Spreading the Word

We meet Christine Bushway, Executive Director of the Organic Trade Association, the group that spearheaded the organic food movement in the US.

Once regarded as a rare commodity only to be found in specialised outlets, organic products of every kind are now available in grocery stores across the US. However, despite the fact that organic products have now taken their place alongside their mainstream counterparts on our shop shelves confusion still reigns over what the term actually means according to the Organic Trade Association (OTA).

The association, which represents organic traders and producers across North America, was originally established in 1985 to establish a national definition of what ‘organic’ actually means.
And, says executive director of the OTA Christine Bushway, its work is far from done.

Describing the origins of the OTA, she says: “ When the organization started it was originally known as the Organic Foods Production Association of North America. And it became OTA in 1985, and that was done by a group of individuals that wanted to build a trusted identity for organic products in North America. The top priority at that point in time was to develop a set of unified guidelines for organic standards. And it was to establish a national definition that could form the basis for a consistent message to the public about what the meaning of organic is on food labels.

Bushway goes on to say however that there is still confusion among consumers as to the true meaning of organic – particularly as more and more so-called organic products, appear on the supermarket shelves: “The consumer is still confused about what organic means. And we now have other things coming into the market that are labelled differently, that conflict with our message and also add to the confusion. So that’s one of our big, big issues - to make sure that we educate the consumer so that the consumer understands the value of an organic food label.”

Educating the consumer is something that Bushway is very qualified to do. She has spent 30 years working in the food and agriculture industries in a range of roles, from promoting daily productions to working on quality assurance issues alongside members of the beef industry.
Much of her work to date has been in a marketing and advertising capacity – including running the Incredible Edible Egg initiative– a marketing campaign launched by the American Egg Board in 1975 to reverse a national decline in egg consumption.

She hopes to emulate the success of this campaign, and educate consumers at the same time by launching a marketing campaign aimed at educating consumers about the truth benefits of producing, training and consuming organic products: “The number one priority for our membership for the next several years to increase consumer promotion and education,. And so, we are about to launch a major marketing program. We have hired a very experienced organic marketer who has put a marketing plan together, and we will be launching that sometime in the next several weeks. It will provide much more education for the consumer and much more visibility regarding organics out there.” She goes on to say that the campaign will be aimed at clearing up some of the misconceptions that exist about organic produce.

“We need to educate the consumer so that he and she understand the real value and the costs associated with producing organic products. There are competing labels out there that confuse consumers. I think that people generally tend to only think of organic products as not having pesticides so they see the value of that,  but they don’t understand the bigger mission of protecting the environment and the base of agriculture. This is what we are trying to educate consumers about.”

Part of the reason why the OTA’s task is so complex, and why it’s job of educating consumers about organic product labels and definitions is a continuous process, is that the range of the products in the marketplace is increasing all the time. Once a label attached only to food or beverages, just about any consumer product can be defined as organic these days, from textiles to soap. “We don’t just represent food, we also represent fibre and textiles and personal care products and any new sectors as they develop,” says Bushway.

“There are new sectors that are emerging all the time. We are now also seeing aquaculture and organic pet foods. And they’re in the process of shaping the standards for those new sectors. So this is something that is emerging at this point in time.” She goes on to say the labelling definitions are also evolving all the time causing confusion in the marketplace owing to the amount of products pertaining to be eco-friendly – but may not actually be organic.

“We’re concerned about competing labels. We’re seeing increased competition for consumer dollars from other eco-labels, which at this point are usually not very well defined and usually unregulated. And as a result of that, the consumer suffers from an information and product choice overload, as we see it—so we get concerned about consumer shutdown in that area, so that’s something that competes for our consumer at this point in time. That’s another reason why we feel it’s very critical to educate consumers about the unique benefits of organic products, and communicate that they help to promote a sustainable food system.”

Consumer awareness is not the only area that the OTA is concerned about when it comes to the labelling of organic products. The mislabelling of products as being organic is an offence under US law and according to Bushway, the US Department of Agriculture has investigated and resolved over 700 complaints relating to the intentional and accidental mislabelling of organic products.

The OTA is passionately committed to ensuring these complaints are brought into the public arena and it is currently awaiting the outcome of complaint it filed against Ohio’s Director of Agriculture, Robert Boggs, claiming that a new Ohio regulation “improperly dictates organic dairy labels by excessively limiting the ability of manufacturers to provide truthful and non-misleading information to consumers, and thus infringes their First Amendment Right of free speech.

Describing the case, Bushway says: “A Monosanto ( a US based sustainable agriculture company)-instigated state-by-state campaign is challenging dairy farmers’ and daily processors’ rights to tell consumers that their products are produced without the use of synthetic growth hormones, such as BST. So we, OTA, on June 30, filed a complaint against Ohio’s Director of Agriculture, Robert Boggs, in an attempt to protect the rights and consumers to receive truthful information about organic production practices of milk and dairy product labels, and to protect the rights of organic dairy farmers and processors. “We still don’t have an outcome on that. It’s still not – there’s no decision rendered at this point in time, so we’re still waiting on that.” Bushway says she is optimistic that further investigation into such complaints will be facilitated by the 2008 Farm Bill under which funding has been earmarked specifically to help develop the organic produce industry as a whole.

