The organic movement was given the platform at Tuesday night’s City Food Lecture, and was promptly put to the sword by a panel representing a wide cross-section of the British food industry.

A packed Guildhall, in the City of London, heard Soil Association policy director Lord Peter Melchett hail a new phase in the evolution of the nation’s food culture and claim organic farming is the future. He said that increasing sales of organic products show the movement is supported more widely by public values and claimed that, particularly with climate change becoming the major long-term issue for farmers across the globe, organic is “the only economically sustainable system of farming in the world”. He also cited research that defies current thinking and concludes that if all farming was organic, global yields would in fact increase.

Melchett did, however, raise concerns. “Organic is not perfect. We sometimes fall short of our own principles and there is much to do to… stop our standards being eroded,” he said. “The biggest challenge is getting enough farmers to produce the food the market is demanding. Long term, it is not just to maintain, but to improve the standards of organic food as it becomes more popular and widely consumed.”

Panelist Prue Leith, head of the School Food Trust, said “I don’t mind if [food served in schools] is organic or not. I am unconvinced by the argument that organic food is nutritionally better or that it tastes better.”

Tim Smith, chief executive of Arla Foods, added that shareholders already believe the long-term viability of heavy investment in the conventional dairy sector is being jeopardised by an over-emphasis on organics.

And Tim Lang of City University accused the organic movement of lacking commitment to issues such as the reduction of salt and fat in the nation’s diet, as well as largely ignoring the UK’s low-income earners.

“People on low incomes aspire to eat as well as everyone else,” he said. “At the moment, the organic movement does not take low income seriously.”

More next week in FPJ’s Organics Category Quarter.

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