On Thu, 21 Nov 1996, Sustainable Agriculture wrote:
> >>The organic trade ASKED
> >>(Congress and) USDA to get involved and establish the label!
> >
> >I think this brings up an interesting question. WHO EXACTLY asked that this
> >be done and why? I do understand the importance of standards, etc., but
> >these are largely important only when there is not direct contact between
> >the organic grower and the consumer. When there is a fairly direct
> >relationship (farmer-store, farmer-restaurant, farmer-consumer), the grower
> >an explain what they do and why. When the relationship is indirect
> >(farmer-wholesaler-distributer(US)-distributer(foreign)-store(foreign)-consu
> >mer(foreign)), that's not possible.
>
> This comment seems particularly salient in light of some recent trends within t
> he natural foods industry. Namely, as the demand and popularity of organic foo
> ds grows, the distribution and retail component of the industry has become more
> concentrated and more vertically integrated. Evidence for this transformation
> can be found within the retail sector where in the past few years we have seen
> that several chains have emerged as dominant within certain regions. Anyone
> who lives on the East Coast (or the Midwest) may have watched with interest as
> Fresh Fields and Whole Foods were engaged in a price war in order to fight
> for market share in this highly lucrative market. However, when Whole Foods bo
> ught Fresh Fields, discussion of price cuts vanished.....There is some evi
> dence that these industrialization/concentration trends are also emerging in th
> e production of organic/natural foods (see recent report on Agricultural Indust
> rialization from the Wallace Institute for Alternative Agriculture).
>
> I must confess that I find these trends very disturbing. They certainly do not
> bode well for the security of our food system for either farmers or consumers.
> Additionally, I think that it calls upon us within sustainable agriculture to
> confront a very important moral/philisophical dilemna that we have been
> able to avoid for many years -- Namely, if a food system is "green" (or greener
> than conventional systems) does that mean it is "sustainable"? In other words
> , how do we operationalize the very nebulous definition of "socially acceptable
> " agriculture contained within the core of sustainable agriculture without
> also looking at the thorny question of "sustainable for whom?" (see Allen, 1993
> Food for the Future, John Wiley and Sons.)
> >
> >I used to work for minimum wage in a crunchy-granola hole-in-the-wall food
> >co-op. Last year, I heard a talk by a rep from an organic beans and grains
> >company. I was for all the world like a talk from any ag wholesaler. The
> >organics made a difference from a marketing standpoint, but not from any of
> >the ways that "sustainable" ag is important: farmers, farmworkers, ecology,
> >community, etc.
> >
> >Maybe the question is, Who benefits from standardization?
> >
> >ciao
> >bill
> >
> >
>
> Sustainable Agriculture Research | SARE ACE
> and Education | Georgia Experiment Station
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