More Consumers Buying Organic, but US Farmers Still Wary

September 22, 2022by Scott McFetridge, Associated Press
More Consumers Buying Organic, but US Farmers Still Wary
George Naylor holds an organic apple grown on his farm, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022, near Churdan, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

CHURDAN, Iowa (AP) — In the 1970s when George Naylor said he wanted to grow organic crops, the idea didn’t go over well.

Back then organic crops were an oddity, destined for health food stores or maybe a few farmers markets.

“I told my dad I wanted to be an organic farmer and he goes, ‘Ha, ha, ha,’” Naylor said, noting it wasn’t until 2014 that he could embrace his dream and begin transitioning from standard to organic crops.

But over the decades, something unexpected happened — demand for organics started increasing so fast that it began outstripping the supply produced in the U.S.

Now a new challenge has emerged: It’s not getting consumers to pay the higher prices, it’s convincing enough farmers to get past their organic reluctance and start taking advantage of the revenue pouring in.

Instead of growing to meet the demand, the number of farmers converting to organic is actually dropping. Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture committed up to $300 million to recruit and help more farmers make the switch.

“It feels good,” said Chris Schreiner, executive director of the organic-certifying organization Oregon Tilth, referring to the government help. “It’s a milestone in the arc of this work.”

Schreiner, who has worked at the Oregon-based organization since 1998, said expanding technical training is important given the vast differences in farming land conventionally and organically. Schreiner noted that one farmer told him that converting a conventional farmer was like asking “a foot doctor to become a heart surgeon.”

The key difference is the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides as well as genetically modified seeds. Most conventional farms rely on those practices but they are banned at organic farms. Instead, organic farmers must control weeds and pests with techniques such as rotating different crops and planting cover crops that squeeze out weeds and add nutrients to the soil.

Crops can only be deemed organic if they are grown on land that hasn’t been treated with synthetic substances for three years. During that period, farmers can grow crops, but they won’t get the extra premium that accompanies organic crops.

According to the USDA, the number of conventional farms newly transitioning to organic production dropped by about 70% from 2008 to 2019. Organic comprises about 6% of overall food sales, but only 1% of the country’s farmland is in organic production, with foreign producers making up the gap.

In the U.S, “There are so many barriers to farmers making that leap to organic,” said Megan DeBates, vice president of government affairs for the Organic Trade Association.

While farmers seem hesitant, U.S. consumers aren’t. Annual sales of organic products have roughly doubled in the past decade and now top $63 billion, according to the Organic Trade Association. Sales are projected to climb up to 5.5% this year.

That growth is clear to anyone pushing a cart in an average supermarket, past bins of organic apples and bananas, through dairy and egg sections and along shelves brimming with organic beef and chicken.

The new USDA effort would include $100 million toward helping farmers learn new techniques for growing organic crops; $75 million for farmers who meet new conservation practice standards; $25 million to expand crop insurance options and reduce costs; and $100 million to aid organic supply chains and develop markets for organics.

Nick Andrews, an Oregon State University extension agent who works with organic farmers, called the USDA effort a “game changer.” It should be especially attractive to farmers with small parcels of land because the added value of organic crops makes it possible to make significant money off even 25 to 100 acre (10 to 40 hectare) farms — much smaller than the commercial operations that provide most of the country’s produce.

“I’ve seen organic farmers keep families in business who otherwise would go out of business,” Andrews said.

Noah Wendt, who in the past few years has transitioned 1,500 acres (607 hectares) of land in central Iowa to organic, noted the shift has been “rocky” at times for him and his farming partner, Caleb Akin.

But he and Akin recently bought a grain elevator east of Des Moines to use solely for organic crops, the kind of project the USDA program can assist. They hope the elevator will not only be a nearby spot to store grain but provide a one-stop shop to learn about growing and marketing organic crops.

Seeing all the organic activity is gratifying for George and Patti Naylor, who farm near the tiny central Iowa community of Churdan. But they say they still value most the simple benefits of their choice, such as evenings spent watching hundreds of rare monarch butterflies that flock to their herbicide-free farm.

As Patti Naylor put it, “It really helps to believe in what you’re doing.”

 


A+
a-
  • organic crops
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Agriculture

    Inside Scientists' Mission to Save America’s Wine Industry From Climate Change

    ALPINE, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. West Coast produces over 90% of America's wine, but the region is also prone... Read More

    ALPINE, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. West Coast produces over 90% of America's wine, but the region is also prone to wildfires — a combustible combination that spelled disaster for the industry in 2020 and one that scientists are scrambling to neutralize. Sample a good wine and you... Read More

    September 26, 2023
    by Dan McCue
    Vilsack Warns Farmers, Children Will Feel Shutdown’s Effect Almost Immediately

    WASHINGTON — With a partial federal shutdown growing ever more likely come midnight Saturday, the Biden administration on Monday began... Read More

    WASHINGTON — With a partial federal shutdown growing ever more likely come midnight Saturday, the Biden administration on Monday began underscoring the consequences of Congress not quickly taking steps to avert it. At Monday afternoon’s press briefing at the White House, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack painted... Read More

    September 22, 2023
    by Kate Michael
    Stabenow Believes Farm Bill Passage Is 'Doable,' but Complicated

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — With House Republicans in an uproar and the Senate only now leaning into getting its version of... Read More

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — With House Republicans in an uproar and the Senate only now leaning into getting its version of fiscal year 2024's spending plans done, it's a certainty that the farm bill, which sets the nation's agricultural policy for the next five years, won't be... Read More

    Low Mississippi River Limits Barges as Farmers Want to Move Crops Downriver

    DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A long stretch of hot, dry weather has left the Mississippi River so low that barge companies... Read More

    DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A long stretch of hot, dry weather has left the Mississippi River so low that barge companies are reducing their loads just as Midwest farmers are preparing to harvest crops and send tons of corn and soybeans downriver to the Gulf of Mexico.... Read More

    September 5, 2023
    by Dan McCue
    Governors Outline Farm Bill Priorities in Letter to Congress

    WASHINGTON — With Congress preparing to return to Washington, the National Governors Association has weighed in with a lengthy list... Read More

    WASHINGTON — With Congress preparing to return to Washington, the National Governors Association has weighed in with a lengthy list of priorities it believes should be considered when deliberations over the next farm bill begin next week. In a letter to the chairs and ranking members... Read More

    August 30, 2023
    by Dan McCue
    Battling Over Farm Bill Starts Even Before Congress Returns to DC

    WASHINGTON — Congress won’t return to Washington until Sept. 12, but already the battle lines are being drawn over proposed... Read More

    WASHINGTON — Congress won’t return to Washington until Sept. 12, but already the battle lines are being drawn over proposed additions to the upcoming farm bill. As a result, those drafting the massive agriculture and nutrition spending package have already conceded that a passable bill likely... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top