Organic meals and menus

The issue
As shown by the huge increase in retail sales of organic products in recent years, consumers are much more aware of organics as a "brand".

As well as the original organic consumers who have, for a long time, actively sought out organic products whenever they could, there are organic dabblers who like occasionally to purchase one or two organic products as part of their shopping.

There is now a greater opportunity than ever for caterers to put organic meals and menus on offer as the organic brand becomes increasingly more mainstream.

The issue

Organic farming is a sustainable farming system which combines modern technology with more traditional farming practices.

Organic techniques have been developed from an understanding of soil science, ecology, and crop and animal husbandry. Maintenance of soil fertility relies mainly on the use of legumes (such as brassicas), crop rotations, composted animal manures and ground rock minerals. Weeds are controlled by mechanical methods.

There is a general prohibition of artificial fertilisers, pesticides, growth regulators and livestock feed additives.

For food products to be sold as organic, they must be shown to be traceable through the food supply chain back to certified organic farms.

The law

Organic food production is subject to statutory control. Once a farmer, food processor or caterer decides to undertake organic food production, processing or preparation, and sell or label its products accordingly, it becomes subject to EC Regulation 2092/91, which has been incorporated into UK law.

The legal basis for UK organics is controlled and administered by the United Kingdom Register of Organic Food Standards (UKROFS), part of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Under the legislation, farmers, food processors, caterers and even in-store bakeries are required to register with one of the 11 UK organic certification bodies to maintain records of purchases, production processes and sales, and to undergo annual inspection and certification. In practice, however, there is some disagreement within the industry as to the need for caterers and in-store bakeries to register before they can make organic food claims.

The view of UKROFS is that caterers, and others who "prepare" organic food, should be registered with a certification body, but trading standards departments appear to be unsure how to proceed.

There is some official reluctance to put too much pressure on caterers and retailers over registration, and therefore inspection and certification of organic claims, for fear of depriving such a small sector of the food industry of further outlets. It is feared that, if the full weight of legislation is applied to caterers who sell only a small number of organic items, then they may opt out of the organic sector because the level of detail in purchase, production and sales records needed to satisfy the certification body outweighs the advantages.

In time, we can expect some clarification on the issue from Brussels, but in the meantime it seems likely that further guidance will come from a legal ruling when a local authority trading standards department actually takes a caterer or in-store bakery to court for a misleading description of an organic meal or component, and for not being registered with an organic certification body.

Check list

* If you have an existing organic meal offer, or are considering adding one to your menu, take the time to talk to your local trading standards authority to ascertain its view as to whether caterers are included under the organic legislation.

* Review your purchase, production and sales recording system with a view to demonstrating to third parties the integrity of your organic offer.

* Contact one of the organic certification bodies regarding its ability to offer a registration, inspection and certification service to caterers.

* Consider taking a proactive approach and registering with a certification body. You could then confidently use the word "organic" and the certification body's logo in your advertising and PR material, knowing that you would not be running the risk of being on the wrong side of the law should the attitude of enforcement authorities change.

Beware!
Even though you may be offering organic meals at present despite not being registered with and inspected by an organic certification body, it may not be long before the authorities take a different view on how the legislation is enforced. Take action to evaluate your position now.

Contact

CMi Certification
Tel: 01993 885600
E-mail: organics@cmi-plc.com