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Does growing organic
really make that much of a difference, you
might wonder when you look at the supermarket's organic section,
noting that the prices tend to double when food is produced naturally.
According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and
Development (OECD) it really does make a difference. In their recent
review they criticised Britain for using twice as much pesticide
as other
similar countries did, leading to the pollution of rivers and canals
and a
reduction in water quality.
Despite the trend in recent years for organic
foods, it seems Britain is
still not doing enough to protect either the environment or the
consumer.
Friends of the Earth (FoE) are now campaigning for a national tax
on
pesticide use and are encouraging people to put pressure on their
supermarkets to make organic food more readily available.
"It's time the government looked at a pesticide
tax to have a real
impact on cutting pesticide pollution. But the money raised must
be
used to support British farmers in finding safe alternatives to
chemical
pesticides," said FoE pesticides campaigner Sandra Bell.
In addition, the group points out, organic food
is GM free and with
testing on genetically modified crops and the effect on the food
chain
still minimal, this is now an important consideration for many consumers.
Yet it is a concern that is not new for Scottish
food co-op, Green
City. who have been committed to supplying organic food where
possible since they started up in 1978. Initially supplying only
eight
outlets, they now supply more than 50 across Scotland.
Green City are now not only involved in trying
to increase the supply
of organic food but also support the five year freeze campaign,
calling
for a halt on all GM production until proper testing has been carried
out.
Sales Manager Bryn Thorburn has seen the demand
for suppliers like
Green City grow exponentially in recent years. He explained: "There
is definitely an increased interest in food politics and consumer
choice.
Lots of people are getting more and more intolerant of things such
as
gluten and wheat. They are now becoming ill after years of being
slowly poisoned by pesticides.
"There is of course the environmental side
as well; by eating organic
you're not polluting rivers and land."
As a co-op with strong principles of equality,
Green City also makes
sure organic and GM free foods available in rural areas supplying
to
outlying 'food co-ops' who buying in bulk at discount prices then
distribute to their members.
"We have to cater for areas that maybe only
have one village shop
and rely on us for wholefoods and organic. The food co-ops are on
the
increase," said Thorburn.
However perhaps one of the most important things
is that Green City
can provide suppliers and consumers with all the information they
want
about what they are buying. Thorburn explained: "Because we've
been
going for so long, people trust us. We have to be accountable and
we
need to be able to trace the produce back to each farm.
"The food industry is changing all the time.
It must be almost
impossible for consumers to keep up with it and inform themselves.
Most supermarkets don't really have the information available unless
you really go looking for it. Here everybody is knowledgeable about
all of our products, from where it comes from, how it is produced
and
even how to cook it."
For a suppliers list see- www.greencity.co.uk.
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