WEBVTT

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[upbeat instrumental music]

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male narrator:
When organic food is mentioned,

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this is what most people
have in mind:

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a farm that's firmly anchored

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to a "small is beautiful"
philosophy,

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peopled by slightly eccentric,
perhaps even hippie-like folks

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with a strong commitment
to the organic movement...

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- ♪ I'm going up the country ♪

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♪ Baby,
don't you want to go? ♪

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Narrator: Places like
Glorious Organic farm

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and people like Susan Davidson.

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She became a founding member

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of this certified organic
co-op farm

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in British Columbia's
Fraser Valley

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for one simple reason.

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- ♪ Never been before ♪

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- I wanted my children

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to have the best possible food
they could.

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And the only way I could know
what they were eating

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was to grow it.

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Narrator:
It was that kind of thinking

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that in the late 1960s
spawned the growth

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of the organic
or, as it was then known,

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the natural food movement.

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A generation of
environmentalists and activists

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decided to go back to the land.

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They wanted to grow and know
what they were eating,

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and they wanted to do it
without chemical fertilizers

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or chemical pesticides.

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They wanted to go back

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to an earlier form
of agriculture.

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- First of all,
we have to remember

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that all food was organic
until 1935, all food.

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Every famous person in history...

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Mozart, George Washington,
Joan of Arc, Jesus...

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Ate only organic food.

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It has not been an infinite era

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that we've been
on this chemical diet.

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In fact, it's been about
a 75-to 85-year experiment

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with our bodies, with our air,
our water, and our soil.

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Narrator: At the beginning
of the 21st century,

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the organic food movement

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is reaching
a crucial tipping point

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as it moves
from a small niche market

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into the mainstream,

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and it is doing so despite
the common consumers' perception

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of what an organic label
really means.

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- I'll tell you
what it means to me: expensive.

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It's grown differently,

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and it comes
from a different farm,

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and stuff like that.

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That's all I know.

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Narrator: Organic produce
can be more expensive,

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sometimes two to three times
the cost of conventional food.

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Despite that,
consumers concerned

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about pesticides
and nutritional value

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are now putting more and more
organic products

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into their shopping baskets.

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- So there's a couple pieces
of great news

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about the state
of the organic industry.

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One is that we're somewhere

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between $26 billion
and $27 billion in annual sales.

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By the way,
you couldn't even use

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the word "organic"
and "industry"

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in the same sentence
when I started.

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Narrator:
With organic sales booming,

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large corporations have joined
the organic gold rush.

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Pioneering
mom-and-pop operations

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are being swallowed up
by food conglomerates

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like Coke and Kellogg
to create new green giants.

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And now that China
is becoming a major supplier

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of organic produce to the world,

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those early ideals

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that were at the heart
of the organic movement

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are being challenged

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by this new 21st-century drive
for corporate profit.

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- It's pretty common
that after a company is acquired

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that changes will be made

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in order to increase
the profitability

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in ways that are contrary

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to the vision
of the founders of the company.

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You see things like shifting
from an organic product

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to a natural product—
A lot cheaper ingredients.

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And it doesn't mean
the same thing.

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Narrator: It wasn't until 2009
that Susan Davidson

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was able to claim
that she's selling food

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that is labeled
certified organic.

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That's the year when Canada

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finally joined the U.S.,
Europe, and Japan

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in creating a nationwide system

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that verifies anything
labeled certified organic

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is produced with no herbicides,
no synthetic fertilizer,

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no synthetic pesticides,

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no hormones, no antibiotics,

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no irradiation,
and no genetic engineering.

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When governments created
a standardized set of rules,

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the organic movement
was transformed

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into an organic industry.

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That industry is on display

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at the annual natural and health
trade show

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in Anaheim, California.

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Not open to the public,

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its aisles are jam-packed

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with some 60,000 buyers
from across North America

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in search of next year's
hot new product.

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- Even during
the recession years,

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organics outpaced
conventional food growth

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by five or six times to one.

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The bad news is that we're about
3.4% to 3.5% of total U.S. food.

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Narrator: One reason
for the small percentage

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may be the confusion
consumers have about labels.

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It used to be that words
"natural" and "organic"

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were interchangeable

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but not anymore.

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The word "organic"
now has a legal definition

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with oversight
by government agencies

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and government-approved
official logos.

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On the other hand,

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the use of the word "natural"
on a product

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is pretty well left

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to the discretion
of the manufacturer.

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- The word "natural"
doesn't mean anything anymore.

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It can be full of chemicals.

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It can be grown with pesticides.

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It can be genetically modified.

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But "natural" has no meaning.

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And people just put it
on their products

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and their food products
as a marketing gimmick.

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Narrator: And the marketing
of organic foods

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has really ramped up

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as the biggest
food conglomerates in the world

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gobble up
some of the most successful

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pioneering organic
food companies out there.

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- Very few of the organic brands

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that have been acquired
by multinational processors

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make those ownership ties
apparent.

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And some people call this
stealth ownership.

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Narrator: Professor Phil Howard
has created a chart

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that reveals how
12 of North America's

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biggest industrial
food processors

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have, without any fanfare,

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become major players
in the organic world.

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- General Mills acquired
Cascadian Farm and Muir Glen

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and, more recently, Larabar.

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Kellogg acquired
MorningStar Farms,

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Natural Touch, Kashi,

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and, more recently, Bear Naked.

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Coca-Cola acquired
Odwalla, Honest Tea.

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Dairy giant Dean
acquired Alta Dena, Horizon,

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the Organic Cow of Vermont,

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and WhiteWave Silk.

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Some of these companies
don't have the same commitment

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to the original ideals
of organic

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as the original
pioneering companies.

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Narrator: And no one knows that
better than Steve Demos,

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founder of WhiteWave Silk.

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- I don't care what major
food corporation you talk about.

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I would wager money
that every one of them

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has an eye on or a foot in
the natural and organic sector

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in the case this works.

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Narrator: He thought
he knew what would work

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when he came back from India
with a hippie's dream

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to change the way Americans ate.

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His vision was to take a bean

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known primarily
as fodder for cattle

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and turn it into something

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Americans would put
on their dinner tables.

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It was the humble soybean.

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- I borrowed $500,
bought a blender and a pot,

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and started making tofu.

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And that became the root
of the business.

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I was selling tofu
to my tai chi chuan class.

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It was the most hated food
in America.

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It was brutal.

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Narrator:
Based in Boulder, Colorado,

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his company WhiteWave
tried just about everything

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to make soy acceptable
to the public:

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soy burgers, soy dressings,
soy turnovers.

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And then after a number of years
came soya milk.

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Sold under the name Silk,

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it became
a runaway success story.

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Silk had crossed over
into the mainstream market.

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But to keep growing,
he needed money, lots of it.

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- So we went out,
and we interviewed

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the largest companies
in the world, really,

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in the food industry:
Nestlé, Coke, Pepsi, Dean.

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Narrator: Dean Foods had grown
into the largest dairy company

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in the United States

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when, in 2002,
it became the dominant player

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in the soya milk sector

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by purchasing
Steve Demos' company.

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- Dean Foods said,
"We agree you have a culture,

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and we agree
with the principles."

