The rough and tough of organics - Research Paper Example

The Rough and Tough of Organics s Table of Contents Background 3 Company 4 Problem 4 References 7 The Rough and Tough of Organics Background The food that is independently certified to have been grown without chemicals is called organic food. Most popular organic food categories in America are the fruits, vegetables, beverages, breads & grains, prepared/packaged foods, dairy, snack foods, condiments, meat, fish and poultry. A few years ago, organic food was typically found in local farmer markets and fresh stores but now it can be found almost all major supermarkets.

Research shows that more and more consumers are tended to purchase organic food. There are many reasons behind popularity of food. First of all there is a perception that organic food is healthier as compared to conventional food. Secondly, there is environmental safety; it is believed that organics are grown in a way that is less harmful to environment. Indeed, the alienation of emotion in decision making has dominated different professions and industries. As there are perceptions about organic food as being healthier and environment friendly, there is also perception that organic food is expensive as compared to conventional food.

Similarly consumers are also unsure about its nutritional value and also there are majority who don’t trust on the labels. There is also lack of awareness among consumers about benefits of organic foods. Considering all these conflicting information and perceptions about organic food, consumers face difficulty in deciding whether they should buy organic food or not? Secondly there is a need to enforce FDA/ USDA regulations. FDA does not strictly enforce regulations as regards labeling or how the products are grown.

Despite the increasing trend of organics, there is uncertainty among consumers about the labels or organic foods and its nutritional value. Thirdly, as the organics are being sold at higher prices and its market is widening many major corporations have come into this business for profit and this trend has overwhelmed the proletariat movement of organics. Similarly producers of organics are also not reliable and there is a need to monitor them. Thus, this research paper is aimed at addressing these problems to bring a clear picture about organics.

For this purpose, the researcher has conducted a detailed analysis of above mentioned three issues and presented a solution to each problem Company Organic food products are now sold in major supermarket, with many chains offering their own lines of organic products such as President’s Choice PC Organics (Loblaw Inc., Brampton, on), launched in 2000 , and Safeway’s O Organics launched in 2005(Organic Consumers Association, 2006). Both of these lines offer over 300 products today. According to data from The Nielsen Company, sales of certified organic foods in Canadian Supermarkets in 2006 were worth $412 million, up 28% from the previous year.

Furthermore, supermarkets in Alberta exhibited a 44% increase in sales of certified organic food-the largest growth of the Canadian provinces. In 2005, 77% of Canadians bought at least some organic foods, and the majority (47%) of consumers bought the bulk of their organic food in grocery stores, as opposed to smaller organic markets and farmers’ markets (McAllister Opinion Research as cited in Cunningham, 2007). Problem As mentioned above, organics are becoming a huge trend in American lifestyles today.

This paper will focus on the problems related to organics. The author is of the view that consumers are being misguided about organics through marketing and propaganda. With the growing market of organics, there is less standards and regulations to watch the reliability of these products. There is a need to regulate the word organic and also to monitor its growing process. There are not standards set to ensure that every thing labeled as organic is in fact organic. Another issue with organics is its high prices as compared to conventional food.

The author will specifically focus on; FDA/ USDA Regulation Whether these regulation are enforced properly. Is there a need to improve regulation? What can be done to make organics reliable? High crop yield Are there standards set for farmers growing organic food? To what extent the standards are being followed? Suggestion to improve the situation Misleading Marketing Organic sellers are misleading consumers by stating ingredients through labels that are not actually present in the produce. There is need to monitor labeling and false marketing.

Misleading Health Facts/ Nutrition Labels Research has showed that there is no significant difference in nutritional value between organic and conventionally grown food. But, sellers of organics falsely propagate about nutritional and health value of organics. Higher Prices Prices or organics are higher as compared to conventional products and the reason for its trend is the propaganda that organics are healthier than conventional. No Scientific Backing/ Studies There is less scientific research about organics value and its comparison with conventional foods.

References Cunningham, R.(2007). Farm to fork: Organics in Alberta. Alberta, Canada: Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development. Organic Consumer Association. (2006). Safety supermarkets chain moves aggressively into organics. Retrieved July 31, 2011, from http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/safety060323.cfm