Industry collaboration to bridge gap between supply and demand
The booming U.S. organic food industry posted $39.7 billion in 2015, up 11% from the previous year, according to the “2016 Organic Industry Survey” from the Organic Trade Association (O.T.A.), Washington, D.C. Nearly 5% of all the food sold in the U.S. in 2015 was organic.
Supply issues continue to dominate the industry, as organic production in the U.S. lagged behind consumption. In response, the organic industry is getting creative and proactive in order to address this challenge.
Many herbs and spices are sourced from outside the U.S., simply because they grow best in tropical climates. But there are some crops that may be grown domestically.
“The U.S. was once big in garlic and onions, but droughts in California have severely impacted cultivation and supply,” said Simone Cormier, national spice coordinator, Allegro Coffee Co., Thornton, Colo., a subsidiary of Whole Foods Market, Austin, Texas. “There has to be motivation to be a farmer, and then to transition into organic farming.”
Laura Batcha, O.T.A.’s chief executive officer and executive director, explained that the U.S. food industry is coming together to advance infrastructure and education, to provide farmers with that motivation. For example, in January, O.T.A. partnered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide guidance to farmers transitioning into certified organic agricultural production. Using standards developed by O.T.A., the National Certified Transitional Program will provide oversight to approved Accredited Organic Certifying Agents offering transitional certification to producers. This will help ease the transition process to organic, allow farmers to sell their products as certified transitional at a premium price and help encourage more organic production.
This is an important step in helping to expand certified organic acreage in the U.S. That is because farmers must undergo a rigorous and sometimes challenging transition period of 36 months before they can gain organic certification and market their products as certified organic.