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That's how I agreed
to stay with Dean Foods

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and to run Silk
after its acquisition.

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Narrator:
The former hippie

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who once lived in a cave
in India

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had struck the mother lode.

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Dean Foods had paid $189 million
for his company

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and put him in charge
of its new organic division.

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- My job was to make Silk

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the number one beverage
ahead of water.

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Didn't really think
I was going to achieve that,

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but, you know, it sounded good.

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I was told I was doing
a brilliant job

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and everything
was working great one week,

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and then the next week, it was,

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"You're not the right person
for this job."

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narrator: With Steve Demos gone,

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the Silk organic product line
began to change.

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It was no longer
exclusively soya

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or exclusively organic.

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These changes
attracted the attention

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of the Wisconsin-based
Cornucopia Institute,

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an organic food industry
watchdog.

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- When Dean Foods purchased
the Silk label and soy line,

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it was 100% organic.

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And then every year
as they introduced more items,

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they were introduced
with conventional soybeans.

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Narrator:
Conventional soybeans

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are not only easier to source
than organic.

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They are also cheaper.

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- They got down to three
that were still organic.

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They very, very quietly changed
the packaging appearance.

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One little word:

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"organic" one day

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and "natural" the next.

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They didn't adequately inform
any of their retailers.

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So for months,

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we had this conventional
soy milk

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on the shelf
with little tags underneath

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that said "organic."

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And we found out about this

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because of complaints
that came in from retailers.

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They found out about it

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because complaints
that came in from consumers.

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Narrator: Dean Foods continues
to sell organic soya milk

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as well as nonorganic products,
all under the Silk brand,

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a brand that Steve Demos
once dreamed

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would change
the way America ate.

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- I look at it, and I go,
"Wait, gee, what a shame,

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"but not my shame.

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But what a shame."

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narrator:
For Steve Demos,

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having a large corporation
take over

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left him enormously wealthy

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but cost him
his beloved organic brand.

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There is another pioneer
in the organic movement

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whose experience
with these new green giants

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had a decidedly
different outcome.

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- Gary Hirshberg, hi.

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Nice to meet you too.

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Narrator: Gary Hirshberg
runs Stonyfield,

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America's biggest-selling
organic yogurt company.

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Leading a company
the size of Stonyfield

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would be enough for most CEOs,

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but Gary Hirshberg

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is one of organic food's
biggest boosters,

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and he's spreading the gospel
any way he can.

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- All right, take care.

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[upbeat music]

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- ♪ I'm no rapper,
that's for sure ♪

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♪ I'm just
a yogurt-making C-E-Yo ♪

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♪ But when it comes
to how we grow and eat ♪

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♪ We're overdue for a cure ♪

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♪ And some really bad practices
have got to go ♪

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♪ So ♪

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♪ Got poisons
in our soil ♪

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♪ Poisons in our air ♪

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♪ Poisons in our water supply ♪

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♪ It doesn't stop there ♪

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- ♪ Ooh, so if you love
your body ♪

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♪ Love your children ♪

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♪ And you love your planet ♪

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♪ Protect your family,
body, and Earth ♪

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Just eat organic!

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Narrator: Like so many pioneers
of the U.S. organic movement,

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Gary Hirshberg started out
as a young environmentalist.

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In 1983, he and a friend
created a yogurt company

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that teetered on the verge
of bankruptcy for years.

00:11:07.501 --> 00:11:08.918
And then it happened.

00:11:08.959 --> 00:11:11.292
American consumers
concerned about the introduction

00:11:11.334 --> 00:11:13.167
of growth hormones
in dairy cattle

00:11:13.209 --> 00:11:16.125
had discovered Stonyfield Farms
and its yogurt.

00:11:17.667 --> 00:11:19.334
- We had set out
with a little experiment,

00:11:19.375 --> 00:11:21.175
saying, "Gee, if we build it,
will they come?"

00:11:21.209 --> 00:11:23.334
Well, they were coming,
and they were coming in droves.

00:11:23.375 --> 00:11:25.667
And we really couldn't keep up
with demand.

00:11:25.709 --> 00:11:27.000
Narrator:
To meet that demand,

00:11:27.042 --> 00:11:29.083
Gary Hirshberg
needed lots of cash,

00:11:29.125 --> 00:11:30.709
so he went out and approached

00:11:30.751 --> 00:11:33.334
21 of the largest food companies
out there.

00:11:33.375 --> 00:11:35.459
He offered
to sell them his company

00:11:35.501 --> 00:11:39.250
but only if they agreed
to one extraordinary condition.

00:11:39.292 --> 00:11:41.209
- We'll allow you to buy

00:11:41.250 --> 00:11:43.542
as long as you leave me
with majority control.

00:11:43.584 --> 00:11:47.083
And 20 of the 21 said,
"Bye-bye, that's ridiculous."

00:11:47.125 --> 00:11:49.000
But the 21st, Danone, said,

00:11:49.042 --> 00:11:51.000
"Sure, we'll do that deal."

00:11:51.042 --> 00:11:52.459
narrator:
On the closing of the deal,

00:11:52.501 --> 00:11:56.083
the chairman of Danone offered
a surprising piece of advice.

00:11:56.125 --> 00:11:57.125
- "Gary," he said,

00:11:57.167 --> 00:11:59.959
"keep the Danone people
out of your company."

00:12:00.000 --> 00:12:01.751
narrator:
85% of that company

00:12:01.792 --> 00:12:03.959
is now owned
by Groupe Danone of France,

00:12:04.000 --> 00:12:06.375
a huge
multinational corporation,

00:12:06.417 --> 00:12:07.918
but daily operating control,

00:12:07.959 --> 00:12:10.751
to even taste testing
a new organic product,

00:12:10.792 --> 00:12:13.959
remains firmly
in Gary Hirshberg's hands.

00:12:14.918 --> 00:12:17.792
- Organics
is about authenticity,

00:12:17.834 --> 00:12:20.751
and it's about building loyalty.

00:12:20.792 --> 00:12:23.709
Stonyfield consumers don't go
into the store to buy yogurt.

00:12:23.751 --> 00:12:25.501
They go in to buy Stonyfield.

00:12:25.542 --> 00:12:27.959
And that's
the most powerful force

00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:29.167
in the marketplace there is.

00:12:29.209 --> 00:12:32.501
Loyalty is the holy grail
of consumer products.

00:12:33.167 --> 00:12:35.459
Narrator: For Michael Potter,
that search for the holy grail

00:12:35.501 --> 00:12:36.834
of consumer loyalty

00:12:36.876 --> 00:12:38.542
wasn't an issue
when he got involved

00:12:38.584 --> 00:12:41.000
in the organic food movement
in the late '60s.

00:12:41.042 --> 00:12:42.918
He was on a different mission.

00:12:42.959 --> 00:12:47.000
- Diet and health,
that's what we were focused on.

00:12:47.042 --> 00:12:48.292
Diet is food,

00:12:48.334 --> 00:12:50.792
and we might as well
get the cleanest food we can,

00:12:50.834 --> 00:12:55.417
the best food we can,
which took us into organic.

00:12:55.459 --> 00:12:56.834
Narrator:
His company, Eden Foods,

00:12:56.876 --> 00:12:58.834
is the oldest privately held
organic food company

00:12:58.876 --> 00:12:59.918
in North America.

