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Farm Management Software for Fruit & Vegetable Growers
ProducePak provides a powerful suite of software solutions which make every day business easier and more profitable – whilst allowing you to maintain higher quality, staff performance, cost control, and traceability levels.
The primary focus of the system is to improve:
- business control
- traceability practices
- business profit enhancement
- cost management and control
- budget management
- staff accountability and management practices
Download Farm Software brochure now [English]
[Spanish]
[Talk to our consultants now]
Immediate Business Benifits
- improved profit in most areas of business
- improve staff efficiency
- reduce duplication & redundancy
- decrease management response time
- improve reporting, analysis, and business monitoring
- Instant cost reporting, live at any time!
- Streamline & automatically manage processes
- Enforce operational standards
- Create full traceability of all produce handling in all business areas
- Easy audits and traceability management
Premium ERP & Small Business Editions
ProducePak is now available in a Small Business Edition which concentrates on improving traceability, and quality control.
The ProducePak Premium ERP version concentrates on profit management and enhancement, staff and labour control, traceability, budget management, business process improvement, and quality management.
[Talk to our consultants now]
Feature Summary
- Prepare production budgets prior to the start of each seasons growing, to improve materials, labour, and cash flow planning
- Monitor budgets on a daily basis to identify budget overruns
- Profit reporting down to individual areas of land at any time during the production process
- Automatically generate staff tasks and instructions to improve staff management
- Comprehensive production task management for ALL production activities including Spray, Timesheets, Irrigation, Machinery Plant & Equipment Maintenance, Block Inputs, Planting, Harvesting, and more…
- Comprehensive activity monitoring systems to identify mistakes and deviations during the production process; allowing management to make corrective actions before incorrect practices or tasks cost produce quality/yield or effect profitability
- Automatic traceability of materials and labour used in production; instant recall from block, crop, and material inputs
- Comprehensive inventory management to improve resource utilisation and reduce waste includes traceability for inventory batches and integrates automatically with recall and traceability systems. Purchase Order generation, stock takes for multiple sites and depots, inventory intake traceability, inter-company purchase orders and inventory acquisition processes
- PC Interface as well as optional Mobile Farm Software which allows staff to synchronise production tasks to the PDA, record tasks and actual material consumption out in the field, and then synchronise data with the ProducePak server to allow management staff to monitor activities and update budget information
- Integrate with financial packages
- Integrate with payroll packages
Download Farm Software brochure now [English]
[Spanish]
[Talk to our consultants now]
Scheduling & Activity Monitor
For each produce type, and each season, staff can setup standard Production Programme’s which may include any number of tasks and suggested dates, durations, materials, and labour and how they should be undertaken according to the age of the crop, eg: for a Capsicum Crop in summer;
- fertilise with Gypsum 10 days prior to planting
- Apply Plastic at least 5 days Prior to planting
- Spray with Abmectin at least 1 day prior to planting
- Spray with X, X days after plant
- Etc…
Features:
- configure the businesses standard production methods specify duration of tasks, materials used, labour used, equipment used
- trail, analyse and compare new production methods
- automatic scheduling of production tasks for each block for the entire season
- Monitor activities during production to compare ‘estimated’ with ‘actual’
Benefits:
- When important staff go on holidays or need to be replaced, their knowledge of normal operations is retained in ProducePak and can easily be accessed by management and new staff.
- Increase profitability by standardising production practices across the entire business
- Stops production staff from forgetting important tasks, resulting in increased yield and profitability
- Ensures correct quantities and methods are enforced, increasing business profit
- Allows the development and analysis of new production methodologies to improve production efficiency
- Rapidly Identify production mistakes and anomalies for production activities, allowing management to take corrective action; resulting in improved yield and profitability
Budgeting
Used in conjunction with the Scheduling module, the Budgeting module allows the creation of budgets that detail all of the labour, materials, quantities, and dates required; for the entire production season on a block by block basis. This allows management to better plan financial resources, and production management can co-ordinate materials and labour requirements. During production, various levels of management can continually compare “estimated” with “actual” consumption for the cost of materials, and labour.
Features:
- generate entire budgets for each block, before production commences
- trial different production methodologies to fine tune budget and cash flow requirements
- monitor ‘estimated’ and ‘actual’ budget during the production season
- Budgets by: Detail, Item, Category Summary, and Date Range
- Production Costs Reporting
- Production Profit Reporting
Features:
- Become a ‘lean manufacturer’ by arranging materials and labour resources to be delivered Just In Time, maximising business cash flow
- Detect budget over/under runs immediately and take corrective action, resulting in improved cost control and profitability
- Make financial decisions and improve financial planning based on full budgeting information being available before each season starts
- Remove ‘nasty cash flow’ surprises that may result from a lack of budget planning
- Compare profitability of selected production methodologies to choose new production methods; resulting in increased business profitability
- Comprehensive cost control avoids budget blow outs and allows management to be aware of any problems immediately
Block History
The Block History module allows tracking of historical observations and scientific data.
