Connect to verifiable sources of our food

Certified organic food can be traced back from our plates to the farmer that grows it. Everyone along the 'farm gate to dinner plate' trail - including transportation companies, storage facilities and processors - must adhere to national (and often international) standards. Everyone is inspected by independently trained inspectors.

Reduce our exposure to pesticides, synthetic chemicals, growth hormones, irradiation and genetically modified organisms (GMOs)

New agricultural chemicals are being introduced every year. Little is known about their long-term health effects and the effects of combinations of chemicals. But research is showing that our children, because of the size of their bodies, receive on average four times the exposure to pesticides and GMOs than do adults. Many of the chemicals that were once considered safe have been removed from use due to the ill health they have been proven to cause. Organic standards do not allow synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, irradiation or genetically modified organisms; organic standards forbid the use of antibiotics and growth hormones in raising animals for food.

Encourage farmers to consider more seriously their own health, the health of their families and the health of their workers

In Canada, a study of mortality in 70,000 Saskatchewan farmers showed a positive association between non- Hodgkin's lymphoma and the number of acres sprayed with herbicides. Farmers know that agricultural chemicals are designed to kill and they are becoming increasingly conscious of the negative effects of these chemicals on the broader environment and on human health. However, many farmers feel that they need to use these chemicals in order to keep their farms viable. The more we buy from local organic farmers, the more we will convince other farmers to make the transition away from the use of synthetic chemicals.

Support a movement towards smaller farms and more farmers

Industrial agriculture has proven that it is unable, due to the high costs and stress, to enable people to get into farming. We have lost more than half of our farmers in the last fifty years and the average age of farmers in Canada is 56 years. Farms are getting so large and specialized that farmers can no longer find the equipment and services they need in rural towns. Businesses, schools and churches are closing due to the loss of people and cash flow. This is not an inevitable or irreversible trend. In the USA, the number of farms increased in 2001 for the first time in decades. The reason is that consumer demand for organic food has inspired more people to take up farming on smaller parcels of land. Large corporations, though, are keen to capitalize on the health movement by purchasing organic farms and organic processing operations. And so it is increasingly important to make the effort to buy from local organic sources.

Satisfy our desire for more flavourful and nutritious food

Most of us would agree that food tastes better if it is allowed to ripen naturally and grow in nutrient-rich soil. This commonsense appreciation for good quality food is supported by chefs across the country who are looking for locally grown organic food. "We can look into the eyes of the organic farmers who supply us," says Jim Armstrong, with WOW Hospitality in Winnipeg, "and know this food is real, with real nutrients. Some of our customers notice the difference in taste and freshness." Studies, mostly out of Europe where the interest is greater, are beginning to confirm these experiences by showing that organically grown foods are particularly rich in vitamins and minerals.

Reduce the amount of toxins entering our water supplies

Pesticides can be found in our water sources, due, in large measure, to either pesticide drift, infiltration into ground water or runoff from farmland. The National Hydrological Research Centre in Saskatoon found that every surface water supply tested in Western Canada contains herbicides. Organic farming practices do not contribute to this contamination.

Conserve energy in providing our food

Like their conventional neighbours, most organic farmers use tractors and tillers on their land. But they tend to use smaller equipment on smaller land holdings. While industrial agriculture uses fertilizers and pesticides derived from fossil fuels, organic farmers rely on composted manure, cover crops and a greater degree of hand weeding. Most of the supermarket food we buy travels over one thousand kilometers to get to our tables. Organic food should require less transportation and local food even less of course.

Promote biodiversity and animal welfare

Because of the 'walking gently on this earth' philosophy behind organic farming, nature's diversity of plants, animals, bugs and birds is tolerated and encouraged. Organic farm animals are respected for having natural rhythms. They cannot be mutilated or confined unreasonably and cannot be fed the remains of other animals.

Build up the health of our soils

Organic farmers understand the soil as a living part of our ecosystem. In order to have healthy plants and animals we need to ensure that our soil is healthy. Practices specified by organic standards reduce the potential for erosion. Industrial agriculture considers the soil little more than a place for the roots to hold on to. As a result we are seeing synthetic chemicals reducing the 'wildlife' in our soils. In organic systems, soil bacteria, mycelium and microbes are encouraged to form communities that break down the straw, compost and minerals in the soil in order to make a broad spectrum of nutrients available to plants, animals and eventually ourselves.

Celebrate the coming together of science and traditional knowledge

While most farmers have spent the past fifty years being distracted by technological quick fixes for their farms, organic farmers have been doing their own experiments with a blend of traditional wisdom and modern research. Since most agricultural research, both private and public, relies on corporate funding, not enough formal research has gone into organic farming systems.

Take responsibility for the full cost of our food

Non-organic food may seem cheaper at the check-out, but when the hidden costs of industrial production, such as the cost of soil degradation and water pollution, and the cost of added health care are considered, the deal does not look as good. These costs are 'externalized' - paid for outside of the agricultural production system by taxpayers (that's us). Organic growers internalize most of their production costs which include more labour intensive techniques, natural soil building methods and marketing. These costs are incorporated into the price of organic foods.

-David Neufeld

Copyright © 2003 by Homestead Organics Ltd

All rights reserved. Printed in Canada. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.