00:12:59.959 --> 00:13:04.417
- Well, we've been milling grain
since, you know, about day two.

00:13:04.459 --> 00:13:06.209
For a good 42 years now,

00:13:06.250 --> 00:13:08.125
we've been milling
whole grain flours.

00:13:08.167 --> 00:13:10.125
Narrator: Over that time,
he's grown the company

00:13:10.167 --> 00:13:12.542
into a $60 million-a-year
business.

00:13:12.584 --> 00:13:14.751
Numbers like that
have attracted corporate suitors

00:13:14.792 --> 00:13:16.083
from around the world.

00:13:17.209 --> 00:13:18.709
- And we said, "No, thanks."

00:13:18.751 --> 00:13:19.959
Eden Foods has taken

00:13:20.000 --> 00:13:22.542
the "stay small and independent"
path.

00:13:22.584 --> 00:13:24.334
Narrator:
But that independent path

00:13:24.375 --> 00:13:28.667
has earned Eden Food products
an unwelcome distinction.

00:13:28.709 --> 00:13:31.792
- We always have
the highest-priced product

00:13:31.834 --> 00:13:34.209
available in the market

00:13:34.250 --> 00:13:37.918
in every category we go into

00:13:37.959 --> 00:13:39.792
because good food's not cheap.

00:13:39.834 --> 00:13:41.125
Narrator:
It's not cheap

00:13:41.167 --> 00:13:42.709
because he's decided
to keep open

00:13:42.751 --> 00:13:45.501
an aging pasta factory
staffed with longtime employees

00:13:45.542 --> 00:13:48.792
in the heart
of a devastated Detroit

00:13:48.834 --> 00:13:50.417
and to deal directly
with his suppliers

00:13:50.459 --> 00:13:52.918
and organic farmers
instead of middlemen

00:13:52.959 --> 00:13:54.792
and then to spend
the extra money

00:13:54.834 --> 00:13:57.000
to verify that his crops

00:13:57.042 --> 00:13:59.626
are not genetically modified.

00:13:59.667 --> 00:14:01.959
- Nobody else is doing
what we do that we know,

00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:03.584
and somebody needs to do it.

00:14:03.626 --> 00:14:07.083
Somebody needs to do it
all the way.

00:14:07.125 --> 00:14:09.125
Narrator: "All the way"
as defined by Michael Potter

00:14:09.167 --> 00:14:11.792
means going way beyond
the minimal organic standards

00:14:11.834 --> 00:14:14.292
as set out
by the U.S. government.

00:14:14.334 --> 00:14:16.459
- There it is, USDA ORGANIC.

00:14:16.501 --> 00:14:18.626
Every single organic product
we have

00:14:18.667 --> 00:14:20.709
is USDA certified organic.

00:14:20.751 --> 00:14:23.250
We don't use the seal
because we think our brand

00:14:23.292 --> 00:14:25.667
stands for a lot more than that.

00:14:25.709 --> 00:14:26.959
Narrator:
He has chosen not to put on

00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:31.125
USDA certified organic logos
on any Eden products

00:14:31.167 --> 00:14:33.876
even though he has
a perfect right to do so.

00:14:33.918 --> 00:14:36.334
Refusing to sell out
to corporations,

00:14:36.375 --> 00:14:39.209
refusing to allow others
to define what is good enough,

00:14:39.250 --> 00:14:42.125
refusing to accept
cheap foreign organic supplies,

00:14:42.167 --> 00:14:44.834
Michael Potter
holds steadfast to the ideals

00:14:44.876 --> 00:14:46.709
of the organic food movement.

00:14:46.751 --> 00:14:48.667
As such,
he stands out as a maverick

00:14:48.709 --> 00:14:52.000
in an increasingly corporatized
organic world.

00:14:53.334 --> 00:14:56.292
- I tell people that the best
thing about Eden Foods is,

00:14:56.334 --> 00:14:59.918
we're still doing exactly
what we started out to do.

00:14:59.959 --> 00:15:03.626
We're getting the best food
possible for ourselves

00:15:03.667 --> 00:15:06.334
and our children
and our grandchildren,

00:15:06.375 --> 00:15:10.083
and we're making it available
to as many people as we can.

00:15:10.125 --> 00:15:11.250
Narrator:
And the best food

00:15:11.292 --> 00:15:12.584
for a growing number
of consumers

00:15:12.626 --> 00:15:13.918
has become organic food

00:15:13.959 --> 00:15:16.542
because they believe
it's the only food

00:15:16.584 --> 00:15:18.250
that is pesticide-free.

00:15:22.667 --> 00:15:23.876
There are a lot of reasons

00:15:23.918 --> 00:15:26.626
why people
choose to buy organic food.

00:15:28.417 --> 00:15:29.959
For Maggie Hughes,

00:15:30.000 --> 00:15:32.250
it's got everything to do
with her health.

00:15:32.292 --> 00:15:33.751
- I'm running out
of things to eat,

00:15:33.792 --> 00:15:35.250
and organic's all that's left,

00:15:35.292 --> 00:15:37.417
because I can't eat
anything else.

00:15:37.459 --> 00:15:38.459
I can't digest it.

00:15:38.501 --> 00:15:40.876
I have MS and fibromyalgia.

00:15:40.918 --> 00:15:45.209
So I just simply can't eat it
unless it's organically grown.

00:15:45.250 --> 00:15:48.042
Otherwise,
I have to peel the apple.

00:15:48.083 --> 00:15:49.292
I get terribly sick.

00:15:49.334 --> 00:15:51.375
Narrator:
The claim that organic food

00:15:51.417 --> 00:15:52.792
is a healthier alternative

00:15:52.834 --> 00:15:54.959
to conventionally grown
fruits and vegetables

00:15:55.000 --> 00:15:57.584
remains
a highly contentious issue.

00:15:57.626 --> 00:16:00.167
And lately that argument
has become focused

00:16:00.209 --> 00:16:03.209
on a luscious little red berry.

00:16:03.250 --> 00:16:06.167
90% of all strawberries
sold in America

00:16:06.209 --> 00:16:07.584
come from California,

00:16:07.626 --> 00:16:09.751
and by far, the vast majority
of those strawberries

00:16:09.792 --> 00:16:10.792
are not organic.

00:16:10.834 --> 00:16:13.000
They are conventional.

00:16:13.042 --> 00:16:15.250
Strawberries are notoriously
difficult to grow,

00:16:15.292 --> 00:16:17.167
and conventional
strawberry production

00:16:17.209 --> 00:16:20.751
is now heavily dependent
on fumigants and pesticides.

00:16:20.792 --> 00:16:23.834
Organic strawberry growers
take a different approach.

00:16:23.876 --> 00:16:25.751
- We don't fumigate our soil.

00:16:25.792 --> 00:16:28.167
We don't use
synthetic pesticides.

00:16:28.209 --> 00:16:32.000
We try to engage in a more
holistic type of farming

00:16:32.042 --> 00:16:34.959
that involves thinking
about the overall health

00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:36.709
of the soil, the plants,

00:16:36.751 --> 00:16:40.334
and the people who are engaged
in the farming process.