Features:
- Record SAP, Quality, Production, Soil Notes, Irrigation Notes, IPM notes.
- Attach files such as PDF & word doc’s.
- These records can later be searched to allow prevention of repetitive problems.
- Report on any specific block or crop between a date range
Benefits:
- If an incident such as a mistake or production anomaly occurs in the business, recording relevant observations and checking observations for the same block during the next season can prevent the same mistake/incident from occurring next season. This obviously creates a cost savings or profit enhancement for the business.
- Maintain important production observations, even if key production staff cease employment with your business.
- allows staff to keep a record of production incidents and soil behaviour, thus, allowing more informed production decisions in the future.
Note: this item is AVAILABLE in the ERP Edition only, however, is NOT included in the standard ERP Edition unless otherwise stated.
Farm Diary
The Farm Diary allows a graphical representation of all of the tasks being carried out on the farm/s. The diary is used for planning and monitoring purposes, as well as recording traceability (HACCP, EurepGAP, ISO) standards.
Features:
- Record Spray, Irrigation, Water, Planting, Block Inputs, Harvest, and virtually ANY task that is performed during production
- Costs are automatically allocated to each Block
- Automatically maintain traceability of materials used during production & automatic inventory allocation
- Generate staff/team instruction sheets
- View alerts for BHI / withholding periods etc
- Perform production cost analysis for each block
- Maintain labour traceability for all production tasks
- Visual display allows annual, monthly, weekly and daily views of production tasks filtered by selected Farm Site, or , Block, or Crop.
Benefits:
- Improve production planning by having a comprehensive plan prior to planting
- Improve staff management by being able to monitor staff activities and take corrective action where staff do not perform their tasks correctly
- Easy provision of instructions to production staff
- Increased control over materials used and authority to acquire production materials
Inventory
This module allows the management of all materials used in the business for both production and packing fruit and vegetable products. When Tasks are performed, the system automatically deducts the quantity of materials used from inventory. This allows constant tracking of the quantity of materials on hand.
Features:
- Create Purchase Orders to acquire inventory
- Receive Inventory functions
- Perform multi-site stock takes, and or multi-depot stock takes
- Authorise the use of inventory from various storage depots
- Unlimited storage depots, at unlimited sites
- Batch number traceability
- Batch number recall processes
- Easy ‘pending delivery’ analysis
Benefits:
- Increased control over inventory allows the business to reduce inventory waste and misappropriation; and improves profitability
- Enhanced inventory control allows the business to better manage the quantity of materials on hand, resulting in improved cash flow
Mobile Farm Management*
Allows production staff to use a PDA to view and record production activities during their normal work processes. The PDA can be carried to remote farming sites during this process; making data capture accurate and timely. Data can then be synchronized between the PDA and the main server.
Business Intelligence Module
Allows advanced ERP reporting and analysis of business activities, budgets, production methods, production costs, and traceability. This module has been developed by experts around the world to improve business profitability, cost control, and performance.
Financial Integration*
Export data to your companies financial package including, purchases, consumption, labor records for payroll, purchase orders, and other pertinent financial information.
* Note: this item is AVAILABLE in the ERP Edition only, however, is NOT included in the standard ERP Edition unless otherwise stated.
Summary
The system results in a higher profit for the business by providing comprehensive cost control, profit control, staff management, traceability management, and production activity management.
The system allows your business to continually identify new ways to improve profit through the development of new production methodologies and the ability to continually monitor and compare performance of every facet of the business.
Download Farm Software brochure now [English]
[Spanish]
[Talk to our consultants now]
More profit, more cost control, more traceability
Farm Software Features/Modules & Benefits
Click on any of the modules below to learn more about their benefits and features.
 Block History & Integrated Pest Management
Production Program
Production Scheduling
Crop Mapping
Farm Diary
Spray Diary
Water Diary / Irrigation Diary
Timesheets & Farm Labour
Crop Inputs & Crop Costs
Integrate with Farm Financial Package
Farming & Production Reports
Farm Inventory
Alerts & Messaging
Farm Equipment , Machinery & Service Monitor
HACCP Manager
Farm Software for Handhelds: If you are interested in Farm Software, you may also be interested in our Mobile Farm Management Software. [more...]
