Andrew Binetter: An Organic Look

Over the past two decades, the organic food industry has gone from a niche sector to market dominance. What was once available in limited options and at sky-high prices can now be found in mainstream grocery stores around the world. The sector is growing, and is expected to continue its growth trend well into the coming years. With this explosive growth comes significant challenges, particularly in consumer confidence that organic foods are adhering to the high standards that kicked off the organic foods movement. Organic Foods are Big Business Organic farming practices – those that shun the use of artificial fertilizers, growth hormones, and pesticides – began in the early 1960s. It was an idealistic movement, spurred by concern for healthy lifestyles and environmental protection. For the next 30 years, organic farmers operated on a relatively small scale, providing products to local grocery stores and supplying boutique food products manufacturers. In the 1990s, consumer int...

The global food industry has experienced a severe erosion in public trust over the past decade. Highly-publicized accounts of contamination, the fear of genetically-modified ingredients, and failures on the federal level to inspect food products for safety have led to suspicion and outright distrust among the world’s food-buying public. Add to that the consumer interest in natural and sustainable food production practices and one has a recipe for dramatic upheavals within the food industry. Thankfully, the food industry is responding to consumer distrust, implementing changes in the way food products are sourced, made, and distributed to regain consumer confidence. Why the Distrust Among Consumers? In recent years, the food-buying public has become increasingly aware of the role foods play in health. In fact, most industry analysts and food safety advocates believe that foods are far more important for health than any pharmaceutical product. The foods we eat form the foundation of...