00:16:40.375 --> 00:16:42.918
Narrator: Just up the coast
from Monterey Bay

00:16:42.959 --> 00:16:44.918
is Swanton Berry Farm,

00:16:44.959 --> 00:16:47.876
the first certified organic
strawberry farm in California.

00:16:49.083 --> 00:16:51.000
Now some 30 years later,

00:16:51.042 --> 00:16:53.292
its farmworkers carry on
that pioneering spirit.

00:16:54.626 --> 00:16:58.125
In an industry known for its
low-wage itinerant labor force,

00:16:58.167 --> 00:17:01.751
they are all card-carrying
members of a union.

00:17:01.792 --> 00:17:04.417
And as prominent as their
union logo is on the box,

00:17:04.459 --> 00:17:07.876
it is the certified organic logo
that translates

00:17:07.918 --> 00:17:09.209
into a real price premium

00:17:09.250 --> 00:17:11.000
for organic growers,

00:17:11.042 --> 00:17:14.459
a premium that some consumers
are willing to pay.

00:17:14.501 --> 00:17:18.292
- The primary concern
is personal health.

00:17:18.334 --> 00:17:20.292
Because the chemicals used

00:17:20.334 --> 00:17:21.876
to produce
conventional strawberries

00:17:21.918 --> 00:17:22.918
are so highly toxic,

00:17:22.959 --> 00:17:25.542
it is one of the Dirty Dozen.

00:17:25.584 --> 00:17:26.792
Narrator:
The Dirty Dozen

00:17:26.834 --> 00:17:28.167
is a list
of fruits and vegetables

00:17:28.209 --> 00:17:30.834
with the highest levels
of pesticide residues.

00:17:30.876 --> 00:17:33.501
The Environmental Working Group
issues this list every year

00:17:33.542 --> 00:17:35.250
as a warning to consumers,

00:17:35.292 --> 00:17:39.501
and almost always at the top
of that list are strawberries.

00:17:39.542 --> 00:17:40.542
Based on reports

00:17:40.584 --> 00:17:43.083
from the United States
Department of Agriculture,

00:17:43.125 --> 00:17:44.584
the Dirty Dozen list is scorned

00:17:44.626 --> 00:17:47.751
by proponents
of conventional farming.

00:17:47.792 --> 00:17:50.042
- When people hear that there is

00:17:50.083 --> 00:17:54.834
a detectable residue
in something,

00:17:54.876 --> 00:17:57.918
they really don't have
any framework to put that into.

00:17:57.959 --> 00:17:59.751
Narrator:
Steve Savage,

00:17:59.792 --> 00:18:01.751
a California
agricultural scientist,

00:18:01.792 --> 00:18:03.417
discounts the dangers

00:18:03.459 --> 00:18:05.751
of low-dose pesticide residues
to humans.

00:18:07.167 --> 00:18:09.250
- When you look
at that USDA data,

00:18:09.292 --> 00:18:11.667
typically the safety factor,

00:18:11.709 --> 00:18:12.959
if you were to calculate
and say,

00:18:13.000 --> 00:18:15.834
"Well, how much would I have
to eat of this

00:18:15.876 --> 00:18:17.751
to ever get to a toxic dose?"

00:18:17.792 --> 00:18:19.626
is in the millions.

00:18:19.667 --> 00:18:24.292
And so it's very easy for people
to be alarmed with the idea

00:18:24.334 --> 00:18:26.834
that anything
is detected there at all,

00:18:26.876 --> 00:18:30.375
but they don't realize
that you eat low levels

00:18:30.417 --> 00:18:33.918
of all kinds of toxins
every day.

00:18:33.959 --> 00:18:35.542
Narrator:
Despite the reassuring words

00:18:35.584 --> 00:18:37.209
of scientists
and government officials,

00:18:37.250 --> 00:18:39.542
people, particularly parents
of young children,

00:18:39.584 --> 00:18:40.584
are increasingly shopping

00:18:40.626 --> 00:18:42.417
for organic fruits
and vegetables,

00:18:42.459 --> 00:18:45.209
not surprising
considering troubling reports

00:18:45.250 --> 00:18:47.125
about the use of chemicals,

00:18:47.167 --> 00:18:48.167
including a joint study

00:18:48.209 --> 00:18:50.584
by Harvard
and University of Montreal

00:18:50.626 --> 00:18:51.834
linking a common pesticide

00:18:51.876 --> 00:18:54.792
with attention
deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

00:18:54.834 --> 00:18:57.876
- What I found
was that the higher levels

00:18:57.918 --> 00:19:00.375
of pesticide residues in urine

00:19:00.417 --> 00:19:04.667
were associated with increased
odds of ADHD in children.

00:19:04.709 --> 00:19:06.709
And this
is a significant finding,

00:19:06.751 --> 00:19:11.542
because this study was conducted
among a sample of children

00:19:11.584 --> 00:19:14.959
that is representative
of the U.S. population.

00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:16.709
Narrator:
Children with the highest levels

00:19:16.751 --> 00:19:17.834
of a common pesticide

00:19:17.876 --> 00:19:22.459
actually doubled their odds
of being diagnosed with ADHD.

00:19:22.501 --> 00:19:24.000
- So we suspect that children

00:19:24.042 --> 00:19:25.959
are probably
much more vulnerable

00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:27.667
to the effect of pesticides,

00:19:27.709 --> 00:19:29.542
and that would be
for several reason.

00:19:29.584 --> 00:19:30.584
First of all,

00:19:30.626 --> 00:19:32.167
they are more exposed

00:19:32.209 --> 00:19:35.167
because pesticides are mostly
found in fruits and vegetables

00:19:35.209 --> 00:19:38.667
and children eat more fruits
and vegetables than adults.

00:19:38.709 --> 00:19:41.501
Secondly, for their weight,

00:19:41.542 --> 00:19:43.125
they eat more than an adult.

00:19:43.167 --> 00:19:44.250
Depending on the age,

00:19:44.292 --> 00:19:48.501
children eat three to four times
more per pound

00:19:48.542 --> 00:19:49.542
than an adult.

00:19:49.584 --> 00:19:52.959
So they're just going
to consume more pesticides

00:19:53.000 --> 00:19:54.584
through their diet.

00:19:54.626 --> 00:19:57.209
Narrator: Besides the much lower
pesticide residues

00:19:57.250 --> 00:19:59.584
found in organic strawberries,

00:19:59.626 --> 00:20:01.167
there is another
striking difference

00:20:01.209 --> 00:20:03.709
between organic
and conventional strawberries.

00:20:05.042 --> 00:20:07.542
To mass-produce a standardized
strawberry cheaply,

00:20:07.584 --> 00:20:09.292
conventional strawberries
are grown

00:20:09.334 --> 00:20:11.709
in the same fields
year after year.

00:20:11.751 --> 00:20:13.292
But strawberries are finicky,

00:20:13.334 --> 00:20:16.501
particularly susceptible
to soil diseases.

00:20:16.542 --> 00:20:17.542
To deal with this problem,

00:20:17.584 --> 00:20:19.459
organic strawberry farmers

00:20:19.501 --> 00:20:21.751
have to rotate crops
and move strawberry fields

00:20:21.792 --> 00:20:24.417
every year or two,
and that costs money.