Ask us how we can help your business today. Phone us or fill out our contact request form to have one of our consultants contact you to discuss a solution for your business. [Talk to our consultants now]
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| Discover how to reduce farm operational expenses and improve reporting and staff management for production of fruit and vegetables... Enhance farm and production efficiency |
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| Uncover new levels of productivity in your packhouse by implementing ProducePak Packhouse Management. The system provides a host of business improvements from .... |
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| Discover new levels of efficiency in the Food Manufacturing process with ProducePak Food Manufacturing ERP. Improve profit, cost control, and traceability. |
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The shapes of most fruit trees can be manipulated by pruning and training in order to increase yield, or to improve their suitability for different situations and conditions. Pruning a tree to a pyramid shape means that trees can be planted closer together. An open bowl or cup form increases the penetration of sunlight, thus encouraging a high fruit yield whilst keeping the tree short and easy to pick from. Other shapes such as cordons, espaliers and fans offer opportunities for growing trees two dimensionally against walls or fences, or can themselves be trained as barriers.
Bush trees are the traditional open goblet shaped form, with a clear lower stem.
Cordons are single stemmed trees with fruiting spurs planted at an angle. Any side branches are removed by pruning. cordons take less space and crop earlier than most other forms which means that more varieties can be got into a small space, but yields are smaller per tree.
Espaliers have a central vertical trunk with three or four horizontal branches each side.
The term fruit has different meanings depending on context. In botany, a fruit is the ripened ovary—together with seeds—of a flowering plant. In many species, the fruit incorporates the ripened ovary and surrounding tissues. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds.[1] In cuisine, when discussing fruit as food, the term usually refers to those plant fruits that are sweet and fleshy, examples of which include plums, apples and oranges. However, a great many common vegetables, as well as nuts and grains, are the fruit of the plant species they come from.[2] No single terminology really fits the enormous variety that is found among plant fruits.[3] The cuisine terminology for fruits is inexact and will remain so. The term false fruit (pseudocarp, accessory fruit) is sometimes applied to a fruit like the fig (a multiple-accessory fruit; see below) or to a plant structure that resembles a fruit but is not derived from a flower or flowers. Some gymnosperms, such as yew, have fleshy arils that resemble fruits and some junipers have berry-like, fleshy cones. The term "fruit" has also been inaccurately applied to the seed-containing female cones of many conifers.[4]
With most fruits pollination is a vital part of fruit culture, and the lack of knowledge of pollinators and pollenizers can contribute to poor crops or poor quality crops. In a few species, the fruit may develop in the absence of pollination/fertilization, a process known as parthenocarpy.[5] Such fruits are seedless. A plant that does not produce fruit is known as acarpous, meaning "without fruit".[6]
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Many foods are botanically fruit but are treated as vegetables in cooking. These include cucurbits (e.g., squash, pumpkin, and cucumber), tomato, peas, beans, corn, eggplant, and sweet pepper, spices, such as allspice and chillies.[2] Occasionally, though rarely, a culinary "fruit" will not be a true fruit in the botanical sense. For example, rhubarb may be considered a fruit, though only the astringent petiole is edible.[7] In the commercial world, European Union rules define carrot as a fruit for the purposes of measuring the proportion of "fruit" contained in carrot jam.[8] In the culinary sense, a fruit is usually any sweet tasting plant product associated with seed(s), a vegetable is any savoury or less sweet plant product, and a nut any hard, oily, and shelled plant product.[9]
Although a nut is a type of fruit, it is also a popular term for edible seeds, such as peanuts (which are actually a legume) and pistachios.[10] Technically, a cereal grain is a fruit termed a caryopsis. However, the fruit wall is very thin and fused to the seed coat so almost all of the edible grain is actually a seed. Therefore, cereal grains, such as corn, wheat and rice are better considered edible seeds, although some references list them as fruits.[11] Edible gymnosperms seeds are often misleadingly given fruit names, e.g. pine nuts, ginkgo nuts, and juniper berries.
