Strong ethical principles are seen as a tool to evaluating the development of organic agriculture so that corrections can be made where they are considered necessary. This report explains how the EU project, Organic Revision, is expected to do just that

Alrøe, Hugo Fjelsted

Padel, Susanne

Schmid, Otto

English

Organic Eprints

THE ORGANIC STANDARD © Grolink AB     Issue 51/July 20058Ethical principles and therevision of organic rulesStrong ethical principles are seen as a tool to evaluating the devel-opment of organic agriculture so that corrections can be madewhere they are considered necessary. This report explains how theEU project, Organic Revision, is expected to do just that.Current trends in organic agri-culture are characterised bylarge-scale production, the in-volvement of conventional companies,and global trade. There is a concernthat this development threatens theability of organic agriculture to func-tion as an alternative, more sustainablefood system, as an alternative choicefor politically motivated consumers,and as a source of inspiration for main-stream agriculture and policy. Thereis, therefore, renewed interest in val-ues and principles of organic farmingthat can guide the future development.Formulating strong ethical princi-ples is seen as a tool to evaluating thedevelopment of organic agriculture,correcting its course, and avoiding un-wanted consequences. In particular,there is a belief that basic ethical prin-ciples can support the interpretationand development of standards of or-ganic agriculture in existing conflictareas and in new areas of production,processing and trade. Moreover, theycan serve directly as a guide for or-ganic practices in areas where stand-ards are difficult to set.The function of ethical principlesin the development of rules for or-ganic agriculture is the subject of anongoing EU-funded research project,‘Research to support the revision ofthe EU Regulation on Organic Agri-culture’ (see box below). A specificobjective of the project is to identifythe basic ethical values of organic ag-riculture and to integrate them into thedevelopment of the EU Regulation.Identifying ethical principlesAt the same time as the work in theOrganic Revision project was formu-lated in 2003, the IFOAM WorldBoard decided the principles of organicOrganic Revision is a threeyear project funded by theEU with the aim to develop rec-ommendations assisting the com-mission with further develop-ments of the EU regulation 2092/91 on organic farming. Work is undertaken on principles and values of or-ganic production, on harmonisation of standards, and on reducing the de-pendency on conventional inputs in organic feed and seed. The project isalso creating a database in which national and international standards on or-ganic production are compared with the EU regulation. The project, co-ordinated by the Danish Research Centre for Organic Farming (DARCOF),has partners in eight EU countries and collaborates closely with the IFOAMEU group. Further details on www.organic-revision.org. standards & regulationsnews shorts…KENYAN NATIONALSTANDARDS UNDER PUBLICREVIEWSo far there have been two at-tempts to develop National Or-ganic Standards in Kenya. Onewas by the Kenya Institute of Or-ganic Farming (KIOF) and theother by the Association of BetterLand Husbandry (ABLH). During2004, the Kenya Organic Agricul-ture Network developed the KOANOrganic Standards by harmonisingthe two standards and basing themon the IFOAM basic standardsand the EU Regulations, with ad-aptations to the local conditions. The standards were circulatedwidely for comments. Followingthat, The Kenya Bureau of Stand-ards (KBS) formed a ‘TechnicalCommittee on organic foods’ todevelop the public Kenya OrganicStandards. KBS is a statutory gov-ernmental organisation that devel-ops national standards, on variousissues, such as water and food.The KBS Organic standards/guide-lines have reached the public re-view stage (DKS 1928: 2004)where the public is supposed tocomment on the standards. Thedeadline for the public to commenton the standards is 8 July 2005. Thetechnical committee will then dis-cuss comments received and changethe document accordingly. Accord-ing to plans, the finalised docu-ment will then be gazzetted as anofficial Kenyan standard in August. The plans also state that KBSwill act as an accreditor for certifi-cation bodies. Source: KOANTHE ORGANIC STANDARD © Grolink AB     Issue 51/July 20059agriculture should be rewritten. To thebenefit of both parties, the task of iden-tifying basic ethical values was carriedout in close cooperation. Two OrganicRevision researchers, Hugo F. Alrøeand Henk Verhoog, have been directlyinvolved in the IFOAM process as ex-pert members of the Task Force andthe Consultative Group, respectively.The proposed principles that haveresulted from the cooperation withIFOAM are shown in Box (right).They will be taken to identify the basicethical values of organic agriculturewithin the Organic Revision project.Furthermore, the project will providein-depth philosophical analyses of keyethical aspects and relate the proposedprinciples to empirical data about thevalues of organic farmers and otherstakeholders in the organic agriculturemovement in Europe. This will beused as a basis for making recommen-dations to the EU Regulation 2092/91.In this regard, it might also help toconsider the principles outlined in theCodex Alimentarius guidelines for or-ganically produced food, developedby a joint UN programme of WHOand FAO, which have been fully inplace since 2001 (see www.codexalimentarius.net).The revision of organic rulesIt is expected that IFOAM’s rewrittenprinciples will play an important rolein future developments of the IFOAMBasic Standards. The Organic Revi-sion project, on the other hand, has aspecific objective, which is to ‘de-velop a procedure for