00:20:24.459 --> 00:20:25.626
The secret to growing

00:20:25.667 --> 00:20:28.751
on the same conventional
strawberry fields forever

00:20:28.792 --> 00:20:29.959
came in the 1960s

00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:31.792
with the introduction
of a chemical

00:20:31.834 --> 00:20:34.751
called methyl bromide.

00:20:34.792 --> 00:20:37.959
- Basically what it does
is kills everything in the soil.

00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:42.209
And so you go in and you inject
the soil with the chemical

00:20:42.250 --> 00:20:44.626
and then cover it with plastic.

00:20:44.667 --> 00:20:46.792
Narrator: Then it was discovered
that methyl bromide

00:20:46.834 --> 00:20:48.501
was an ozone depleter,

00:20:48.542 --> 00:20:50.792
and it's been banned
and is being phased out.

00:20:50.834 --> 00:20:52.959
Conventional strawberry growers
in California

00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:56.834
are now looking at a replacement
fumigant, methyl iodide.

00:20:56.876 --> 00:21:00.250
- However it's been found
to cause cancer,

00:21:00.292 --> 00:21:01.417
much more dangerous

00:21:01.459 --> 00:21:03.751
for the workers
who are actually applying it.

00:21:03.792 --> 00:21:07.250
Narrator: In early 2012,
facing major legal battles,

00:21:07.292 --> 00:21:08.626
the manufacturer
of methyl iodide

00:21:08.667 --> 00:21:11.792
decided for now to pull it
off the America market.

00:21:14.876 --> 00:21:16.042
And it's not just workers

00:21:16.083 --> 00:21:18.209
who are on the front lines
of the health debate.

00:21:18.250 --> 00:21:19.709
A study of children
of farmworkers

00:21:19.751 --> 00:21:21.876
living around
California's Salinas Valley

00:21:21.918 --> 00:21:26.709
revealed further troubling news
about the effects of pesticides.

00:21:26.751 --> 00:21:29.250
- What I found
is that higher levels

00:21:29.292 --> 00:21:32.209
of prenatal exposure
to pesticides

00:21:32.250 --> 00:21:37.959
was associated with markedly
lower IQ in children.

00:21:38.000 --> 00:21:39.334
And this IQ was measured

00:21:39.375 --> 00:21:41.876
when children
were seven years of age.

00:21:41.918 --> 00:21:45.375
So we're talking about long-term
persistent effect

00:21:45.417 --> 00:21:49.083
of prenatal exposure
to these pesticides.

00:21:49.125 --> 00:21:51.417
Narrator: Despite all these new
scientific findings,

00:21:51.459 --> 00:21:54.250
it's not unexpected
that conventional agriculture

00:21:54.292 --> 00:21:58.000
remains unreservedly committed
to chemical pesticides.

00:21:58.042 --> 00:22:00.918
What may be surprising
is the role that pesticides play

00:22:00.959 --> 00:22:03.042
in the organic world.

00:22:03.083 --> 00:22:04.417
- One of the biggest
misconceptions

00:22:04.459 --> 00:22:05.459
about organic farming

00:22:05.501 --> 00:22:06.959
is that there's
no pesticides used.

00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:08.792
That's just flat-out not true.

00:22:08.834 --> 00:22:11.626
- ♪ I'm going up the country ♪

00:22:11.667 --> 00:22:14.042
♪ Baby,
don't you want to go? ♪

00:22:14.083 --> 00:22:16.584
Narrator: Certified organic
growers like Jeff Larkey

00:22:16.626 --> 00:22:20.125
are permitted if they so choose
to use pesticides

00:22:20.167 --> 00:22:22.334
but only pesticides
found in nature.

00:22:22.375 --> 00:22:24.042
- ♪ Someplace
where I've never been before ♪

00:22:24.083 --> 00:22:26.542
- There's botanical pesticides
that are made from plants

00:22:26.584 --> 00:22:28.375
or things that are mined
that we can use

00:22:28.417 --> 00:22:29.709
and be organic farmers,

00:22:29.751 --> 00:22:31.834
but I just feel
like it's like something

00:22:31.876 --> 00:22:33.959
that you use as a last resort.

00:22:34.959 --> 00:22:37.459
We deal with bugs all the time.

00:22:37.501 --> 00:22:38.667
These little babies,

00:22:38.709 --> 00:22:40.429
they're hard to control
early in the season,

00:22:40.459 --> 00:22:43.125
but like I say,
we have so many different crops

00:22:43.167 --> 00:22:45.417
that, you know, even if it
becomes a lot of damage on this,

00:22:45.459 --> 00:22:47.209
I'm not gonna lose my shirt.

00:22:47.250 --> 00:22:48.876
Narrator:
Although organic pesticides

00:22:48.918 --> 00:22:51.209
are derived from naturally
occurring materials,

00:22:51.250 --> 00:22:54.083
they can be as toxic
to pests and fungi

00:22:54.125 --> 00:22:56.918
as any chemical pesticide.

00:22:56.959 --> 00:23:00.542
- In the long run,
insects, diseases...

00:23:00.584 --> 00:23:02.709
Whatever you're using
that pesticide for...

00:23:02.751 --> 00:23:04.918
Are gonna develop
a resistance to it,

00:23:04.959 --> 00:23:07.918
and you're gonna have to find
something else to use

00:23:07.959 --> 00:23:10.083
that's gonna be
probably even worse.

00:23:10.125 --> 00:23:12.459
Narrator:
Monitoring the safe usage

00:23:12.501 --> 00:23:16.083
of pesticides or fungicides
is a job for governments.

00:23:16.125 --> 00:23:18.626
Monitoring whether or not
something can be labeled organic

00:23:18.667 --> 00:23:21.292
is the job
of certification agencies

00:23:21.334 --> 00:23:24.000
accredited by governments.

00:23:24.042 --> 00:23:26.626
It means that organic operations
like Swanton Berry Farm

00:23:26.667 --> 00:23:30.459
get visited by an inspector
at least once a year.

00:23:30.501 --> 00:23:32.709
And that's what Amy Lamendella
is here for:

00:23:32.751 --> 00:23:35.834
to make sure that all the rules
are being followed.

00:23:35.876 --> 00:23:37.834
- So we changed the union label
to black.

00:23:37.876 --> 00:23:38.876
- Okay.
- And then the USDA.

00:23:38.918 --> 00:23:40.000
- Right, so that's...

00:23:40.042 --> 00:23:42.000
We're seeing
that noncompliant USDA logo.

00:23:42.042 --> 00:23:43.375
Narrator: Everything,

00:23:43.417 --> 00:23:45.459
including verifying
the permissible color

00:23:45.501 --> 00:23:47.709
for the official organic logo,

00:23:47.751 --> 00:23:49.918
is scrutinized
during her annual inspection.

00:23:50.751 --> 00:23:53.459
However, her principal role
as an inspector

00:23:53.501 --> 00:23:56.334
is to follow a paper trail.

00:23:57.334 --> 00:24:00.959
- Do you have receipts
from them for that?

00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:04.292
Narrator: Her task is to conduct
a meticulous forensic audit

00:24:04.334 --> 00:24:05.959
of the mountain of paperwork

00:24:06.000 --> 00:24:09.209
that every organic enterprise
has to maintain.

