What is organic food?

Organic is a system of farming and food production. Organic farmers aim to produce high-quality food, using methods that benefit our whole food system, from people to planet, plant health to animal welfare.

In the face of climate change, diet related ill-health and widespread decline in wildlife, the need to change our food systems has never been greater. A transition towards organic farming systems, can make a world of difference.

No other defined system of farming and food production comes close to delivering so many benefits for wildlife, society and the natural world. Organic farmers work to a strict set of standards, which must legally comply with strict EU regulation, to ensure that their farms sustain the health of:

• soils
• ecosystems
• animals
• people

These standards are built on the key principles of organic agriculture:

• health
• ecology
• care
• fairness

Certification is legally required to grow, process or market organic products, and all organic farms and companies are inspected by a certification body, at least once a year. This means when you see the organic symbol, you can trust that the food and drink you buy has been made in a way that is better for people, animals and wildlife, and respects the natural environment.

What does organic farming look like in practice?

Fewer pesticides

Pesticides are chemicals designed to kill insects and other pests, including weeds (herbicides) and fungal diseases (fungicides). Recent studies name direct and indirect impacts of pesticides as key drivers of global insect declines and the biodiversity crisis.

Under the Soil Association’s organic standards, all weedkillers are banned, and farmers are only able to use a very limited number of naturally-derived pesticides as a last resort (like citronella and clove oil), but only under very restricted circumstances.

Instead of relying on pesticides, organic farmers aim to create a natural balance between plants and animals to prevent pests.

Healthy wildlife populations can help control pests; farmers encourage birds, beetles and other 'beneficial insects' (like ladybirds) on to their farms to eat pests like aphids, slugs and caterpillars.

Likewise, crop rotations and careful choice of crop breeds lower the risk of plant disease, and weeds are managed by practices like mechanical weeding and planting natural weed suppressants, like buckwheat.

No artificial fertilisers

Keeping soils healthy is at the heart of organic farming - that's why we're called the Soil Association!

Organic farming avoids the use of synthetic fertilisers, as the principles of organic farming are based on nourishing plants naturally, by building fertile soils. Farmers do this using clover and legumes to 'fix' nitrogen, as well as using compost, animal manure and green manures (like the white clover below), and crop rotations to maintain healthy, nutrient-rich soils. 

No genetic modification (GM)

Whilst GM, or 'GMO' foods are very limited in the UK, most non-organic livestock are fed them. Organic systems are opposed to genetic modification, so organic standards ban the use of all GM ingredients, and animals on organic farms must be fed a natural, organic and non-GM diet.

Organic farmers and processors must show that they are protecting their products from contamination with prohibited products, from farm to fork.