Organic

What is Organic?

Organic production is based on principles that support healthy practices. These principles aim to increase the quality and the durability of the environment through specific management and production methods. They also focus on ensuring the humane treatment of animals.

The general principles of organic production are to:

• Protect the environment, minimize soil degradation and erosion, decrease pollution, optimize biological productivity and promote a sound state of health.
• Maintain long-term soil fertility by optimizing conditions for biological activity within the soil.
• Maintain biological diversity within the system.
• Recycle materials and resources to the greatest extent possible within the enterprise.
• Provide attentive care that promotes the health and meets the behavioural needs of livestock.
• Prepare organic products, emphasizing careful processing, and handling methods in order to maintain the organic integrity and vital qualities of the products at all stages of production
• Rely on renewable resources in locally organized agricultural systems.

Source:  Canadian Organic Growers

 Why Buy Local?

 There are many reasons to buy local. In doing so, you’re not only getting top quality, fresh tasting food, you’re also actively supporting local farms and providing a much-needed boost to the economy. 

Reasons to Buy Local:

• Freshness and Taste
• Support for Rural Communities
• Confidence in Our Food
• A Healthier Environment – reduces food miles

Source:  FoodLink Waterloo

What is Fair Trade?

Fair Trade is about making changes to conventional trade, which frequently fails to deliver on promises of sustainable livelihoods for people in the poorest countries in the world. It seeks to change the terms of trade for the products we buy - to ensure the farmers and artisans behind those products get a better deal. This includes fair prices, social and economic premiums, fair and safe labour, environmental sustainability, access to credit, and long-term contracts for producers.

Fair Trade Certified products available in Canada include

• Coffee, Cocoa, Sugar, Fresh Fruit, Tea, Flowers, Sports Balls, Cotton, Herbs & Spices, Grains

The most concrete benefits of Fair Trade products are

• A living wage- Those who farm the cocoa, sugar,  and other ingredients in the chocolate make enough money to live sustainably instead of drowning in a system that perpetuates poverty for generations by underpaying laborers.
• Fair labor practices- No child or slave labor is used in the production of fair trade chocolate. Workers are free to organize and make demands of employers such as sick leave, breaks in the work day, appropriate clothing and tools for the work, etc. Workers also play a role in the development of their trade by deciding democratically how to invest revenue. (They claim “the most stringent labor standards available internationally” and I haven’t found any evidence to refute that claim.)
• Environmental sustainability- Fair Trade products promote economic sustainability over the use of agrochemicals and GMOs both in the interest of the planet and workers’ health.