In this article we are going to talk about Organic movement, a topic of great relevance today. Organic movement is a complex issue that covers different aspects that affect society as a whole. From its impact on the economy to its influence on personal relationships, Organic movement is an issue that leaves no one indifferent. Throughout this article we will explore the different approaches and perspectives that exist around Organic movement, with the aim of offering a more complete and in-depth understanding of this very relevant topic.
The organic movement broadly refers to the organizations and individuals involved worldwide in the promotion of organic food and other organic products. It started during the first half of the 20th century, when modern large-scale agricultural practices began to appear.[citation needed]
An organic product can broadly be described as not containing toxic chemicals (including synthetic pesticides, arsenic-containing herbicides, fertilization biosolids, chemical food additives, antibiotics, synthetic hormones, and industrial solvents). In addition to the absence of artificial chemicals, "organic" means not genetically engineered, and having not used ionizing irradiation,[1] which can cause free-radicals and the removal of vitamins.[citation needed] For example, USDA organic restricts against such things, including genetic engineering in products or in the products' animal feed,[2][3][4] and automatically disallows the use of GMO products as being labelled as Organic and allows the use of "Non-GMO" labelling similar to The Non-GMO Project.[5]
In the United Kingdom, the term used with food is natural food.[6]
The organic movement began in the early 1900s in response to the shift towards synthetic nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides in the early days of industrial agriculture. A relatively small group of farmers came together in various associations: Demeter International of Germany, which encouraged biodynamic farming and began the first certification program, the Australian Organic Farming and Gardening Society,[7] the Soil Association of the United Kingdom, and Rodale, Inc. in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, and others. In 1972, these organizations joined to form the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). In recent years, environmental awareness has driven demand and conversion to organic farming. Some governments, including the European Union, have begun to support organic farming through agricultural subsidy reform. Organic production and marketing have grown at a fast pace.
Historians consider Albert Howard, Viscount Lymington, Robert McCarrison, Edgar J. Saxon and Frank Newman Turner as pioneers of the organic movement in Britain,[8][9][10] and the term "organic farming" was coined by Lord Northbourne in 1940.[11]
Today, organic foods stores have captured a significant share of the grocery shopping market, specifically, Whole Foods Market, Wild Oats, Trader Joe's and others.
Organic food, ecological food, or biological food are foods and drinks produced by methods complying with the standards of organic farming. Standards vary worldwide, but organic farming features practices that cycle resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Organizations regulating organic products may restrict the use of certain pesticides and fertilizers in the farming methods used to produce such products. Organic foods are typically not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or synthetic food additives.[15]
In the 21st century, the European Union, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and many other countries require producers to obtain special certification to market their food as organic. Although the produce of kitchen gardens may actually be organic, selling food with an organic label is regulated by governmental food safety authorities, such as the National Organic Program of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)[16] or the European Commission (EC).[17]
From an environmental perspective, fertilizing, overproduction, and the use of pesticides in conventional farming may negatively affect ecosystems, soil health,[18][19] biodiversity, groundwater, and drinking water supplies. These environmental and health issues are intended to be minimized or avoided in organic farming.[20]
Demand for organic foods is primarily driven by consumer concerns for personal health and the environment, such as the detrimental environmental impacts of pesticides.[21] From the perspective of science and consumers, there is insufficient evidence in the scientific and medical literature to support claims that organic food is either substantially safer or healthier to eat than conventional food.[21]
Organic agriculture has higher production costs and lower yields, higher labor costs, and higher consumer prices as compared to conventional farming methods.The recent interest in the organic industry has sparked the interest of many businesses from small local distributors to large companies that distribute many products nationally. The organic market is now a 13 billion dollar a year industry, that continues to grow especially from large corporations such as Wal-Mart that are now offering organic choices to their customers.[22] Other companies that offer organic options include General Mills and Kraft. Some large companies have bought smaller already established organic companies such as Earth's Best, Rice Dream soy milk, Garden of Eatin', Celestial Seasonings and Health Valley. When larger companies buy smaller companies it is called stealth ownership.[23]
Organic cosmetics are products that are made with organic ingredients that were produced without the use of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and fertilizers.
The FDA does not have a definition of “Organic” in terms of organic cosmetics. FDA regulates cosmetics under the authority of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA).[24]
The USDA (the U.S. Department of Agriculture) requirements for the use of the term “organic” are separate from the laws and regulations that FDA applies for cosmetics. For more information on "organic" labeling for cosmetics, see the NOP publication, "Cosmetics, Body Care Products, and Personal Care Products." Cosmetic products labeled with “organic” must follow both USDA regulations and FDA regulations of organic claims for labeling and safety requirements for cosmetics.
