Let's scrap the term organic, says Monty
THE new president of the Soil Association has called for the term "organic" to be scrapped on food labelling.
Monty Don, the former BBC Gardener's World presenter who has just become chief of the food certifying body, said that the word may be off-putting to many buyers.
Mr Don said: "It's an albatross. Organic is loaded with a sense of rightness, with a set of rules. I would much rather someone bought food that was local and sustainable but not organic, than bought organic food that had to be shipped across the world."
He would like to replace it with the term "sustainable" to express a similar idea. In an interview with The Guardian on Saturday, he said he aims to tackle the perception that the Soil Association is "for wealthy, middle-class people indulging in their penchant for peasant food".
Mr Don will take up his post this week at the association's annual food awards. Due to a minor stroke this February, he put off taking up the role to spend the summer recovering at home.
He intends to use his new position to shake up the association and become a high-profile campaigner. He will start by encouraging Britain's 11 million gardeners to grow as much of their own food as they can.
Comments
by Anna Walker, Dyfed
Monday, September 01 2008, 4:20PM
“Garden Organic is already fulfillig the role Monty Don says he sees for the Soil Association. The Soil Association would be very foolish to lose what it stands for, its USP. It is all very well Monty saying that it is better to eat fresh and local than organic - why not eat fresh, local AND organic? It's not difficult to limit one's consumption to what's in season locally.
Eating non-organic food, one cannot avoid GM and pesticides; why pay to poison yourself? Not only that, but the nutrient density of non-organic food is less.”