Conduct of inquiry
8. We announced our inquiry in a press notice issued
on 5 May 2000, calling for evidence on:
the expansion of organic
farming in all agricultural sectors; market trends and customer
demand; the role of organic certification organisations; the setting
of organic standards and tolerances; the role of farm assurance
schemes; the availability and suitability of public and private
assistance for organic conversion, including the role of trade
associations, food processors, supermarkets and the Government;
outlets and distribution systems for organic produce and retail
pricing; the level of imports and exports of organic foods; international
comparisons; and likely future developments in these areas.
In response, we received over 70 memoranda, a high
total which reflects the extent to which this subject has caught
the public attention. In addition, we held five oral evidence
sessions, hearing from Professor Sir John Marsh CBE, Professor
William McKelvey of the Scottish Agricultural College, Dr Nicolas
Lampkin of the Organic Farming Centre for Wales, the National
Farmers' Union of England and Wales, three organic farmers (Mr
Nick Bradley, Mrs Joanna Comley and Mr Oliver Watson), Yeo Valley
Organic Company Limited, Congelow Produce Ltd, J Sainsbury plc,
Iceland Frozen Foods plc, the Soil Association, Organic Farmers
and Growers Ltd, the United Kingdom Register of Organic Food Standards
(UKROFS) and Mr Elliot Morley MP, Minister for Fisheries and the
Countryside, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF).
These witnesses covered the whole spectrum from science through
producers and processors to the supermarkets, together with those
responsible for certification, regulation and finally Government
policy. We wish to thank all who gave evidence, either orally
or in writing. We also ventured beyond Westminster, despite the
best efforts of the railways to stop us, to visit two high profile
and successful organic farms, one run by Helen Browning at Bishopstone
in Wiltshire and the other by the Prince of Wales at Highgrove
in Gloucestershire. In October we spent a day in Leicestershire,
visiting the CWS farm at Stoughton, where organic, conventional
and "integrated" farming methods are operated side-by-side,
and two much smaller farms at Long Whatton and Normanton on Soar.
We are extremely grateful to those whom we met during these visits
for their frankness and for the many lessons we learnt about the
practicalities of organic farming. This is the end.
9. Our specialist advisers for this inquiry were
Professor Sir Colin Spedding, former chairman of UKROFS, who generously
reprised his role as adviser to the Lords Committee on organic
farming, and Professor Michael Haines of the University of Wales,
Aberystwyth. We hereby express our appreciation of their assistance
and guidance throughout the inquiry.
Structure of Report
10. The Report is structured as follows. Section
II examines the expansion of organic farming and of the demand
for organically produced food in the UK. Section III looks more
closely at the supply chain and the role of supermarkets and producer-owned
co-operatives. Section IV looks at the system for certifying organic
products and for setting standards and considers possible improvements
to that process. Section V and Section VI cover the role of Government
in supporting organic farming, first through direct financial
assistance and second through other, indirect means such as research
and development or training. Finally, Section VII sets out our
main conclusions and recommendations.
2 FSA Position Paper: Food Standards Agency View on
Organic Foods, August 2000. Back
3 16th
Report of the Select Committee on the European Communities, Session
1998-99, HL Paper 93. Back