“The basic gist of the Farm Bill for us is that there are increased dollars going into the whole organic area. A lot of groups, including the OTA worked hard to bring organic more into the mainline consideration for agricultural support and emphasis through the US Department of Agriculture. The whole industry worked hard to increase mandatory expenditures to approximately $112million over the course of the five-year life of the Farm Bill. This total represents a five-fold increase in expenditure on the organic sector since the 2002 Farm Bill.

Bushway explains the detail of the financial provisions: “some of the specific provisions include $78 million over five years to increase funding for organic research that will bring new technical, scientific, and marketing analysis to farmers and processors, which is clearly very important because that will help them with their production. There’ll be another $22 million to aid organic farmers in financing the cost of conversion. It’s very costly for producers, farmers; when they decide to convert from traditional farming to organic, it’s very costly, so this $22 million in aid will be available.

There’s also $5 million in mandatory funding, plus up to $5 million per year in appropriations for USDA to collect and distribute price reports for organic agricultural products, so that – and to conduct surveys and to publish reports, so we’ll have more data available.”

She goes on to say that the provisions in the 2008 Farm Bill will have a dramatic impact on the industry by 2011: “I would say that by 2011 the funding for the National Organic Program could triple to help facilitate appropriate enforcement and accreditation, as well as oversight of international production—and so that’s huge.”

One area where the OTA hopes to increase increase investment is in technical research into the production of organic products and organic practices and this area is another which benefit from the provisions in the 2008 Farm Bill.

“Another challenge is always a lack of technical research on organic agricultural practices. We would certainly like to see universities and research centres have more resources for research on organic agriculture. But again, we fall back to the 2008 Farm Bill, which has kind of put more money into that area, so we’re very positive about some changes in that area.”
By improving agricultural practices, Bushway says she hopes that production of organic products will be increased through funding of research into organic practices.

This is particularly important, she says, as demand for organic products currently outstrips supply: “Domestic supply is always a big concern because demand for organic continues to outpace supply, and many domestic suppliers struggle to keep up with that. And part of this is due to a shortage of organic raw materials, so that has certainly hindered the growth of the organic industry.”

Tasked with increasing the profile of the organic food industry, detangling organic definitions and channelling funding towards research into production methods, Bushway has a big job on her hands.

But she says she is more than up for the challenge and confident that there is plenty of backing from members of the organic industry to support to OTA’s mission: “We’ve very excited about the direction we’re going and that we have this good mandate from our board of directors to get greater visibility for the industry and for the organization. And we’re very pleased with the great support from our membership and how it’s growing. And we’re very – clearly, very surprised and happy to see the growth in the industry itself. It continues to outpace regular food by huge amounts, so we’re very excited about what the future holds for the organic industry.”

About the Organic Trade Association:

The Organic Trade Association (OTA) is the membership-based business association for the organic industry in North America. OTA’s mission is to promote and protect organic trade to benefit the environment, farmers, the public, and the economy. it envisions organic products becoming a significant part of everyday life, enhancing people's lives and the environment.
OTA represents businesses across the organic supply chain and addresses all things organic, including food, fiber/textiles, personal care products, and new sectors as they develop. Over 60% of OTA trade members are small businesses.

Advancing Organic Standards
OTA is a leader in advocating and protecting organic standards so that consumers can have confidence in certified organic production.  With input from its diverse membership, OTA continues to develop and refine organic standards for emerging product areas. OTA monitors the work of government agencies, takes positions on legislation that affects organic agriculture and products, and represents the industry to regulators, elected officials, and international bodies.

Promoting Transition
OTA is committed to increasing the amount of agricultural land under organic management for the good of the planet and its inhabitants. A healthy supply chain is integral to the continued growth of the organic industry and to consumer choice in the marketplace. OTA works on many fronts to support the transition to organic farming, processing, and handling. OTA’s HowToGoOrganic.com website is a clearinghouse of resources for farmers and businesses interesting in becoming organic or creating new organic businesses.


Reaching the Public
Through press releases and events, a media newsletter What’s News in Organic, and a consumer web site The O’Mama Report, OTA shares the benefits of organic with the public and helps expand markets for organic products. OTA directly promotes organic products at retail via its cooperative marketing programs, including Go Organic! For Earth Day™, and also promotes Organic Harvest Month™ in September. OTA is a primary source for fact-based information about organic products and processes throughout North America.

Growing the Market
OTA’s membership directory, The Organic Pages Online, is a fully searchable directory with comprehensive indexing and twice monthly updates. It is a virtual organic marketplace, connecting buyers and sellers of organic products and services, from farm to retail. OTA also publishes an online Export Directory for international buyers interested in purchasing U.S. Organic Products.

OTA is the founder of the All Things Organic™ Conference and Trade Show. All Things Organic™ is the largest business-to-business trade show and conference in North America focusing exclusively on organic products and organic trade issues.

Verifying the Benefits
OTA works with public and private organizations to support scientific research regarding organic production and processing. Research-based information on the environmental, health, and nutritional impacts of organic agriculture and its products is critical for the small but fast-growing organic industry.