balancing andintegrating the basic ethical values oforganic agriculture in the developmentof EU Regulation 2092/91 and otherorganic standards, in consideration ofvalue differences among differentstakeholders and public interests’.The present standards and regula-tions for organic agriculture representa compromise between the maximumthat is desirable from an idealisticpoint of view and what is technicallyand economically feasible. If neitherthe basic values nor the relation be-tween basic values and standards aremade sufficiently explicit, as is thecase in the present EU Regulation2092/91, divergences between stand-ards and values may prevail andvalue-related conflicts between differ-ent regulations remain unresolved.The inclusion of basic ethical princi-ples can be a guide by which stand-ards can be developed in a consistent,coherent and transparent way.Even if the basic values are shared,organic agriculture may use differentpractices in different regions and localareas. Organic farming is based pri-marily on cooperation with naturalsystems as a means of agriculturalproduction, and must therefore adaptits system to the local climatic, biotic,abiotic, and cultural conditions.On the other hand, the EU has apolicy of promoting trade across theborders of EU Member States and themain function of the EU Regulation isto harmonise production rules through-out. However, there are still substan-tial differences between and withinEU Member States in the implemen-tation of these rules. National and pri-vate label programmes play a veryimportant role in the credibility andmarketing of organic products in theirrespective home countries, however,the different standards, labels and cer-tification bodies are seen as confusingand to be hampering trade. The har-monisation of standards is importantin generating an equal playing fieldfor trade in organic produce withinthe EU and for third countries want-ing to export to the EU. But harmoni-sation of standards is frequently per-ceived as a problem among organicfarmers due to their great dependenceThe proposed Principles ofOrganic Agriculture as ofJune 2005:Principle of healthOrganic Agriculture should sustainand enhance the health of soil,plant, animal and human as oneand indivisible.Principle of ecologyOrganic Agriculture should bebased on living ecological systemsand cycles, work with them, emu-late them and help sustain them.Principle of fairnessOrganic Agriculture should buildon relationships that ensure fair-ness with regard to the commonenvironment and life opportunities.Principle of careOrganic Agriculture should bemanaged in a precautionary andresponsible manner to protect thehealth and well-being of currentand future generations and the en-vironment.The proposed principles have beenpresented and discussed at severaloccasions in and outside the or-ganic movement throughout 2004-2005, and there has been a compre-hensive consultation process withIFOAM membership and otherstakeholders. In September 2005the IFOAM General Assembly willvote on the principles. All drafts ofproposed principles and details ofthe consultation process are avail-able at an open website (http://ecowiki.org/IfoamPrinciples) andon the IFOAM website(www.ifoam.org/organic_facts/principles).standards & regulationsTHE ORGANIC STANDARD © Grolink AB     Issue 51/July 200510on local conditions and resources.The question remains in what waythe harmonisation of standards is bestachieved. From the perspective of theOrganic Revision, regionalisation ofthe regulations should be allowed be-cause of natural and cultural variations.And the ‘harmonisation’ of the basicvalues – the formulation of commonethical principles and the inclusion ofthose as a basis for the regulations –should serve as an important precon-dition for such regionalisation.Value differencesEven though there is a distinct com-mon value basis in organic agriculturethere is also a range of value differ-ences within organic agriculture. Thistension seems to have been presentthroughout the history of the move-ment, as evident by the separation intobiodynamic and organic agriculture.In addition, research from Den-mark and Sweden indicates that thereare clear differences between the val-ues of ‘old’ and ‘new’ organic farm-ers. There may also be differences be-tween geographic regions in Europeand between different groups ofstakeholders in the organic movement(e.g. farmers, consumers, retailers andstandard setting bodies). Consumerattitudes to organic food in Europehave recently been investigated in theOMIARD project. Similar studies onthe values of farmers and otherstakeholders have been carried outwithin the Organic Revision project.Seventeen focus group interviewswith farmers and eight with otherstakeholders of the organic movementwere held in five countries (UK, Italy,Austria, Switzerland, and the Nether-lands). Each focus group discussioncovered first associations with theterm ‘organic’, personal motives forinvolvement, shared organic values,potential value conflicts, and the fu-standards & regulationsture of organic agriculture. Prelimi-nary results have been presented atBioFach 2005 (see box overpage) anda detailed analysis of the results, in-cluding a comparison with theOMIARD results on consumer values,is being prepared.Producers identified a range ofconflicts within the organic values,such as a potential conflict betweenhigher productivity and lower productquality, and most importantly betweenfarm survival and income and otherorganic farming values. Such conflictsbetween different values should bemade explicit when the organic meth-ods of production, processing andtrade are evaluated and changes to thestandards of organic agriculture areproposed. With this goal in mind, theOrganic Revision project is develop-ing an open database for organic rulesthat will show differences between theEU