A fruit is a ripened ovary. After the ovule in an ovary is fertilized in a process known as pollination, the ovary begins to ripen. The ovule develops into a seed and the ovary wall pericarp may become fleshy (as in berries or drupes), or form a hard outer covering (as in nuts). In some cases, the sepals, petals and/or stamens and style of the flower fall off. Fruit development continues until the seeds have matured. With some multiseeded fruits the extent to which the flesh develops is proportional to the number of fertilized ovules.[12]
The wall of the fruit, developed from the ovary wall of the flower, is called the pericarp. The pericarp is often differentiated into two or three distinct layers called the exocarp (outer layer - also called epicarp), mesocarp (middle layer), and endocarp (inner layer). In some fruits, especially simple fruits derived from an inferior ovary, other parts of the flower (such as the floral tube, including the petals, sepals, and stamens), fuse with the ovary and ripen with it. The plant hormone ethylene causes ripening. When such other floral parts are a significant part of the fruit, it is called an accessory fruit. Since other parts of the flower may contribute to the structure of the fruit, it is important to study flower structure to understand how a particular fruit forms.[4]
Fruits are so varied in form and development, that it is difficult to devise a classification scheme that includes all known fruits. Many common terms for seeds and fruit are incorrectly applied, a fact that complicates understanding of the terminology. Seeds are ripened ovules; fruits are the ripened ovaries or carpels that contain the seeds. To these two basic definitions can be added the clarification that in botanical terminology, a nut is a type of fruit and not another term for seed.[2]
There are three basic types of fruits:
- Simple fruit
- Aggregate fruit
- Multiple fruit
Simple fruits can be either dry or fleshy and result from the ripening of a simple or compound ovary with only one pistil. Dry fruits may be either dehiscent (opening to discharge seeds), or indehiscent (not opening to discharge seeds).[13] Types of dry, simple fruits (with examples) are:
Fruits in which part or all of the pericarp (fruit wall) is fleshy at maturity are simple fleshy fruits. Types of fleshy, simple fruits (with examples) are:
-
An aggregate fruit, or etaerio, develops from a flower with numerous simple pistils.[14] An example is the raspberry, whose simple fruits are termed drupelets because each is like a small drupe attached to the receptacle. In some bramble fruits (such as blackberry) the receptacle is elongated and part of the ripe fruit, making the blackberry an aggregate-accessory fruit.[15] The strawberry is also an aggregate-accessory fruit, only one in which the seeds are contained in achenes.[16] In all these examples, the fruit develops from a single flower with numerous pistils.
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A multiple fruit is one formed from a cluster of flowers (called an inflorescence). Each flower produces a fruit, but these mature into a single mass.[17] Examples are the pineapple, edible fig, mulberry, osage-orange, and breadfruit.
In the photograph on the right, stages of flowering and fruit development in the noni or Indian mulberry (Morinda citrifolia) can be observed on a single branch. First an inflorescence of white flowers called a head is produced. After fertilization, each flower develops into a drupe, and as the drupes expand, they become connate (merge) into a multiple fleshy fruit called a syncarpet.[18]
There are also many dry multiple fruits, e.g.
Seedlessness is an important feature of some fruits of commerce. Commercial cultivars of bananas and pineapples are examples of seedless fruits. Some cultivars of citrus fruits (especially navel oranges and mandarin oranges), table grapes, grapefruit, and watermelons are valued for their seedlessness. In some species, seedlessness is the result of parthenocarpy, where fruits set without fertilization. Parthenocarpic fruit set may or may not require pollination. Most seedless citrus fruits require a pollination stimulus; bananas and pineapples do not. Seedlessness in table grapes results from the abortion of the embryonic plant that is produced by fertilization, a phenomenon known as stenospermocarpy which requires normal pollination and fertilization.[5]
Variations in fruit structures largely depend on the mode of dispersal of the seeds they contain. This dispersal can be achieved by animals, wind, water, or explosive dehiscence.[19]
Some fruits have coats covered with spikes or hooked burrs, either to prevent themselves from being eaten by animals or to stick to the hairs, feathers or legs of animals, using them as dispersal agents. Examples include cocklebur and unicorn plant.[20][21]
The sweet flesh of many fruits is "deliberately" appealing to animals, so that the seeds held within are eaten and "unwittingly" carried away and deposited at a distance from the parent. Likewise, the nutritious, oily kernels of nuts are appealing to rodents (such as squirrels) who hoard them in the soil in order to avoid starving during the winter, thus giving those seeds that remain uneaten the chance to germinate and grow into a new plant away from their parent.[2]
Other fruits are elongated and flattened out naturally and so become thin, like wings or helicopter blades, e.g. maple, tuliptree and elm. This is an evolutionary mechanism to increase dispersal distance away from the parent via wind. Other wind-dispersed fruit have tiny parachutes, e.g. dandelion and salsify.[19]
Coconut fruits can float thousands of miles in the ocean to spread seeds. Some other fruits that can disperse via water are nipa palm and screw pine.[19]
Some fruits fling seeds substantial distances (up to 100 m in sandbox tree) via explosive dehiscence or other mechanisms, e.g. impatiens and squirting cucumber.[22]
Many hundreds of fruits, including fleshy fruits like apple, peach, pear, kiwifruit, watermelon and mango are commercially valuable as human food, eaten both fresh and as jams, marmalade and other preserves. Fruits are also found commonly in such manufactured foods as cookies, muffins, yoghurt, ice cream, cakes, and many more. Many fruits are used to make beverages, such as fruit juices (orange juice, apple juice, grape juice, etc) or alcoholic beverages, such as wine or brandy.[23]
Many vegetables are botanical fruits, including tomato, bell pepper, eggplant, okra, squash, pumpkin, green bean, cucumber and zucchini.[24] Olive fruit is pressed for olive oil. Apples are often used to make vinegar. Spices like vanilla, paprika, allspice and black pepper are derived from berries.[25]
Fresh, "unprocessed" organic food, such as vegetables and fruits are purchased directly from growers, at farmers' markets, from on-farm stands, supermarkets, through speciality food stores, and through community-supported agriculture (CSA) projects. Unprocessed animal products like organic meat, eggs, dairy, are less commonly available in "fresh" form.
