The organic food market is growing exponentially. It increased by 15.7% between 2015 and 2018! A progression that raises many questions. The point on what to really expect from products from organic farming and breeding.
The market for foods from organic farming (known as “organic”) has experienced very significant developments in recent years. Many reasons have led consumers to get started, including the desire to limit the consumption of residues of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, or fungicides, concern for the environment and/or animal welfare . But what is it really?
Are all organic products equal?
Yes, in theory. This is important because, according to Agence Bio, 57% percent of organic fruit and 62% percent of organic grocery products sold in 2018 were imported, half of which from a country outside the European Union (EU). “In Europe, there are regulations concerning organic farming, says Nadine Lauverjat, coordinator of Future Generations. Member States are subject to the same specifications, except for derogations.”
But what about Asian rice? “There are equivalent agreements between the EU and a hundred countries,” says Frédéric Denhez, an ecologist. “When an exporter wishes to obtain the organic label, our certifying bodies go on site to check whether everything complies with our specifications, adds Emmanuelle Kesse-Guyot, research director at Inra.” The European organic label is therefore a guarantee of seriousness.
Are organic plants free of pesticides?
Not necessarily. “In a world polluted since the beginning of the industrial era, contamination is always possible during cultivation, storage or transport, explains Frédéric Denhez. But it is very low.” Thus, based on published studies, when residues are found in organic foods, they are traces, i.e. amounts to less than 0.01 mg/kg. A ten-year follow-up of fruit and vegetables in Germany concluded, in 2013, that the quantities of pesticide residues were 180 times lower in organic than in
