The NDA believes that if plants are genetically modified, their resistance to pests and disease can be increased. This not only yields more crops, but also reduces the need for pesticides.
Scientists can also control the taste and nutritional value of GM plants and this can help combat the deficiency diseases that ravage the country.
When a product is labelled "Certified Organic", it means that the producer has undergone a rather lengthy inspection process. This process authenticates that the growing and manufacturing of the product adheres to worldwide standards based on the principles and practices of organic food and fibre production. While certain details of the certification process may vary among the certification programs, generally speaking certification begins when the grower or processor completes an application that describes the farm history or plant operation. This description details management practices, the use of materials and so forth. This application is then scrutinized by the certification program, which then assigns an inspector to go and visit the farm or facility.
The inspector visually validates the application information is correct. The inspector writes a report and submits it with any additional documentation to the certification organization for review and approval status. Provided that the farm or facility is approved, it is certified for one year. An annual inspection is required in order for certification to continue. Each farmer and certifier is responsible for the maintenance of a clear audit trail - this is documentation that tracks product by lot numbers, certificates or other product identification codes. This means that at any point in the sale and distribution of the organic product, it can be traced back to its origin.
To check that a product has been certified, look at the product label. Does the product display the name and/or logo of a certification program? If not, ask questions. Be aware that often manufactured products contain certified ingedients, but the processing itself may not be certified. (When in doubt, call the manufacturer and ask about the certifier they use.) If you are buying fresh products, your retailer should be able to tell you who certified the product from the records that are kept in the store. Bulk product should always be accompanied by a certificate indicating the certification program.