In Australia, organic eggs must be from free-range hens, rather than from battery chickens[5]. Animals for the organic market may not be fed growth hormones or drugs such as steroids or antibiotics.
Often, within the same supermarket, both organic and conventional versions of products are available, although the price of the organic version is usually higher (see modern developments). Most processed organic food comes from large food conglomerates[6] producing and marketing products like canned goods, frozen vegetables, prepared dishes and other convenience foods.
Processed organic food usually contains only organic ingredients, or where there are a number of ingredients, at least a minimum percentage of the plant and animal ingredients must be organic (95% in Australia). Any non-organically produced ingredients must still meet requirements. It must be free of artificial food additives, and is often processed with fewer artificial methods, materials and conditions (no chemical ripening, no food irradiation, and no genetically modified ingredients, etc.).
They may also be required to be produced using energy-saving technologies and packaged using recyclable or biodegradable materials when possible.[5]
At first, organic food comprised mainly fresh vegetables. Early consumers interested in organic food would look for chemical-free, fresh or minimally processed food. They mostly had to buy directly from growers: "Know your farmer, know your food" was the motto. Personal definitions of what constituted "organic" were developed through firsthand experience: by talking to farmers, seeing farm conditions, and farming activities. Small farms grew vegetables (and raised livestock) using organic farming practices, with or without certification, and the individual consumer monitored.
Consumer demand for organic foods continues to increase, and high volume sales through mass outlets, like supermarkets, is rapidly replacing the direct farmer connection. For supermarket consumers, food production is not easily observable, and product labelling, like "certified organic", is relied on. Government regulations and third-party inspectors are looked to for assurance.
A "certified organic" label is usually the only way for consumers to know that a processed product is "organic".
-
To be certified organic, products must be grown and manufactured in a manner that adheres to standards set by the country they are sold in:
- Australia: NASAA Organic Standard.
- Britain: Organic Farmers and Growers Organic Standards and the Soil Association
- Canada: Canada Gazette, Government of Canada.
- Japan: JAS Standards.
- United States: National Organic Program (NOP) Standards.
- Sweden: KRAV
In the United States, the Organic Food Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C.A. § 6501-22) required that the USDA develop national standards for organic products.[7] The regulations (7 C.F.R. Part 205) are enforced by the USDA through the National Organic Program under this act. These laws essentially require that any product that claims to be organic must have been manufactured and handled according to specific NOP requirements. A USDA Organic seal identifies products with at least 95% organic ingredients.
-
Defining the benefits of organic food has largely been left to word of mouth, occasional media coverage, and the promotional efforts of organic advocates. Even though many large food and beverage corporations, like Kraft Foods, have rapidly moved to acquire significant stake in both fresh and processed organic products,[8] the specific sales points of "organics" go largely unmentioned on product packaging and in advertising.
These comparisons need to be evaluated with care because neither conventional nor organic farming practices are uniform.
