Soil Association rejects elitist image

A workshop at its annual conference in Birmingham this afternoon (Wednesday, February 3), asks provocatively ‘Organic elitism - is it for the chosen few?’

But Patrick Holden, Soil Association policy director, has already kicked off the discussion with a resounding ‘no’.

“The paradox is, there’s this view that organic is elite, it’s expensive, it’s a lifestyle choice for people who can afford it.

“But as far as I’m concerned it’s not elitist to believe that everyone should have the right to high-quality, nutritious food from sustainable farming systems.”

However, Mr Holden acknowledged it was essential to change the ‘perception’ that organic food was an exclusive club. He said the public must ‘come on board’.

“We need to reach out to society,” he told conference delegates. “The UK is currently farming unsustainably but there is not an understanding from the public about the seriousness of the situation.”

The global economic crisis has ensured the organic movement is fighting an uphill battle with consumers.

A decade of year-on-year growth of over 20 per cent in sales of organic produce ground to a halt in 2008 as consumers sought cheaper alternatives.

The movement suffered a further blow last year when the Food Standards Agency published a contentious study claiming organic food offered no nutritional benefits - one of the key points of difference for the organic lobby.

The market is currently worth just over £2 billion, around 2 per cent of the total food market.

“Organic food is produced without the use of chemicals and fertilizers. Of course it is better for you and it is better for the environment,” argued one conference delegate. “We now need to convince the public that a few extra pence on their food bill will give them a healthier diet and look after the environment,” she continued, reflecting the general mood at the conferemce.

The public does appear to be responding to the organic message in some commodities. Organic milk sales have been steadily rising despite a premium of around 15 pence per litre.

But sales of organic bread, fruit and vegetables have all struggled.

One controversial suggestion from some within the organic lobby has been to tax the ‘unsustainable inputs’ of conventional farms to bring parity in price with organic produce.

However, critics argued it was not a suggestion that would chime with cash-strapped consumers.

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