Part I: What the Hell am I Supposed to Eat?

by Leah Koenig

Imagine standing in a New York City supermarket aisle facing two adjacent bins of peaches. One sign reads “organically grown, Mexico.” Over the other, “low spray, upstate New York.” Which of the peaches, if either, do you put in your cart?

Over the last several decades, “organic food” has morphed from a virtually unknown idea, into a buzz phrase favored by granola-eating idealists and, more recently, into a billion-dollar business that currently represents the fastest-growing sector of specialty foods in America.

Once confined to natural food co-ops, organic foods—those grown or raised without synthetic pesticides, growth hormones or antibiotics—are now common fare at supermarkets and restaurants. The USDA certified organic logo graces the labels of mainstream products like macaroni and cheese, mayonnaise, and even decorative cake sprinkles.

As organic foods have grown more popular with consumers, large corporations have begun to offer organic versions of their conventional products (organic Heinz ketchup recently hit the shelves) and have started buying smaller organic companies (Stonyfield is owned by Dannon, Seeds of Change is owned by M&M/Mars). Big business has joined the organic movement—some because they are genuinely interested in using their corporate leverage to make difference in the world, but many others simply recognize that the joining organic food sector could increase their own profit margins.

Whether or not the attention from big business will ultimately equal a victory for the organic movement is still unclear. The emergence of “big organic” does mean that organic foods are now being purchased and eaten by more families in America than ever before. But whereas organic certification standards (like the USDA organic label) were originally created to assure customers of more sustainable growing standards, their connection to big industry renders them a potential source of consumer confusion or, put more cynically, consumer deception.

A USDA organic label on a peach is one thing, but organically certified Oreos or Tostitos? The organic movement was pioneered by small food producers that wanted to move away from conventionally-produced and highly-processed foods. Should food items filled with saturated fat and processed sugar containing ingredients grown 1,000 miles from the factory be considered organic simply because the wheat in them was grown without synthetic pesticides?

A number of smaller organic certifications (e.g. NOFA Organic, Oregon Tilth, Pennsylvania Certified Organic), which are arguably more thorough in their certification standards than the USDA, might be reluctant to certify Oreos. According to the USDA, which is currently the most widely-recognized organic label, organic Oreos are just fine (and will hit the shelves in the near future).

Watch tomorrow for Part II of Local is the New Organic: A Peach That Tastes Like a Peach.

Leah Koenig blogs at goodshmeats.blogspot.com.