Regulation and other organic stand-ards and which will be open to sugges-tions and recommendations on how torevise the rules and why to do it.Conflict areasApart from the work on identifyingcommon ethical principles and theempirical work on value differences,the Organic Revision project will alsoinvestigate concrete conflict areas inrelation to the revision of the EURegulation 2092/91 and make recom-mendations on the derogations on theuse of conventional feed and seed.Philosophical case studies will becarried out on the interplay betweendifferent organic farming values, pub-lic interests, and technical and eco-nomic concerns in selected areas ofthe current debate and conflict. Exam-ples of such areas are non-use of anti-biotics, use of copper for spraying,free-range for animals, mutilation oflivestock, use of conventional andsynthetic feeds, use of conventionalnews shorts…IMO LAUNCHES ITS NEWHOMEPAGESwiss-based IMO has launched anew homepage and a new logo(see below). The new homepagedoes not just contain informationabout IMO, but also gives usefullinks to regulations and standardsthat IMO certifies against. A listof certified producers is also beingproduced – but as yet only the listof those with NOP certificationhas been completed.Since 1 April 2005, IMO hasbeen  JAS approved. Apart fromorganic certification, IMO alsooffers certification of sustainablyproduced and safe products ac-cording to the following stand-ards:Eco-textiles: www.imo.ch/index.php?seite=imo_services_textile_enFSC and other schemes: www.imo.ch/index.php?seite=imo_services_forest_en (for sus-tainable forest management andtimber products).EurepGAP:  www.imo.ch/index.php?seite=imo_services_eurepgap_en (for integrated andsafe production).Utz Kapeh: www.imo.ch/index.php?seite=imo_services_utz_kapeh_en (for responsibly pro-duced coffee). see www.imo.chTHE ORGANIC STANDARD © Grolink AB     Issue 51/July 200511manure, anaerobic versus aerobicprocesses, use of conventional breedsand seeds, use of hybrid varieties, andlocal versus global trade.With regard to the use of conven-tional feed, two preliminary reportson the possibilities for 100% organicfeed have been made available on theOrganic Revision website. The pre-liminary conclusions indicate:• There are sufficient cereals andpulses to feed all organic livestock,but further provision of alternativeorganic high quality protein sourcesneed to be encouraged.• It is possible and recommendable toavoid feed and protein sources ofnon-organic origin in the productionof organic poultry and pigs withoutcompromising animal health andwelfare.• This is suited to redirect poultry andpig production from a quantity re-lated production process to a morequality oriented one, and to providea clear distinction between organicand conventional production, whichis expected to be essential for theconfidence of consumers and thedevelopment of a separate market.The last point illustrates that a con-flict between quantity and quality ofproduction can also apply to the or-ganic sector.ResultsIt is expected that a report on valuesof organic producers compared withother stakeholders will be available inSeptember 2005. The open databasefor organic rules is expected to bepublicly available from December2005 on www.organicrules.org. A re-port on the procedure for balancingand integrating basic ethical valuesand value differences in the develop-ment of organic is planned to be pub-lished in 2006. Preliminary results of focus groupsPreliminary analysis indicates that the following values of organic pro-ducers appear important across all countries in which focus groups wereconducted:• Sustainability•C losed production cycles and/or low use of external inputs and related is-sues, such as self-regulation, protection of non-renewable resources, en-ergy saving•P rofessional challenge and related issues such as personal and professionaldevelopment, greater freedom and independence• Health and food quality and related issues such as taste, freshness, lowresidues, no harmful chemicals for workersMany of the values of producers converge with the four principles of or-ganic production proposed by IFOAM (see box on page 9). The ability tosecure an income from farming is important to many producers, but theywould not like to see this dominating over all other values. Other importantvalues mentioned included, own independence and flexibility, local produc-tion and regionality, and the integrity of the organic system.standards & regulationsHugo Fjelsted Alrłe, Danish ResearchCentre for Organic Food and Farming,DARCOFOtto Schmid, Forschungsinstitut f￿rBiologischen Landbau, FiBLSusanne Padel, University of Wales,Aberystwythnews shorts…EUREPGAP INTEGRATEDAQUACULTURE ASSURANCEUPDATEDIn June, EurepGAP published theupdated version (2.1) of theEurepGAP Integrated AquacultureAssurance. The new standard ena-bles aquaculture farms to ensurethat their product meets the de-mands of the retail and food serv-ice market. To retailers this meansthat along with  horticultural, ar-able and livestock products,farmed fish is now available ac-cording to EurepGAP standards.The standard covers all produc-tion stages up to slaughter and theChain of Custody of operatorsThe EurepGAP AquacultureAssurance Standard was devel-oped and is supported by theEurepGAP IAA members. Documents can be seen onwww.eurep.org/fish/Languages/English/documents.htmlONE NEW APPLICANTAND ONE WITHDRAWALEarly in June, the IOAS an-nounced a new application forIFOAM accreditation. The ap-plicant, Ecoland e.V.,Germany,a farmers’ association, is thefifth German organisation tojoin the programme.Late in June, the IOAS an-nounced that Organic Farmersand Growers of the UnitedKingdom have withdrawn fromthe IFOAM Accreditation Pro-gramme. 

Ethical principles and the revision of organic rules

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