In several surveys that have looked at smaller studies to build an overall comparison between conventional and organic systems of farming a general agreement on benefits has been built. In these surveys[9][10] it has been found that:
See "Organic FAQs" in the journal Nature for more details.[11]
One study found a 20% smaller yield from organic farms using 50% less fertilizer and 97% less pesticide.[12] Studies comparing yields have had mixed results.[13] Supporters claim that organically managed soil has a higher quality[14] and higher water retention. This may help increase yields for organic farms in drought years. One study of two organic farming systems and one conventional found that, in one year's severe crop season drought, organic soybean yields were 52% and 96% higher than the conventional system and organic maize yields were 37% higher in one system, but 62% lower in the other.[15] Studies are also consistent in showing that organic farms are more energy efficient.[16]
One study from the Danish Environmental Protection Agency found that, area-for-area, organic farms of potatoes, sugar beet and seed grass produce as little as half the output of conventional farming. [17]
For those who work on farms, there have been many studies on the health effects of pesticide exposure.[18] Even when pesticides are used correctly, they still end up in the air and bodies of farm workers. Through these studies, organophosphate pesticides have become associated with acute health problems such as abdominal pain, dizziness, headaches, nausea, vomiting, as well as skin and eye problems.[19] In addition, there have been many other studies that have found pesticide exposure is associated with more severe health problems such as respiratory problems, memory disorders, dermatologic conditions,[20][21] cancer,[22] depression, neurologic deficits,[23][24] miscarriages, and birth defects.[25] Summaries of peer-reviewed research have examined the link between pesticide exposure and neurological outcomes and cancer in organophosphate-exposed workers.[26][27]
However, in fact, conventional farming may be the best way to protect farmworkers and their families from health risks associated with the volumes of pesticide to which they can be exposed. Conventional farming can include genetically-modified crops — which organic farms do not use. These genetically-modified crops often require less or no pesticide spraying and reports by think-tanks like the Hudson Institute have shown a reduction in pesticide usage and environmental footprint.[28][29]
Most conventionally grown foods are sprayed with pesticides. However, this does not necessarily translate into actual pesticide residues clinging to conventionally farmed food by the time it reaches market. In fact, some studies suggest that (because such microscopic traces are easily rubbed off during handling, washing and shipping) 90 percent of non-organic food ends up being completely pesticide-free. [30]
There is controversial data on the health implications of certain pesticides. The herbicide Atrazine, for example, has been shown in some experiments to be a teratogen, even at concentrations as low as 0.1 part per billion, to emasculate male frogs by causing their gonads to produce eggs — effectively turning males into hermaphrodites.[31] However, Anthony Trewavas and numerous other scientists such Bruce Ames and Lois Swirsky, have put forth that concerns about residues are greatly over-stated and that naturally occurring chemicals offer the same or greater risks.[32][33]
In fact, weight-for-weight, pesticide residues are less toxic than numerous other chemicals found everywhere, such as salt, caffeine,[34] or vitamin B6.
Organic farming standards do not allow the use of synthetic pesticides, but they do allow the use of specific pesticides derived from plants. The most common organic pesticides, accepted for restricted use by most organic standards, include Bt, pyrethrum, and rotenone. Some organic pesticides, such as rotenone, have high toxicity to fish and aquatic creatures with some toxicity to mammals including humans.[citation needed]
A study published by the National Research Council in 1993 determined that for infants and children, the major source of exposure to pesticides is through diet.[35] A recent study in 2006 measured the levels of organophosphorus pesticide exposure in 23 schoolchildren before and after replacing their diet with organic food. In this study it was found that levels of organophosphorus pesticide exposure dropped dramatically and immediately when the children switched to an organic diet.[36] However, the fact that diet is the major source of pesticide ingestion does not mean that pesticides are ingested at amounts that could ever prove harmful;[citation needed] modern pesticides biodegrade into harmless components in the body;[citation needed] and food residue limits established by law are set specifically with children in mind and consider a child's lifetime ingestion of each pesticide.[citation needed]
The United States Environmental Protection Agency and state agencies periodically review the licensing of suspect pesticides, but the process of de-listing is slow. One example of this slow process is exemplified by the pesticide Dichlorvos, or DDVP, which as recently as the year 2006 the EPA proposed its continued sale. The EPA has almost banned this pesticide on several occasions since the 1970s, but it never did so despite considerable evidence that suggests DDVP is not only carcinogenic but dangerous to the human nervous system — especially in children.[37]
A 2001 study by researchers at Washington State University concluded, under judgement by a panel of tasters, that organic apples were sweeter. Along with taste and sweetness, the texture as well as firmness of the apples were also rated higher than those grown conventionally. These differences are attributed to the greater soil quality resulting from organic farming techniques compared to those of conventional farming.[38]
A small study looking at processed organic foods, found participants could not differentiate organic and conventional varieties of a rice cakes or vitabrits.[5]
Some studies have shown higher nutrient levels in organic fruit and vegetables compared with conventionally grown. However, due to the difficulty with designing such experiments, the evidence is not considered conclusive.[5]
Most studies — including a 2002 meta-analysis, which is a review of all past studies on the subject — found no proof that organic food offers greater nutritional values, more consumer safety or any distinguisable difference in taste. [39] [40] [41] [42]
Conventional food does contain pesticide residues — often multiple residues. In the United States, the Pesticide Data Program (part of USDA found in 2005 that:
- These data indicate that 29.5 percent of all samples tested contained no detectable pesticides [parent
- compound and metabolite(s) combined], 30 percent contained 1 pesticide, and slightly over 40 percent
- contained more than 1 pesticide.[43]
In contrast, a study published in 2002 showed that "Organically grown foods consistently had about one-third as many residues as conventionally grown foods."[44][45]
It is important to note that there is a general misconception that organic food is synthetic pesticide-free. Several studies have found synthetic pesticide residue on about 25 percent of organic food (compared with 77 percent of the conventional samples) [46] [47] [48] [49]
While it may be expected that conventional food would be more likely to carry synthetic pesticide residues, studies in Canada show a different picture. While up to about 25 percent of organic food carries residues of synthetic pesticides — synthetic, not organic — annual and comprehensive Canadian government studies by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency consistently find that only about 10 percent of conventionally farmed food carries any pesticide residues at all. [50] [51] [52] [53] [54] [55] [56] [57]
The Canadian studies are relevant because samples of all foods sold in Canada are included in the annual testings — whether farmed in Canada or in the United States or some other country. (A large amount of food that is sold in Canada is imported from the USA, including about 90 percent of all organic food sold in Canada.)
