Once associated with a Birkenstock-wearing, granola-eating subculture, organic food is breaking down barriers and becoming part of the mainstream market.
Whether it’s organic coffee at McDonald’s or the organic cereal in grocery stores, these products are transcending their normal stereotype and appealing to a wider audience.
Organic farming makes up the largest growth sector in the agriculture industry. Although organic food remains a niche market, organic food sales totaled approximately $12 billion in 2005. The organic sector of the food market has grown at an annual rate of 24 percent for eight years, according to the N.C. State Organic Farming Systems Web site. It should come as no surprise that a major land-grant institution and a home to highly respected agricultural curricula such as NCSU has positioned itself at the lead of organic research and education efforts.
According to John O’Sullivan, a farm management and marketing specialist with the North Carolina A&T State University Cooperative Extension Program, this small segment of the food industry has experienced such increased popularity over two decades because consumer preferences have changed.
“Demand is pulling the organic system,” O’Sullivan said. “Consumers are worried about the environment as well as what is put on the food that their children eat.”
A common misunderstanding about organic food is that it is more nutritious than conventionally grown food, he said, adding that organic does not necessarily mean that the food is healthy.
Organic can accurately describe products ranging from vegetables to chocolate to beer. Put most simply, organic is an adjective that refers to the way in which a product was grown or produced. The Organic Trade Association defines organic agriculture an “ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity.”
While advocates contend that organically grown products are more nutritious, no available scientific evidence proves that foods produced by organic methods have higher nutritional value according to the USDA.
The appeal of organic products is found in the way they are produced. Organic foods are grown without pesticides, benefiting the environment through improved soil and water quality. Organic farming thus benefits farmers and consumers alike.
Despite substantial growth in the organic food sector, federal and university research has only recently begun to keep pace.
Although investment of public dollars in organic farming research and education is still in its early stages, NCSU received almost one-third of the $1.8 million U.S. Department of Agriculture Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems grant in 2001.
The University is also a partner in the largest land-grant facility dedicated to organic research and education in the country. Located at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems near Goldsboro, N.C., the Organic Unit has about 80 acres of certified organic land used for research, demonstration, extension and educational purposes.
Established in 1994 at Cherry Farm, the center’s partners include NCSU, N.C. A&T, the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, non-governmental organizations and various other federal and state agencies, citizens and farmers.
The CEFS serves as an important resource and educational tool for students majoring in horticulture, botany, plant pathology, entomology and other curricula.
Every summer, the CEFS hosts an eight-week internship program funded by the USDA Higher Education Challenge and the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. The program draws students from North Carolina, other parts of the country and abroad.
Brooke Witting, a graduate student in entomology, participated in the 2003 program. At the Organic Unit Witting conducted the majority of her research on beneficial insects in different environments.
“Each week, we had a theme such as livestock week or economics week,” she said.
Her research represents one of the ways organic farmers are trying to operate more efficiently, especially when they lack the use of timesaving pesticides. Although organic farming is more labor-intensive, according to O’Sullivan, farmers are free from the heavy costs of pesticides and related equipment.
“It is hard to say which is less costly,” O’Sullivan said. “A good manager can keep labor costs down.”
Although organic farmers generate more revenue per acre due to the higher consumer price, the results of some studies have shown comparatively higher returns for organic farming even without the premium prices.
Organic farming also has the potential to serve as an economically viable alternative to conventional farming according to the Organic Farming Systems Web site. The Web site also points out that as conventional farming continues to tend towards fewer and larger-scale operations, organic farming systems provide an opportunity for small farmers and newcomers to the business. Organic farming has relatively few barriers to entering the business as opposed to conventional farming by requiring much less land to run a successful operation.
Production of organic products in North Carolina has not kept pace with consumer demand. Although organic food is one of the fastest growing segments of the North Carolina food industry, the state currently imports more than 90 percent of the organic products sold in the state, according to the Organic Farming System’s Web site.
Surveys show that buyers in North Carolina are committed to buying products grown locally when available. One segment of organic agriculture that shows potential for growth in North Carolina is the development of organic livestock. According to Phil Rzewnicki, interest in organic farming is spreading from produce such as fruits and vegetable to organic meat and diary, which requires organic grain. Regarding the development of organic grain, “North Carolina is in the early stages,” Rzewnicki said.
Regardless of the current status of organic farming, Rzwenicki said it is in the consumer’s interests for organic products to be produced in-state.
“We want to produce that domestically,” Rzwenicki said.
