Organic rules and the supermarket’s games
Organic rules, what organic rules are and what they are not.
The rise in organic consumption across Europe is being primarily lead by the increasing presence of organic produce in the supermarket chains, the supply demands of the big supermarket chains is putting pressure on the limits of the organic rules of production.
An example of this that is hitting the headlines here in France is the proposed use of heated polytunnels to produce tomatoes and strawberries out of season.
Supermarkets now make up around 70% of all organic sales in France according to a report produced by the Agence Bio, “Baromètre 2018 deconsommation et de perception des produits biologiques en France”(PDF). In 2018 the total organic sales in the supermarkets chains in France surpassed 4.5 billion euros. Leclerc have announced they want to double their organic sales by 2022, Carrefour want to quadruple theirs. On one hand this is a good thing making organic produce available to a wider audience, on the other this is putting pressure on the limits of organic rules as supermarkets demand consistent supply 12 months a year across the full range of fruit and vegetables. The buying departments of the supermarkets are using the same strategies for securing organic supplies as they use on industrial suppliers, demanding large discount and a through various euphemisms a monopsony, that is they are the exclusive buyer of that supplier, which is border line legally speaking. The price wars that have devastated the incomes of the industrial farming sector in France meed to be avoided if organic agriculture is to continue to grow. A fair price for the consumers, of course, but one that reflects the production cycle, and costs and work of the organic farmers and transformers,Why not create a national independent agency that oversees organic pricing with a remit to both ensure consumers get a fair deal and that farmers receive a price consummate with their work?.
The other negotiating tool they have imported from their industrial buying system is the imposition of fines for late delivery, or shortages in supply. Given the fact that organic farming does not have the tools available to industrial farming to circumnavigate the weather these tactics and totally unsuitable for procuring organic supplies.
The demand to grow organic tomatoes and strawberries to feed the supermarkets year round demand flies in the face of the over riding principals that under pin organic agriculture. In the outlines of the principal guidelines set down by the European Union are that organic production “respect the natural cycle” and “a responsible use of energy”. According to the study FoodGES produced by ADEME, tomatoes produced in France in heated polytunnels produce 4 times the CO2 emissions than tomatoes grown in Spain, and 8 times that of tomatoes grown in season in France. You would have thought it was pretty clear and cut, heated polytunnels to produce fruit and vegetables out of season are not in line with the principals of organic agriculture. Alas it does not appear so clear to the Comité National d’Agriculture Biologique, the ruling body on organic agriculture in France. Despite a call by the FNAB, Fédération Nationale d’Agriculture Biologique, and SYNABIO, the national union for organic producers and transformers, to inform the companies in transition to organic production using heated polytunnels, in Bretagne and Pays de la Loire, that the practice is against the organic rules, the Comité National d’Agriculture Biologique have for the second time delayed the decision, now until the July 2019 meeting.
This does throw into the limelight what organic rules are and what they are not. Organic is a natural production way of farming, minimising inputs, avoiding pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilisers. Organic farming is about sustainable soil management, there is a reason the largest organic certifier in the UK is called the Soil Association. It is a way of farming that limits the impact of farming on the environment.
The broad outlines of organic rules are set in by the European Union and then interpreted by national bodies on the various Minsters of Agriculture in the member states. The various national certifying bodies, that control organic producers and issue us with our organic certifications also themselves set rules, some at the basic European level, other demand further, higher levels of rues, such as Demeter, which certify biodynamic producers.The EU set organic rules are not perfect, far from it, they are a compromise of organic principals with commercial and practical realities.
Take for example the rules on the proximity of organic wine producers to industrial producers. Organic rules state that their has to be a boundary between organic and industrial vine fields, of the equivalent I think of four rows of vines. Clearly the wind does not blow in Brussels. Here in the Languedoc it has been calculated that at times of high winds sprayed chemicals can travel up to 12kms. Now demanding that organic grape growers have to have a 12klic distance between themselves and their industrial neighbours is clearly unpractical and would mean the end of organic wine. Most organic producers try and discuss with their industrial colleagues how, and when, they spray their vines, after all it is not in the interest of people spending a small fortune on chemical to spray when their produce is not going to be concentrated on their land. But is not something you can easily legislate on.
Then there is the approach of all the producers themselves, some just work to the basic rules others set standards for themselves way above the organic rules. I know organic farmers that plow their land with horses so as not to use fossil fuels, plant producers like ourselves that do not use organically certified bought in soil like we do but prefer to their own growing medium. Every one has their own approach within the confines of the organic rules. Labeling and communication can only go so far in informing the consumer of this wide range of practices, ultimately the only way to find out how something is produced is to talk to the producer his or her self. Which is why we like doing markets, it gives us the chance to talk to our clients, advise them on how to grow plants and to build the customers confidence in our production techniques.
“How can an apple grown in Argentina and flown to France be organic?”
Organic rules govern the production process of food. It does not govern the distribution and transportation of organic produce. An organic apple grown in Argentina by a certified organic producer is an organic apple. The fact that it is then crated up, driven to an airport, flown half way across the world so that a French consumer in Perpignan can buy an organic apple out of season does not effect it’s organic status. It is still an organic apple, but one with a much larger carbon footprint than one grown by a local organic producer in Prades and bought in season. consumer awareness and sensitivity is the key, if you don’t want a produce with a large carbon footprint then don’t buy out of season produce grown half way round the world. Supermarkets will not waste precious shelf space selling products that do not sell. Nor will resellers in markets.
Seasonality and local.
Which bring us back to the start, if you want to buy healthy produce with as little environmental impact as possible then organic alone does not provide that, you need to eat seasonally, and buy direct from a local organic producer who you have learnt to trust.
Seasonality and local always