The Agricultural Marketing Service of USDA supervises the National Organic Program (NOP). The NOP regulations have the definition of "organic" and provide certification for agricultural ingredients if they have been produced under conditions that would meet the definition. Moreover, the regulations also include labeling standards based on the percentage of organic ingredients in every product.[25]
The COSMetic Organic and Natural Standard (COSMOS) sets certification requirements for organic and natural cosmetics products in Europe.[26]
Organic farming, also known as organic agriculture or ecological farming or biological farming,[27][28][29][30][31] is an agricultural system that emphasizes the use of naturally occurring, non-synthetic inputs such as compost manure, green manure, and bone meal and places emphasis on techniques such as crop rotation, companion planting, and mixed cropping. Biological pest control methods such as the fostering of insect predators are also encouraged. Organic agriculture can be defined as "an integrated farming system that strives for sustainability, the enhancement of soil fertility and biological diversity while, with rare exceptions, prohibiting synthetic pesticides, antibiotics, synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified organisms, and growth hormones".[32][33][34][35] It originated early in the 20th century in reaction to rapidly changing farming practices. Certified organic agriculture today accounts for 70 million hectares (170 million acres) globally, with over half of that total in Australia.[36]
Organic standards are designed to allow the use of naturally occurring substances while prohibiting or severely limiting synthetic substances.[37] For instance, naturally occurring pesticides such as garlic extract, bicarbonate of soda, or pyrethrin (which is found naturally in the Chrysanthemum flower) are permitted, while synthetic fertilizers and pesticides such as glyphosate are prohibited. Synthetic substances that are allowed only in exceptional circumstances may include copper sulfate, elemental sulfur, and veterinary drugs. Genetically modified organisms, nanomaterials, human sewage sludge, plant growth regulators, hormones, and antibiotic use in livestock husbandry are prohibited.[38][39] Broadly, organic agriculture is based on the principles of health, care for all living beings and the environment, ecology, and fairness.[40] Organic methods champion sustainability,[41][42] self-sufficiency, autonomy and independence,[42] health, animal welfare, food security, and food safety. It is often seen as part of the solution to the impacts of climate change.[43]
Organic agricultural methods are internationally regulated and legally enforced by transnational organizations such as the European Union and also by individual nations, based in large part on the standards set by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM),[44] an international umbrella organization for organic farming organizations established in 1972, with regional branches such as IFOAM Organics Europe[45] and IFOAM Asia.[46] Since 1990, the market for organic food and other products has grown rapidly, reaching $150 billion worldwide in 2022 – of which more than $64 billion was earned in North America and EUR 53 billion in Europe.[47] This demand has driven a similar increase in organically managed farmland, which grew by 26.6 percent from 2021 to 2022.[48] As of 2022, organic farming is practiced in 188 countries and approximately 96,000,000 hectares (240,000,000 acres) worldwide were farmed organically by 4.5 million farmers, representing approximately 2 percent of total world farmland.[49]Organic land care, organic landscaping, or organic lawn management is a form of horticulture that relies on organic land management techniques such as mowing high, proper watering, the use of compost, soil amendments, and organic pest control.
In the late 20th century, a movement to manage lawns organically began to grow out of the practices of the organic farming movement. Activists in several U.S. cities have pushed local governments to require organic landscaping. Many private properties worldwide are managed organically, but some locations require organic land care.[50] Local regulations are often responding to a lack of regulation from the federal government and billion-dollar settlements against pesticide manufacturers.[51]
The organic land care movement gained public recognition in 1996 when England's Prince Charles announced that the Highgrove House gardens and landscaping were under organic management.[52] In 2009, then Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust announced that the campus and grounds were under organic management there implemented by landscape director Wayne Carbone and with savings of two million gallons of irrigation water and resulting in cure of leaf spot and apple scab in the campus orchard.[53] In 2018, Portland, Maine became the largest city in the United States to restrict all synthetic pesticide applications across all public lands and private property. The pesticide ordinance passed by the City Council that includes a fine of up to $500 for violations was lobbied for by environmental groups and community organizer Avery Yale Kamila.[54] In 2019, Rafael Tornini, head of the Garden and Environment Service of the Vatican, announced the 37 acre Gardens of Vatican City had been transitioning to organic management since 2017.[55]
There have been multiple criticisms regarding organic food and organic marketing practices. Scientists at the University of Washington did a test of the urine of children who are on organic food diets and children who are on conventional food diets. The result was children on organic food diets ‘ urine had a median level of pesticide byproducts only one-sixth of children on conventional food diets. However, at the same time French, British and Swedish government food agencies have all concluded that there was no scientific proof that organic food is safer or has more nutrition than conventional foods.[56]
A 2014 study by a non-profit academic think tank funded by the Council for Biotechnology Information alleged consumers are "routinely deceived" by intentional and endemic misleading health claims in organic marketing.[57][58] Organic products typically cost 10% to 40% more than similar conventionally produced products.[59] According to the UK's Food Standards Agency, "Consumers may choose to buy organic fruit, vegetables and meat because they believe them to be more nutritious than other food. However, the balance of current scientific evidence does not support this view."[60] A 12-month systematic review commissioned by the FSA in 2009 and conducted at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine based on 50 years' worth of collected evidence concluded that "there is no good evidence that consumption of organic food is beneficial to health in relation to nutrient content."[61] Although the source of the organic movement was small family farms, large corporations have started distributing more organic products and certain categories of organic foods, such as milk, have been reported by Michael Pollan to be highly concentrated and predominantly sourced to mega-farms.[62]
Various types and methods of organic agriculture have been developed in the Northern Hemisphere, such as the biological-organic and biodynamic method
the term biological often refers to organic farming, whereas the term ecological refers to organic plus environmental considerations such as on-farm wildlife management
A form of production (also organic farming, ecological farming, ecological-biological farming, ecological agriculture, alternative agriculture) for the production of food and other agricultural products
Biological farming and 'bio' products are terms often used in European countries as equivalent to organic farming. Ecological farming and 'eco' products are terms also used in European countries as equivalent to organic farming.