So, the Canadian studies suggest, consumers could be paying a lot more money for organic food that offers similar, or even greater, odds of containing synthetic pesticide residues than the less costly non-organic versions. The reason so few conventional food products carry any synthetic residues at all by the time they are consumed is believed to be that residues wash or rub off during rainfall, harvesting, shipping to plants, bulk washing, packaging, transport to distributors, further washing, repackaging, shipping to retail outlets, handling by shoppers, washing at home, trimming, and cooking.
Yet, the potential health effects of pesticide residues found in food are virtually nonexistent. Modern analytical chemistry is capable of detecting such small quantities of a substance — even a single molecule — that a "positive" result is meaningless. Many scientists think that such residues are without effect.[58]
Pesticides are subjected to a battery of tests before they can be approved by the EPA [2] and "residue tolerances" are established above which produce exceeding these tolerances cannot be sold. These tolerances take into account the maximum amount of any pesticide that anyone could ever ingest in an entire lifetime, from all possible food sources, assuming a worst case scenario.
Scientists question the relevance of studies in which rodents are fed an average of almost 400,000 times the amount of a pesticide that a human would ever ingest in a lifetime.
Organic advocates worry about toxic effects of combining pesticides. However, “the effect of multiple pesticides with similar function is considered when establishing toxicology levels,” says noted scientist Christine Bruhn of the University of California, at Davis.[citation needed]
People fear pesticides will accumulate in their bodies. But today’s pesticides are biodegradable, disintegrating in the environment and inside our bodies into harmless molecules. “Very few pesticides bio-accumulate or are hard to metabolize,” says scientist Bruce Ames, of the University of California at Berkeley. [59]
Organic proponents claim “we don’t know” where pesticides end up or what happens to metabolites, the breakdown components. But scientists do know exactly where these compounds go, exactly when and how they break down and where their metabolites go. They conduct numerous metabolism studies — analyzing blood, urine, exhaled breath, fat tissue and so on — for the initial chemical and all metabolites related to each pesticide. In fact, every molecule of a pesticide’s metabolites is tracked to its final destination. Using what is called metabolic analysis, a radioactive label or marker is attached to every molecule of the pesticide before testing. This allows scientists to follow every molecule through the body to see how many leave in feces or in urine, and how many settle in body organs and for how long. Radioactive testing is so stringent that scientists really do know where every molecule of a pesticide and its metabolites ultimately ends up. [60] [61]
In fact, very few pesticides ever make it all the way through such rigorous testing to approval. Compare prescription medicines — which we ingest deliberately — with pesticides. Only one drug out of every 5,000 makes it all the way from lab to pharmacy. [62] [63] But after an average 9.1 years of testing, only one active pesticide ingredient is ultimately approved for every 140,000 that are first synthesized. [64]
Furthermore the professors Lois Swirsky Gold and Bruce Ames argue :"Whereas public perceptions tend to identify chemicals as being only synthetic and only synthetic chemicals as being toxic, every natural chemical is also toxic at some dose," and have shown that 50% of all natural chemicals in food gave a positive test as a carcinogen when tested in rodents, casting doubt on any link of food residues and cancer risk.[65]
Author Thomas DeGregori argues that at the heart of the organic food movement are feelings of anti-technology and anti-modern science[66] and points out that it is modern science, after all, that has increased the life expectancy of many people and helps to feed the world's growing population.
