To Certify or not to Certify 'USDA Organic'
While we use only chemical free, sustainable practices in growing our vegetables and flowers, (We use no chemical pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers. We use no genetically modified plants or seeds. Where available, our seeds are grown organically. We grow our vegetables and protect our land in a sustainable manner. We pay our farm help a livable wage. Our vegetables are picked in the morning and delivered in the afternoon. Our vegetables travel less than forty miles to get from our field to your table), we have chosen, however, not to put our customers to the expense and us to the massive amounts of paper work to participate in the USDA's certification regime.
Here is why:
We sell directly to our customers. Our subscribers are invited to visit our farm (often) and look at and ask us about our farming philosophy, techniques and habits. We are extremely open about how we farm and believe a well informed customer is a good customer. We know our customers and our customers know us.
The USDA certification program, we believe, is aimed at allowing large corporate growers and food chains to use the word 'organic'. This is a program designed to give a person confidence that when they walk into 'Fresh Fields' (or any other large food chain) and upon seeing the 'USDA Organic' label, the food marked with this label will most likely meet a minimum growing standard. This program, however, demands a large amount of paper work that a large grower can easily fold into its cost of doing business. This is not the case with small family farms like us. The massive amount of paper work this program demands, we calculate, would take us an extra month's worth of work per year. This is not an option for us.
USDA's organic certification rules are being called in some circles 'transnational organic lite'. These regulations do not take into consideration the wages paid farm workers ('USDA Certified organic' food shipped form Guatemala or China can still be grown with virtual slave labor, child labor, and forced labor. There is no livable wage requirement).
USDA does not have a country or state of origin requirement. You do not know how far 'USDA Organic' food is shipped (vegetables shipped half way around the world using massive amounts of energy to get to your kitchen can still be labeled 'USDA Organic').
With 'USDA Organic' there is no date of harvest. Vegetables like tomatoes can be picked green or could be stored for weeks and still be called 'USDA Organic'. There is no labeling requirement. Our vegetables, though, are picked that morning and delivered to you that afternoon. Any exceptions to this rule (garlic, onions, potatoes) we will clearly tell you about.
There is virtually no inspection of food coming into this country whether it is organic or not (over the past several decades the number of inspectors has dropped, not increased).
We at Bull Run Mountain Vegetable Farm have a personal relationship with all of our customers. Through our weekly newsletter and personal contact we give a blow by blow account of what is happening with your vegetables from when the seedlings are started until the crop is harvested.
Our fields and practices are open to inspection by our customers. When you subscribe from us you can actually see your vegetables progress from seedling to meal. (this is not an option with USDA's label).
We are proud to pay our help a livable wage (The next time you buy organic or non-organic stringbeans ask the store manager how much the farm workers were paid).
Our vegetables are locally grown (ask your store manager how many miles vegetables traveled to get to his store).
Of course, we follow chemical free, sustainable practices in operating our farm and growing our vegetables.