What is Organic?

What is Organic?

In recent times organic food has become well accepted for their health benefits and high nutritional value.  The well established health benefits of organic production over conventional methods, and the growing awareness of the effect of transporting food we could easily produce at home on our carbon footprint is creating a high demand for locally grown organic food.  But while these benefits are certainly real, there are other equally important aspects to organic food production that don't get quite the same attention.

At the heart of organic food production is the care of the soil. Whatever soil we have today is the product of a complex interraction between tiny microbes, worms, dead animal and vegetable matter, minerals and water. Evolving for millenia, these microbes enable the soil to trap minerals essential for healthy plants while the mixture of animal and vegetable matter add humous, nutrients and air to the soil.  The humble worm is vital to the whole process, literally eating its way through the various elements of the soil, mixing and enriching as it goes. 

All living things depend on the soil, water, air and sunshine that create the food that sustains us.  The beauty of the countryside, birds, insects, wildlife, and organically cultivated gardens exist within and sustain this system.  Food was produced organically until the 1930's when chemical companies introduced artificial pesticides and fertilisers.  This allowed for monoculture - vast fields of single crops made viable by the use of these artificial additions.  The natural system was thrown out of balance; natural predators and pollinators were left without homes and sources of food.  Species of wildlife became endangered and today our children see far fewer butterflies, ladybirds and wildlife than we did because their numbers are diminishing. 

There have always been people who challenged the wisdom of using 'conventional' methods to grow our own food.  Scientific research has established that the nutrient content in organically grown food is higher and nature conservationists can give evidence that organic methods help preserve our diverse environment.  John Feehan, in his 'The History of Farming in Ireland' (Faculty of Agriculture, UCD,2003) puts it beautifully:

"The nurturing of biodiversity at a local level may not seem particularly important from a national perspective.  But it is extremely important at community level, because this is our bit of the world.  It is through Nature as experienced on this level that our wonder and understanding and appreciation are nurtured.  There is more to wonder at in the local pond, along the fringe of the bog, in the last bit of woodland in the parish than our short lifetimes can ever compass.  The preservation of rural biodiversity on a local scale affects all the community; its loss or decline diminishes the richness of all our lives and lessens in value the inheritance with which we endow the next generation"

Here at the Centre we are fully committed to encouraging, training and supporting people in organic practices.  If you want to be part of a growing movement towards modern organic food production here are some tips:

Compost your waste food and garden clippings. For more information on how to do this click here.

Try growing your own food, no matter how small or large your space is.  Herbs can be grown in window pots, hanging tomatoes and strawberries in baskets are bound to impress and patio pots can produce lovely lettuce, scallions and radishes.  If you have a larger space do try and grow a mixture of vegetables and fruit.  There are many options for learning how - a good course, a good book, local knowledge or maybe a local community food project can all help get you started.  Setting up a garden is really challenging but you will be justly rewarded when you sit down to a meal of your own fresh, delicious produce.  Gardening can be a family event too, where you pass skills on to the next through a shared activity and establish healthy eating habits as early as possible.

Plant flowers and shrubs loved by insects.  Ladybirds and hoverflies are natural predators and will keep the aphid population under control, Tagetes (African Marigold) and Poached Egg Plant attract them.  Bees help pollinate plants, and they love Borage which has an edible flower that makes summer drinks really attractive.  If you have a large garden, try and leave a space for wildflowers or leave logs in a corner to provide a comfy home for hedgehogs.  A pond will make a home for frogs, who love to eat slugs, the bane of every gardener. 

Whenever you can, buy local, organically grown food.  While organic food is better than conventionally produced food, importing food from such places as Chile, Spain or Cyprus when we can grow it here makes little sense.  If your local shop doesn't stock it, ask them to. 

Buy local where possible and Fair Trade when it's not.  Fair Trade guarantees a fair price to the producer and supports social projects in areas that are disadvantaged by poverty.

Think globally, act locally!