Critics claim that organic food is more expensive than conventional food and thus too highly priced to be affordable to persons on a lower income. Organic products typically cost 10 to 40% more than similar conventionally produced products.[78] Processed organic foods vary greatly in price when compared to their conventional counterparts. An Australian study by Choice magazine in 2004 found processed organic foods in supermarkets to be 65% more expensive, but noted this was not consistent. Some products were more than twice the price (such as chocolate), others were similarly priced (jam).[5]
Prices may be higher because organic produce is produced on a smaller scale, and may need to be milled or processed separately.
Organic food began as a small movement with farmers rejecting the use of conventional farming practices. With the market share of Organic food outpacing much of the food industry many big companies have moved into this market. With these large companies, and with the creation of a legal certification framework (2002 in the US), there is worry that the very definition of organic food will change from what it used to be.[79]
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Modern agriculture, utilizing large amounts of artificial chemical inputs, monocultures, and intensive farming methods, is a recent phenomenon. Indeed, one could argue that almost the entire history of agriculture consists of what would be now termed "organic farming".
Rising consumer awareness of organic methods began in the 1950s with the promotion of organic gardening. In the 1960s and 1970s, one effect of a growing grassroots concern with environmental issues was the appearance of more elaborate approaches to organic food, including food-buying co-ops and dedicated organic producers. In the 1970s and 1980s, private sector organic certification and development of regulations at the governmental level began around the world. In the 1990s, formal organic certification began to be legislated in various countries, and this trend continues to today. During the same period, the organic food market experienced a sustained surge in growth, expanding at around 20% a year (exceeding the rest of the food industry by a factor of at least 10). Organic baby food is popular too, sales of which increased 21.6 percent in 2006, while baby food overall has only grown 3.1 percent in the same year.[80] The first years of the 21st century saw multinational food corporations taking major stakes in the organic market, and this has dramatically increased the variety, availability and falling cost of processed organic food.[citation needed]
The prices for organic food have been, and continue to be, higher than their conventional counterparts. This is because farmers who grow organic food have to meet stricter quality standards to have their products certified organic. More labor is required to achieve this, bringing up the cost.
Since the 1980's there has been a growth trend in supermarkets that carry large volumes of organic food. This includes Whole Foods Market in the US, and Waitrose in the UK. With large volume sales, these retailers have been bringing the price of organic food down.
In the United States the pressure to bring the cost down will vastly increase soon because in 2006, Wal-Mart, the largest grocery retailer, announced plans to increase the amount of organic food available in its stores.[81] Both conventionally grown and organic versions of certain products will be available, but Wal-Mart intends to keep the price of the organic versions to no more than 10% over the price of the conventionally grown counterparts.
Because of Wal-Mart's size and business practices, their move into selling organic food has some people worried.[82] Specifically, the increase in demand for organic food will require that more organic produce be imported.[83] Secondly, the push to lower prices might "virtually guarantee that Wal-Mart's version of cheap organic food is not sustainable".[84]
Various alternative organic standards are emerging. They generally bypass formal certification, which can be expensive and cumbersome, and provide their own definition of organic food. One such, the Authentic Food standard, proposed by leading US organic farmer Eliot Coleman, includes criteria that are incompatible with current agribusiness: =
Some are also implementing new approaches to defining and buying food. Community-supported agriculture (CSA) is one such approach, that cuts out all the middlemen by having consumers partner with local farmers. CSA members prepurchase "shares" in a season's harvest, and pick up their weekly portions from distribution sites. Thus, consumers provide direct financing for farms, participate in the risks and rewards of annual growing conditions, and participate with farmers in distribution networks.
CSA is one example of "buying locally," which is often valued by both the organic food consumer and producer. Generally speaking, locally-grown seasonal food can be brought to market more quickly than food that has to be transported long distances, and therefore can be better tasting and to some degree more nutritious by virtue of its freshness. Additionally, the act of buying foods that are locally-grown benefits local farmers and other employers. This local food approach is seen as a direct investment in one's own community and a way to reduce economic dependence.
Organic food is also often linked with the fair trade movement, based on the principle that social and environmental sustainability are inextricably interdependent.
While organic food accounts for 1–2% of total food sales worldwide, the organic food market is growing rapidly, far ahead of the rest of the food industry, in both developed and developing nations.
In the United States, where organic food is federally regulated by the National Organic Program:
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In the European Union, organic food is regulated by the EU-Eco-regulation
- Austria:
- Germany:
- Italy:
- Poland:
- UK:
In Cuba:
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