Economic pessimism dents consumers’ previously buoyant demand for organic produce and the dairy farmers are turning their backs on Britain’s organic milk market. There are figures show that there has been a reversal in the numbers of dairy farmers converting to organic farming from the conventional methods. It rises up to 80 percent in the price of organic feed for dairy herds, and it means hundreds of organic milk producers are running loss. Farms were undergoing conversion to organic and were capable of producing million liters of milk have abandoned the process and return to non-organic farming.
Non organic dairy farmers joining the organic movement are no longer an attractive option. The situation has prompted warnings of shortage and a mass exit by existing organic producers unless retailers agree to increase the farm gate price paid for milk, to ensure farmers can cover rapidly escalating costs. Organic farmers need an increase of at least 4p per liter to return to profitability however the retailers warn that they have little room for maneuver in Britain’s ultra competitive supermarket sector.
Richard Hampton the sales and marketing director of Omsco said: “The costs being incurred by organic producers are rising much faster than for conventional production.” The Britain’s largest organic milk cooperative, which accounts for about 70 percent of UK’s annual production of 450 million liters. The price that gets currently for organic milk is not high enough to cover the cost of production. There will have to be an increase in price that producers receive. Richard Hampton added: “There is a real danger that a supply shortage could take hold rather quickly if just 30 of our larger organic farms revert to non-organic production, we will lose 10 percent of our supplies.”
It expects sales growth of about five percent this year, compared to 30 percent in previous years. The charity pointed out that the lower figure would still outstrip the general grocery market, which expands at between one and two percent a year. The Soil Association said.

China is going for organic food product.
A farm called Fruit Garden, Fragrant Pig an organic farm about 15 miles south of the city of Chengdu, and in China’s southern part of Sichuan province. Lou Yu is a 37 year old and owner of Fruit Garden, Fragrant Pig farm, he used to be a stockbroker earning several thousand U.S. dollars a month. When he heard about organic farming from Taiwanese friends and was intrigued by reading some books about organic farming. He spent six months driving around China, looking at conventional farms.
Luo is running his own organic farm with fruit trees, vegetables and pigs. In his farm you see plastic bottles hanging of peach and plum trees, they each have hole cut out and filled with sugar water to attract and trap bugs and insect. He expects to lose one third of his crops to bugs and another third to birds, leaving him just one third for him to sell Luo said. Luo also said that “Those bugs have the right to stay here. They are part of the food chain. If we kill them, then there will be no birds of the farm.” “Eventually, there will be only human beings on the planet and it will be a silent spring.”

Luo’s parents were surprised when he told them that he was leaving the job and going “back to the land” his parents said he was “crazy” and “going back to ancient time,” but Luo sees it differently. The economics of organic food in China don’t work in Luo Yu’s favor, there is the lower yield and in the market, organic food costs two to three times more than a conventional food which is hard to sell. Luo has about 50 buyers for his weekly market baskets. Luo used to make most of his money serving organic lunches to visitors. After the May earthquake his business plummeted and same with the restaurant who buys organic food from him. He sells about 10 percent of what he used to sell to them and even before the earthquake. Luo Yu managed to stay afloat with the help of some local investors. Luo is still committed to bring more farmers into organic and promoting organic food to the public.

Organic farming is a way of cultivation and growing of organic food in which there is no use of chemical substances. In organic farming, actually not just the consumers that benefit from the food but there are also benefits of organic farming for the farmers, these benefits are focused more on the farmers and their workers needs.

These benefits are great for the farmers and their workers who don’t wish to succumb to death or sickness. Benefits focus on the safety and health of the farmers and their workers. Organic farming does not promote the use of chemicals and other harmful substances, so there is no bad effect to the person’s health.

Another benefit of organic farming is focused on the consumers of the organic products; these benefits are for the health and safety of the consumers. Eating organic food can be greatly appreciated by the consumers when they experience less allergic reactions and lower the risk of contracting diseases caused by the chemicals. Organic farming also helps saving our environment and preventing harmful elements that can destroy the ozone layer. Farming organic food means that the soil is taken care of and the local wildlife and plant life are also taken care. No chemical in to the soil will yield a healthier soil that yield healthier crops.

The Whole Foods Market is moving and expanding its store in Rochester Hills, company credited with igniting customer interest in organic food product.  On Walton Boulevard the existing Whole Food Market is closed at the end of last week, and the new 55,000 square foot store at Walton Boulevard and Adams Road will be open Wednesday.  The manager of the new store Ron Hayek said while Whole Food is occupying a space used by Farmer Jack up until last year, all of the fixtures are new.  Hayek also said the store will also have 162 employees or double the number of the old store.

Whole Foods also used a wide array of natural and recycled materials, including recycled glass and wood, for the flooring and counter.  Hayek said “this new, larger location helps us share our enthusiasm for the freshest, most flavorful natural and organic foods available with more services”.  Whole Foods plans to open its fifth Michigan store next month on the west side of Ann Arbor.  The new Rochester Hills store is the largest Whole Foods outlet in Michigan and first new location for the company in five years.  In the entire store they have more than 200 varieties of seasonal and local produce, at least 100 of which are certified organic.

In fertilizing your garden, first you know or determine the nutrients need to be added to the garden, soil testing is suggested to that.  Non-organic fertilizer is forbidden in any organic production system but it doesn’t mean that the nutrients the plant need cannot be supplied.  In fertilizing the garden, too much nitrogen can harm the garden; you must know what levels of nitrogen exist before applying and this is a gardener’s note.

Here is a nutrient content you want to know and be sure the manure sources are well composted to maximize the weed seed kill and residual disease carryover.

Manure Source         Actual Nitrogen            Actual Phosphorus          Actual Potassium

Poultry                      20 lbs.                                   7 lbs.                                      8 lbs.

 Hog                          10 lbs.                                   7 lbs.                                      8 lbs.

Beef                          14 lbs.                                   9 lbs.                                      11 lbs.

Sheep                        18 lbs.                                   11 lbs.                                   20 lbs.

 

In organic insect control, rotation is the first and best way to prevent insect problems and the next option is hand removal of old plant residue.  Use organic insecticides as a last option or last resort, but first check with you certifier to see if they are acceptable.  Sabadilla is certified acceptable to OCIA (Organic Crop Improvement Association) as a restricted use organic product.  This means it can be use only if no other alternatives are feasible.  Using an insecticidal soup can control a wide range of plant destructive insects.  This is not a household soup, this insecticidal soup is intended for insect especially aphids.  Another insect control is bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) it is acceptable product but cannot contain petroleum distillates in the formulation.  Bacillus thuringensis can control cabbage worms and hand picking is also an alternative.