041171 Website Tracks Beef from Hoof to Plate

Saskatoon, Canada - Organic beef farmers in Saskatchewan are offering customers a way to track their meat right back to the farm.

Organic food already carries certification labels, but now a farmer co-op in Regina is operating a website called Fair Deal where consumers can trace a steak back to the farm where it originated.

"Because of competition from places like China, it was important that we connected directly with the end consumer so that they knew they were buying organic products from North America," said Jason Freeman of Farmer Direct Co-op.

Kevin Sandy sells the organic beef at his store in Saskatoon. Sandy said he likes the tracing program because despite the certification labels, he can't guarantee the food he sells is organic.

"I've never been to their place of production," said Sandy. "I take everybody at their word for it." The tracing program will help build consumer confidence, but the only way people can be sure that food is organic is if there are federal standards, said Simon Weseen, an organic market analyst.

"Consumers can't always be sure that those standards meet up with their expectations, but if we have one minimum standard it'll decrease the confusion that consumers currently face."

The federal government is working on standards for the organic food industry. There is no word on when they'll be in place.

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