Bart,
I'm afraid I must agree with Sal.
Our farm has been known as Full Circle Organic Farm since before any of
this certification business got started on the state (CA) or federal level.
We use the word in our name to indicate how we treat our plnats and soil as
opposed to the conventional folks around here. We "were organic when
organic wasn't
cool."
I have no need or desire to ship grain, beans, or produce all over the
world - the real genesis of the federal regs - I don't even have a need or
desire to truck my produce two counties away. My personal belief is that
sustainable, organic growing is about local distribution of locally grown
products with local inputs, as much as humanly possible, put back into the
soil.
I've detailed the enormous cost of certification for us both on this list
and to the national committee so I won't rehash it here. But there is also
the matter of principle involved. I should not be forced to change the
name of my farm after all these years simply so someone else can have rules
allowing them to sell in interstate and international commerce. Nor should
I have to pay for the privilege of keeping the name.
Organic was an ecological, soil-saving/building, non-chemical paradigm long
before it was co-opted as a marketing word. Kosher was a religious
paradigm long before it became a marketing word. Neither needed
"certification" until they were used to sell products outside the local
community.
Marcie
Marcie A. Rosenzweig
Full Circle Organic Farm
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