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| Organic food is a non-specific term that refers to "naturally produced" products, both certified organic and non-certified. | |||
| While "organic" is widespread in popular usuage, the term "organic food" is only beginning to be widely discussed. As the popularity of organic products grows, so does the distinction between organic farming and organic food. | |||
| The general definition of organic food is similar to that of organic farming: | |||
| *produced without synthetic chemicals (eg: fertilizers, pesticides, antibiotics, hormones) | |||
| *free of genetically modified organisms | |||
| *for fresh food, often (but not necessarily) locally grown | |||
| *for processed food, containing only organic ingredients, with no artificial additives | |||
| *for all food, strict production standards (eg: no artificial ripening of produce; no toxic materials in processing facilities; etc) | |||
| The basic claims for organic foods are: | |||
| *tastier | |||
| *more nutritious | |||
| *non-toxic | |||
| *better for the environment | |||
| None of these claims are currently considered to be scientifically proven. | |||
| Organic food becomes a separate topic from organic farming when its ultimate value comes into question. For example, a home vegetable gardener may decide not to use toxic chemicals, and the resulting produce will be "organic". This is easily understood. But does that make the vegetables "better", or the chemicals "bad"? The issue of measurable food quality is likely to become the central debate as "organic" moves increasingly into the economic mainstream. | |||
Revision as of 07:08, 20 December 2003
Organic food is a non-specific term that refers to "naturally produced" products, both certified organic and non-certified.
While "organic" is widespread in popular usuage, the term "organic food" is only beginning to be widely discussed. As the popularity of organic products grows, so does the distinction between organic farming and organic food.
The general definition of organic food is similar to that of organic farming:
- produced without synthetic chemicals (eg: fertilizers, pesticides, antibiotics, hormones)
- free of genetically modified organisms
- for fresh food, often (but not necessarily) locally grown
- for processed food, containing only organic ingredients, with no artificial additives
- for all food, strict production standards (eg: no artificial ripening of produce; no toxic materials in processing facilities; etc)
The basic claims for organic foods are:
- tastier
- more nutritious
- non-toxic
- better for the environment
None of these claims are currently considered to be scientifically proven.
Organic food becomes a separate topic from organic farming when its ultimate value comes into question. For example, a home vegetable gardener may decide not to use toxic chemicals, and the resulting produce will be "organic". This is easily understood. But does that make the vegetables "better", or the chemicals "bad"? The issue of measurable food quality is likely to become the central debate as "organic" moves increasingly into the economic mainstream.