00:24:09.250 --> 00:24:11.709
- It is very rare
to come across an operation

00:24:11.751 --> 00:24:13.375
that's doing something
they shouldn't be

00:24:13.417 --> 00:24:14.584
and they're doing it on purpose.

00:24:14.626 --> 00:24:15.626
It's really rare.

00:24:15.667 --> 00:24:17.501
It's only happened a few times
in the seven years

00:24:17.542 --> 00:24:19.062
that I've been doing
this kind of work.

00:24:19.918 --> 00:24:22.000
Narrator: The irony
is that the strawberry seedlings

00:24:22.042 --> 00:24:23.751
that will be planted
in the organic fields

00:24:23.792 --> 00:24:26.792
and will become
organic strawberries

00:24:26.834 --> 00:24:29.501
have nonorganic beginnings.

00:24:29.542 --> 00:24:32.375
- Most of the nurseries
that supply strawberries

00:24:32.417 --> 00:24:35.167
to the industry
are conventional,

00:24:35.209 --> 00:24:37.375
and so they do use
methyl bromide

00:24:37.417 --> 00:24:40.792
and, we anticipate,
will use methyl iodide

00:24:40.834 --> 00:24:43.292
if that comes to pass.

00:24:43.334 --> 00:24:46.250
Narrator: Currently, only
conventional strawberry starters

00:24:46.292 --> 00:24:48.167
are available in California.

00:24:48.209 --> 00:24:50.042
And even though
they will not be treated

00:24:50.083 --> 00:24:51.459
with any synthetic chemicals

00:24:51.501 --> 00:24:53.959
once they're planted
in organic fields,

00:24:54.000 --> 00:24:55.417
there are some who complain

00:24:55.459 --> 00:24:58.876
that it's just not in the spirit
of organic principles.

00:24:59.792 --> 00:25:02.959
It seems that running
a certified organic operation

00:25:03.000 --> 00:25:05.918
is a constant struggle
of striving for the perfect

00:25:05.959 --> 00:25:08.250
but often settling for the good.

00:25:11.417 --> 00:25:13.334
In China,
just striving for the good

00:25:13.375 --> 00:25:14.626
would be a welcome change

00:25:14.667 --> 00:25:16.751
when it comes to food safety,

00:25:16.792 --> 00:25:18.250
especially now that China

00:25:18.292 --> 00:25:20.542
is rapidly becoming
a major exporter

00:25:20.584 --> 00:25:22.667
of organic food to the world.

00:25:24.876 --> 00:25:28.918
Seemingly every day,
a new food horror story emerges:

00:25:28.959 --> 00:25:31.125
rice contaminated
with heavy metals,

00:25:31.167 --> 00:25:33.250
fish tainted
with cancer-causing chemicals,

00:25:33.292 --> 00:25:35.417
pork that glows in the dark,

00:25:35.459 --> 00:25:36.584
and toxic-laden milk powder

00:25:36.626 --> 00:25:39.334
that sickened hundreds
of thousands of children.

00:25:40.542 --> 00:25:43.292
Some shoppers, especially those
who can afford it,

00:25:43.334 --> 00:25:46.083
are turning to food
that is labeled organic.

00:25:46.125 --> 00:25:47.959
- [speaking native language]

00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:50.584
- I became concerned
about food safety

00:25:50.626 --> 00:25:52.542
after I had a child.

00:25:53.626 --> 00:25:55.792
There were some negative reports

00:25:55.834 --> 00:25:57.959
about milk and vegetables.

00:25:58.584 --> 00:26:00.626
Narrator:
Zhang Yu, a Beijing lawyer,

00:26:00.667 --> 00:26:02.375
now shops at an organic store,

00:26:02.417 --> 00:26:04.209
part of a small Chinese chain

00:26:04.250 --> 00:26:06.375
that has seen its sales
skyrocket

00:26:06.417 --> 00:26:08.417
in the last couple of years.

00:26:08.459 --> 00:26:10.292
- I think organic
means something,

00:26:10.334 --> 00:26:12.501
like not using pesticides.

00:26:12.542 --> 00:26:13.834
I think it's safer.

00:26:13.876 --> 00:26:15.501
However, it doesn't mean

00:26:15.542 --> 00:26:18.000
that all organic products
are safe.

00:26:18.042 --> 00:26:20.626
Narrator: Whether it is safe
or not is troubling,

00:26:20.667 --> 00:26:23.083
not just
for local domestic consumers

00:26:23.125 --> 00:26:24.417
but also for foreign buyers

00:26:24.459 --> 00:26:27.709
of organic produce
coming from China.

00:26:28.542 --> 00:26:30.834
And one of the biggest centers
for organic food production

00:26:30.876 --> 00:26:32.959
is located in a remote county

00:26:33.000 --> 00:26:36.083
in the southern province
of Jiangxi.

00:26:36.125 --> 00:26:39.000
Rice has been planted here
for some 3,000 years,

00:26:39.042 --> 00:26:40.959
but it's only been
in the last 5 years

00:26:41.000 --> 00:26:42.250
that Wanzai County

00:26:42.292 --> 00:26:43.834
has become a major hub

00:26:43.876 --> 00:26:45.501
for China's production
of organic food.

00:26:47.459 --> 00:26:51.292
And at its heart is JYORGANIC,
a food corporation

00:26:51.334 --> 00:26:54.459
that grows, processes,
and markets a wide variety

00:26:54.501 --> 00:26:55.792
of organic fruits and vegetables

00:26:55.834 --> 00:26:59.876
for both domestic
and international markets.

00:26:59.918 --> 00:27:01.250
- [speaking native language]

00:27:01.292 --> 00:27:05.501
- Wanzai County is the pioneer
of China's organic industry.

00:27:05.542 --> 00:27:07.167
Our air quality
is relatively good.

00:27:07.209 --> 00:27:09.792
Our local industry
is relatively backward,

00:27:09.834 --> 00:27:10.834
so there's no pollution.

00:27:10.876 --> 00:27:12.501
That's pretty much the reason.

00:27:13.542 --> 00:27:16.501
Narrator: Another major reason
is the low cost of labor here.

00:27:16.542 --> 00:27:19.751
Organic farming with its rules
banning herbicides

00:27:19.792 --> 00:27:21.501
means an awful lot of hand labor

00:27:21.542 --> 00:27:23.751
for weeding the fields.

00:27:23.792 --> 00:27:25.918
Back in the factory,
there are more hands

00:27:25.959 --> 00:27:29.125
to process the fruits
and vegetables pouring in.

00:27:29.167 --> 00:27:31.417
Much of this produce will end up
as frozen and packaged foods

00:27:31.459 --> 00:27:34.876
on North American
grocery shelves.

00:27:34.918 --> 00:27:37.584
- The biggest organic retailers

00:27:37.626 --> 00:27:39.959
all have a very good
business relationship with us.

00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:41.584
They're all buying from us.

00:27:41.626 --> 00:27:42.709
We can't produce enough

00:27:42.751 --> 00:27:44.709
to satisfy the requested amount.

