The Best Time to go Organic Is Now

So much to celebrate.

The old attitude of ‘you can trust the government’ has been shattered, and regulators supposed to protect the population against harmful foods are now being interrogated about who actually makes their rules and parameters.

Foods grown without toxic chemicals, synthetic fertilisers or genetically modified organisms in healthy soils providing nutrient density are being sought out by thousands more consumers as they learn more about what makes them unwell. Growers of these organic foods are experiencing increased demand and there’s been no better time to transition into growing with natural systems to supply this demand.

Peter Hislop Speers is the Chair of Organic Operators of Australia, representing the nation’s organic industry and recently returned from an international Organic expo and conference in Delhi, BIOFACH, with representatives from 12 other countries.

“The Organic sector is growing everywhere and Australia is no exception,” he said. “Consumers are becoming far more interested, and actively learning about how their foods are grown and making quite different decisions from five years ago.”

“In addition to the foods being chosen to consume, people realise that organic products have an effect on climate variability and the viability of the landscapes where they are grown. Toxic chemicals affect the soils to the point where desertification is the end result, effectively reducing available land”.

Founder of the Organic Regenerative Investment Cooperative, Carolyn Suggate encourages existing Organic grain growers to increase the area of land and to diversify crop selections to satisfy the increasing demand for chemical-free grains.

“Since we were established ten years ago, the demand for more wheat, chick peas, sorghum, lupins and other specialty grains keeps increasing due to customers choosing foods without toxic chemicals. If anyone is thinking about ditching the synthetic chemicals, growing with more biological systems and repairing their country through growing Organically, now is the best time”.

“Where else does a grain grower set their own price and halve their input costs? While selling for a premium? Sounds like a lower risk option with a healthier balance sheet”

The past six months have revealed extensive flaws and distrust in Australian regulatory authorities with one example, the allowance of 500 times a toxic chemical in berries regularly eaten by children. There isn’t any human testing as the ethics around this product have not been established but, the APVMA approved the increased application of the highly toxic insecticide, isocycloseram under a ‘minor use’ permit on fruit. Just as then APVMA refused to ban Paraquat after a ‘30-year review’. This decision is being challenged by Senator David Pocock which begs the question that the APVMA should be applying deeper scrutiny into these decisions that impact the food we eat, the regulations we abide by, and the health of all workers in Agriculture.

A revolution is taking place across Australia through hearts, hands, intuitive and tacit knowledge; Australian food culture is being revived and finding your SLOW food tribe is an initiative from ORICoop. There has never been a more important time to buy local, choose organic, know your farmers, look and grow your own.