Here at Bulk™ we have devoted some of our time on New Product Development to sourcing Organic ingredients and products. This is not only because we believe in Organic products, but because of the high quality nature of these Organic products, using impressive production processes in order to maintain high quality, nutritious products – retaining the Organic integrity.
Whilst Organic products are becoming more accessible… What does it actually mean to be Organic?
The Soil Association definition of organic food is food which is produced using environmentally and animal friendly farming methods on organic farms. These methods are legally defined and any food sold as ‘organic’ must be strictly regulated by these standard.
For foods to be labelled as Organic, they need to contain at least 95% ingredients, which are of Organic origin. The farming process itself needs to be Organic as this will ultimately affect the finished product. Artificial fertilisers are banned and farmers use different methods to ensure the soil is fertile – such as rotating crops, using compost, manure and clover.
There are strict rules for Organic farmers (known as standards) which place a strong emphasis on the environment as well as wildlife. Farmers are asked to take a more holistic approach to farming, using more natural processes that promote a positive, healthy ecology on the farm.
The Organic standard also aims to promote the best farming methods for addressing climate-friendly food production. As it stands, fertilisers, pesticides and non-organic food production processes are said to contribute to climate change. It is estimated by the Soil Association that if Organic farming was common practise in the UK, there could be a 23% reduction in agricultures greenhouse emissions.
The Soil Association state, in organic farming:
- artificial chemical fertilisers are prohibited – instead organic farmers develop a healthy, fertile soil by growing and rotating a mixture of crops, adding organic matter such as compost or manure and using clover to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere
- pesticides are severely restricted – instead organic farmers develop nutrient-rich soil to grow strong, healthy crops and encourage wildlife to help control pests and disease
- animal welfare is at the heart of the system and a truly free-range life for farm animals is guaranteed
- a diversity of crops and animals are raised on the farm and rotated around the farm over several seasons, including fallow periods. This mixed farming approach helps break cycles of pests and disease and builds fertility in the soil
- the routine use of drugs, antibiotics and wormers is banned – instead the farmer will use preventative methods, like moving animals to fresh pasture and keeping smaller herd and flock sizes
- genetically modified (GM) crops and ingredients are banned
The Organic standard doesn’t only apply to the way in which ingredients are grown – it also stretches to how they are produced/handled and packaged. Production processes are closely inspected to ensure there is no contamination with non-organic products, ensure no harsh chemicals are introduced to the product and ensure a good production process is used.
Organic products also require careful packaging and labelling. We proudly display the Soil Association logo on all our Organic products, but this is also a compulsory element of the Organic process, showing the Soil Association logo, the EU Organic Standard logo, the code of your Organic certification body and some information on the product agricultural origin.
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