Organic Foods Travel a Rocky Road

Products labeled “100% organic” must contain only organically produced ingredients, while those labeled “organic” must contain at least 95% organic content. Only these products can display the “USDA Organic” seal. Processed foods that contain at least 70% organic ingredients can use the phrase “made with organic ingredients” and list up to three of them on the label. Processed products containing less than 70% organic ingredients cannot use the term “organic” other than to identify the specific ingredients in the ingredients statement. A civil penalty of up to $11,000 for each offense can be levied against knowing violators, although only a handful of such penalties have been imposed over the years.

USDA certification does not address food safety or quality issues, however. While proponents insist that organic food is more nutritious, studies are inconclusive. A 2009 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found no difference in nutritional quality between organically and conventionally produced crops and animal products. The report, based on a meta-analysis of 55 clinical studies conducted from 1958 to 2008, found that conventionally produced crops had a significantly higher content of nitrogen, while organically produced crops had a significantly higher content of phosphorus and higher titratable acidity. “No evidence of a difference was detected for the remaining eight of 11 crop nutrient categories analyzed,” the study found. Further, no evidence of any nutrient differences was found in livestock products.

click for large version

Figure 1. Organic Food Sales by Product in the U.S. in 2010

But a separate meta-analysis, conducted by The Organic Center’s Dr. Benbrook, who holds a doctorate in agricultural economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, found that organic produce was about 25% more nutritious, with higher concentrations of important polyphenols and antioxidants. “Most studies in the 1980s focused simply on mineral and vitamin levels,” Dr. Benbrook said. “The differences documented in this study are sufficiently consistent and sizable [to conclude that] organic plant-based foods are, on average, more nutritious.”

Safety First?

Organic farms are far smaller in acreage and far less numerous than conventional farms. Of the nearly 320 million acres of farmland in the U.S., only 4.8 million acres (1.5%) are organic. Similarly, only 14,540 farms out of more than 2.2 million nationwide are organic (fewer than 1% of the total). Nevertheless, food safety concerns cut across all segments of food production. “Food safety has not gotten the attention it deserves in some segments of the organic community,” Dr. Benbrook said. “Food safety does not respect farm boundaries, scale, or systems. It can hit and hurt people in any type of farming situation.”

Food safety legislation passed by the House of Representatives and pending in the Senate would require companies to implement safety plans and shift oversight from the USDA to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which would have the authority to seize unsafe food shipments, order recalls, and fine violators (see “Food Fight” in Food Quality, June/July 2009, pp. 16-23). The Senate is scheduled to vote on the measure (S. 510) when it convenes for its lame duck session in mid-November.

Many organic proponents, among others, are concerned that the legislation imposes too many requirements on small farmers and producers and grants too much authority to the FDA. “Most of the food safety risks happen at larger facilities where they aggregate products from many farms,” said Jim Riddle, organic outreach coordinator at the University of Minnesota’s Southwest Research and Outreach Center in Winona. “The bill should address food safety concerns based on risk and not impose unreasonable barriers and bureaucratic expectations that may force some producers out of business,” Riddle told Food Quality.

click for large version

Playing Fast and Loose

As a rule, organic growers and producers are philosophically committed to their values and principles. Not surprisingly, they chafe at impostors and interlopers. “We’d like to see the [USDA National Organic] Program more strongly enforce its certification standards and employ punitive measures for producers who cut corners or flat-out cheat,” said Will Harris, president of the Georgia Organics board of directors and owner of the largest certified organic farm in the state.