00:27:44.751 --> 00:27:46.459
Narrator: To increase capacity,

00:27:46.501 --> 00:27:49.334
JYORGANIC is building
another processing plant,

00:27:49.375 --> 00:27:51.167
transforming this corporation

00:27:51.209 --> 00:27:54.334
into a global
organic food giant.

00:27:56.000 --> 00:27:57.042
- As far as I know,

00:27:57.083 --> 00:27:59.542
we're probably the biggest
organic food processors

00:27:59.584 --> 00:28:01.918
in not only China
but also the world.

00:28:03.459 --> 00:28:05.959
Narrator: JYORGANIC
claims its products

00:28:06.000 --> 00:28:08.125
undergo rigorous testing
in independent labs

00:28:08.167 --> 00:28:09.959
in China and Europe.

00:28:12.834 --> 00:28:16.834
The organization that oversees
China's entire organic process

00:28:16.876 --> 00:28:18.125
is based in Beijing.

00:28:18.167 --> 00:28:19.626
Because the Chinese government

00:28:19.667 --> 00:28:21.292
doesn't permit
foreign inspection,

00:28:21.334 --> 00:28:23.000
it's difficult
for foreign buyers

00:28:23.042 --> 00:28:25.209
to confirm that local inspectors

00:28:25.250 --> 00:28:26.876
are actually doing their job

00:28:26.918 --> 00:28:29.751
or living up to international
organic standards.

00:28:31.918 --> 00:28:34.959
In 2007,
the USDA sent a delegation

00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:36.375
to see if the Chinese

00:28:36.417 --> 00:28:39.083
were meeting
American organic standards.

00:28:39.125 --> 00:28:41.334
- When they
finally visited China,

00:28:41.375 --> 00:28:45.083
they only audited two certifiers
and two farms

00:28:45.125 --> 00:28:46.667
in the entire country.

00:28:46.709 --> 00:28:49.959
And of those few farms
that they audited,

00:28:50.000 --> 00:28:52.250
they found
some really serious problems.

00:28:52.292 --> 00:28:53.667
One, as an example...

00:28:53.709 --> 00:28:55.626
And I wish I was making this up...

00:28:55.667 --> 00:28:57.584
Was that even though the farmers

00:28:57.626 --> 00:28:58.834
were signing affidavits

00:28:58.876 --> 00:29:02.709
that they were adhering
to the U.S. organic standards,

00:29:02.751 --> 00:29:06.250
they had never been translated
into Mandarin,

00:29:06.292 --> 00:29:08.501
which the farmers
spoke and read.

00:29:08.542 --> 00:29:10.792
So how do you make a commitment

00:29:10.834 --> 00:29:13.584
to follow the standards
that you don't even understand?

00:29:13.626 --> 00:29:15.876
Narrator: It's a question
that troubles consumers,

00:29:15.918 --> 00:29:17.209
especially in North America,

00:29:17.250 --> 00:29:20.042
who mistrust any food
coming from China.

00:29:20.083 --> 00:29:22.709
In 2008,
customers of Whole Foods

00:29:22.751 --> 00:29:24.667
reacted in a storm of outrage

00:29:24.709 --> 00:29:26.417
when it was discovered
that some 30

00:29:26.459 --> 00:29:28.667
of the retailer's
organic house brands

00:29:28.709 --> 00:29:31.751
had ingredients
imported from China.

00:29:31.792 --> 00:29:33.501
- This is a real
hot-button issue

00:29:33.542 --> 00:29:34.792
for our customers.

00:29:34.834 --> 00:29:37.876
At the present time,
we're down to one single item,

00:29:37.918 --> 00:29:41.667
edamame
in our private label program,

00:29:41.709 --> 00:29:43.209
because we
just haven't been able

00:29:43.250 --> 00:29:46.042
to source the same quality
edamame anywhere else.

00:29:46.083 --> 00:29:47.667
But that's it, just the one.

00:29:47.709 --> 00:29:50.083
Narrator: Importing organic food
from China

00:29:50.125 --> 00:29:51.209
is one of the new realities

00:29:51.250 --> 00:29:53.959
as organic producers
try to ramp up

00:29:54.000 --> 00:29:58.417
to meet an ever-growing appetite
for organic food.

00:30:00.667 --> 00:30:02.459
These cows
are about to taste something new

00:30:02.501 --> 00:30:04.751
and very different.

00:30:04.792 --> 00:30:07.042
Just about everything
in their world is changing

00:30:07.083 --> 00:30:09.375
on this western Ontario
dairy farm.

00:30:09.417 --> 00:30:12.876
Joe Borth is converting
a conventional dairy operation

00:30:12.918 --> 00:30:14.417
into an organic one.

00:30:14.459 --> 00:30:17.125
It's meant giving up the habits
of a lifetime.

00:30:18.000 --> 00:30:20.292
- We were giving the cows
antibiotics,

00:30:20.334 --> 00:30:23.375
hormones,
spraying in the fields,

00:30:23.417 --> 00:30:25.542
like Roundup and all that.

00:30:25.584 --> 00:30:30.083
And I just kind of got
sick of it and the cost.

00:30:30.125 --> 00:30:31.501
[cows mooing]

00:30:31.542 --> 00:30:33.209
narrator: Reducing the cost
of production

00:30:33.250 --> 00:30:34.250
is just one motive.

00:30:34.292 --> 00:30:36.584
The other
is that once certified,

00:30:36.626 --> 00:30:38.250
even though they
might produce less milk,

00:30:38.292 --> 00:30:39.459
there's a bigger payout.

00:30:39.501 --> 00:30:40.876
- I feel it's worth it,

00:30:40.918 --> 00:30:44.292
and there is a premium paid
for organic milk.

00:30:45.542 --> 00:30:48.375
The feed that we're giving them
now is much healthier.

00:30:48.417 --> 00:30:49.667
We're giving them dry hay.

00:30:49.709 --> 00:30:51.000
We're not shoving the cows,

00:30:51.042 --> 00:30:53.751
so they're not being pushed
to milk 100 pounds a day.

00:30:53.792 --> 00:30:55.918
They're just milking
what they can milk,

00:30:55.959 --> 00:30:58.167
and things will come around.

00:30:58.209 --> 00:30:59.969
Narrator: These cows
used to spend their time

00:31:00.000 --> 00:31:02.459
outdoors
in a small confined pen.

00:31:02.501 --> 00:31:04.667
That is not allowed
under organic rules.

00:31:04.709 --> 00:31:06.209
The cows have to have access

00:31:06.250 --> 00:31:07.959
to pasture land
certified organic.

00:31:08.000 --> 00:31:12.209
Going out to pasture
is a strange new experience.

00:31:13.459 --> 00:31:15.083
- We just let them out
yesterday.

00:31:15.125 --> 00:31:16.167
This is their second time,

00:31:16.209 --> 00:31:18.292
and they're
just kind of confused.

00:31:18.334 --> 00:31:20.292
They haven't been out
in pasture,

00:31:20.334 --> 00:31:22.834
and yeah, they're kind of
excited and overwhelmed,

00:31:22.876 --> 00:31:23.876
I guess.

00:31:23.918 --> 00:31:25.834
Narrator:
It will take another year

00:31:25.876 --> 00:31:28.083
before Joe Borth
will be able to sell his milk

00:31:28.125 --> 00:31:31.292
as organic at a premium price.

