000703 Organic Foods Said Profitable, But Risky

Sixes, OR - Pending national standards on organic foods may create a higher- profit market for farmers but they also carry risks of broader swings in demand, more corporate takeovers of small farms and crops more vulnerable to damage, according to a trade group.

The National Organic Program will require organic farmers and processors across the United States to be certified.

Qualified growers can't use pesticides or synthetic fertilizers, and organic dairy and beef producers can't use hormones or antibiotics on their livestock.

Once the rules are in place, possibly next year, it will be a federal offense to label a product organic unless it meets the standards established by the government.

Oregon is one of 18 states that already requires that organic farmers be certified, which means pesticide-free crops for three years, surprise inspections, soil tests and a multitude of record keeping.

Oregon Tilth, an organization that certifies organic growers, says membership has risen 20 percent to 40 percent since the beginning of 1999. The number of U.S. farms certified by the organization nearly doubled from 177 to 327 from 1996 to 1999.

Consumer demand for organics has also risen.

Since 1990, demand has steadily climbed about 20 percent a year, and the Massachusetts-based Organic Trade Association expects a steeper climb once the federal rules are in place.

“I've always thought of this as economic development. It's not a green issue for me,” said Nancy Evans, secretary of Bandon Organic Growers on the southern Oregon coast.

She said organics will help Bandon's economy recover from the cranberry bust last season.

In nearby Sixes, cranberry grower Jerri Walter found girdler moths for the first time among her crop two years ago.

The herbicides she applied to control fungus were already causing her health problems and the last thing she needed was to add pesticides to the list, so she's among the farmers planning to go organic.

Walter's farm will be officially certified as an organic producer in 2001, when the new federal rules are expected to set a national definition for what is and isn't organic.

Grocers also anticipate a rise in sales. Nature's Northwest, which has eight stores in Oregon, plans to enhance its organic education for customers, said Robyn Nick, marketing promotions manager.

She expects an across the board increase in sales of organics from processed to fresh foods.

The federal rules may also ease overseas trading because they set a uniform standard. Currently, each state has a different set of requirements, according to the Organic Trade Association.

But converting farmland to organic production carries risks. Demand could fail to meet expectations. Or, if enough farmers convert their crops to organic, the increased supply could exceed demand and cause a drop in prices.

National organic standards also may drive out 8- to 10-acre specialty crop farms as corporate organic growers take over their niche, said John Foster, director of certification for Oregon Tilth.

“They've been able to make money because they have a crop nobody else has,” he said. “They will have to become increasingly creative.”

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