History of Organic Farming and Social Media

It’s ironic to think of organic food as something having a history, since our food started as organic, then almost disappeared when manufactured foods and TV dinners became all the rage in the 1950s. But when we talk about the history of organic food, we’re talking about the food we find in the “health foods” aisle at the far end of your local grocery store (as opposed to the genetically modified, chemically laced stuff still called “food” in the rest of the shop).

Organic farming was a response to industrialized gardening that started replacing family farms in the 1940s and today has grown into a $30-billion industry. Why?

The benefits of organic farming include:

• Long-term environmental benefits (soil is not contaminated by chemical fertilizers and pesticides)

• Supports closed nutrient cycles, biodiversity, and effective soil management giving the capacity to mitigate and reverse the effects of climate change

• Long-term ecological benefits (animals are not harmed)

• Better support for small and family farms and CSAs

• Improved health for those who eat organic foods and avoid eating foods contaminated with cancer-causing  pesticide and fertilizer residue

Just to name a few.

While most grocery stores now carry limited quantities of organic foods, and consumer demand is pushing growth of organic sections in grocery stores, the best place to find organic foods is at local farmer’s markets and CSAs. So while the direct benefit of buying organic is improved health and peace of mind, the indirect benefit is the support it provides for the local economy, the local farmer and the environment.

Social media has played an important role in supporting the popularity of eating local and organic food and is spread by word of mouth. From promoting local farmer’s markets to sharing information about the benefits of choosing organic produce and meats, social media has been a natural partner of the organic movement yet only a small fraction of small organic farmers use online marketing.

Organic foods are now one of the fastest growing sectors worldwide. Unfortunately, we’re losing hundreds of small organic farmers each year with Australia experiencing a 9-13% loss of small farmers annually.

People are paying attention to what they put in their mouths and so now is time to also focus on where they spend their dollars. With production growing, Australia’s small organic farmers have a huge opportunity to be a part of this global growth. It is predicted that the Australian organic food market will grow 20-30 percent per year and we need our small local farmers to be a part of that growth!

Now is the time for small organic farmers to compete with the threat of large industrialised farming by using social media to help in reach their local audiences!

Next week, we’ll take a look at the current state of the organic food and farm industry.

Image Source: Destiny Boonah