00:31:31.334 --> 00:31:35.042
For the time being,
there are other rewards.

00:31:35.083 --> 00:31:36.083
- It makes me feel good,

00:31:36.125 --> 00:31:38.334
like I'm producing
a good product.

00:31:38.375 --> 00:31:40.042
Narrator:
With just 40 milking cows,

00:31:40.083 --> 00:31:42.417
Joe Borth is one
of many small contributors

00:31:42.459 --> 00:31:45.125
to a large organic
dairy cooperative.

00:31:47.083 --> 00:31:49.334
And by far,
the largest organic farm co-op

00:31:49.375 --> 00:31:52.709
in North America
is Organic Valley.

00:31:52.751 --> 00:31:55.292
Some 1,600
family-owned and run farms

00:31:55.334 --> 00:31:57.209
across the United States
and Canada

00:31:57.250 --> 00:32:00.250
have committed themselves
to organic agriculture.

00:32:02.792 --> 00:32:05.167
At Organic Valley's
corporate headquarters,

00:32:05.209 --> 00:32:07.876
the dress code
is set by the boss.

00:32:07.918 --> 00:32:09.959
- I hate shoes, you know.

00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:13.209
I was raised
in a business family,

00:32:13.250 --> 00:32:14.876
and I swore
I'd never be a business person,

00:32:14.918 --> 00:32:16.709
so having accepted this path,

00:32:16.751 --> 00:32:19.125
I've had to keep
some of my character

00:32:19.167 --> 00:32:21.334
and going barefoot
seems to work.

00:32:22.792 --> 00:32:24.626
Narrator: George Siemon
gets the corner office

00:32:24.667 --> 00:32:27.083
of Organic Valley's La Farge,
Wisconsin, headquarters

00:32:27.125 --> 00:32:30.042
because he is,
as he likes to refer to himself,

00:32:30.083 --> 00:32:31.375
its first and only...

00:32:31.417 --> 00:32:33.250
♪ C-E-I-E-O ♪

00:32:33.292 --> 00:32:37.083
of this huge
moneymaking business.

00:32:37.125 --> 00:32:39.083
- I've been here
since we were 1 million,

00:32:39.125 --> 00:32:40.542
10 million, 100 million,

00:32:40.584 --> 00:32:42.209
and now I'm headed
for a billion.

00:32:42.250 --> 00:32:44.542
Narrator: In the late 1980s,
George Siemon

00:32:44.584 --> 00:32:46.959
was a struggling Wisconsin
dairy farmer,

00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:49.292
when he and some
half dozen dairy farmers

00:32:49.334 --> 00:32:51.959
started an organic co-op.

00:32:52.000 --> 00:32:53.375
- We're a mission-driven
business.

00:32:53.417 --> 00:32:54.417
I have a saying.

00:32:54.459 --> 00:32:56.334
I say that we're
a social experiment

00:32:56.375 --> 00:32:57.792
disguised as a business.

00:32:57.834 --> 00:32:59.959
Narrator: Organic Valley's
main business

00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:01.459
is producing organic milk

00:33:01.501 --> 00:33:05.292
supplied by individual farmers
in the co-op.

00:33:05.334 --> 00:33:06.626
- We believe there's consumers

00:33:06.667 --> 00:33:08.667
who want more values
than just organics.

00:33:08.709 --> 00:33:10.626
And that's the family farm.

00:33:10.667 --> 00:33:12.000
That's natural foods.

00:33:12.042 --> 00:33:13.459
That's humane standards.

00:33:13.501 --> 00:33:16.209
Maybe that's
supporting a co-op like ours.

00:33:16.250 --> 00:33:17.626
There's a lot of other issues,

00:33:17.667 --> 00:33:19.375
and so part
of the brand differentiation

00:33:19.417 --> 00:33:22.792
is to go beyond what
the organic seal stands for.

00:33:22.834 --> 00:33:24.626
Narrator:
Organic Valley has grown

00:33:24.667 --> 00:33:26.834
by combining the rather limited
amounts of milk

00:33:26.876 --> 00:33:28.959
produced by family-run
dairy operations

00:33:29.000 --> 00:33:30.000
and turning that

00:33:30.042 --> 00:33:32.584
into becoming a major supplier
of organic milk.

00:33:32.626 --> 00:33:35.626
But there is another way
to grow big.

00:33:35.667 --> 00:33:37.375
Aurora Dairy
is one of the largest

00:33:37.417 --> 00:33:39.584
organic dairy operations
in America.

00:33:39.626 --> 00:33:41.959
Its co-founder
is a 40-year veteran

00:33:42.000 --> 00:33:44.167
of the organic movement,
Mark Retzloff.

00:33:44.209 --> 00:33:45.876
- All right.

00:33:45.918 --> 00:33:46.918
Fresh orange juice.

00:33:46.959 --> 00:33:48.334
Narrator:
He recently bought back

00:33:48.375 --> 00:33:50.918
a legendary Boulder, Colorado,
organic grocery store...

00:33:50.959 --> 00:33:51.959
- Wow.

00:33:52.000 --> 00:33:54.626
Narrator:
That he once owned and ran.

00:33:54.667 --> 00:33:55.959
- The unique thing in here

00:33:56.000 --> 00:34:00.167
is that we only carry
organic fluid milk.

00:34:00.209 --> 00:34:01.918
We don't carry
any conventional milk.

00:34:01.959 --> 00:34:04.334
We do maybe a little bit
in our yogurt department

00:34:04.375 --> 00:34:08.292
but not in our fluid milk.

00:34:08.334 --> 00:34:12.292
Narrator: Prominently on display
is the store's house brand

00:34:12.334 --> 00:34:13.626
which just happens
to be produced

00:34:13.667 --> 00:34:16.876
by Mark Retzloff's
Aurora Organic Dairy.

00:34:16.918 --> 00:34:19.292
His company
was the first organic dairy

00:34:19.334 --> 00:34:23.250
dedicated exclusively
to the private label market.

00:34:23.292 --> 00:34:25.334
- Our customer base
ended up being, you know,

00:34:25.375 --> 00:34:27.209
the largest retailers
in the United States,

00:34:27.250 --> 00:34:31.000
you know, Safeway
and Costco and Walmart.

00:34:31.042 --> 00:34:37.626
And we really grew organic milk
in the mainstream supermarkets.

00:34:37.667 --> 00:34:40.083
Narrator: Aurora represents
the industrial side

00:34:40.125 --> 00:34:42.209
of the organic food movement.

00:34:42.250 --> 00:34:44.918
The argument is
that it is only at this scale

00:34:44.959 --> 00:34:46.876
that the voracious appetite
of large retailers

00:34:46.918 --> 00:34:50.626
for a cheap and stable supply
of an organic product

00:34:50.667 --> 00:34:53.709
might be satisfied.

00:34:53.751 --> 00:34:54.751
- We used to always say,

00:34:54.792 --> 00:34:57.292
"It's not how large it is;
it's how you make it large."

00:34:57.334 --> 00:34:59.792
And in reality,
a lot of the problems

00:34:59.834 --> 00:35:05.667
with the organic industry today
are scale related.

00:35:05.709 --> 00:35:07.250
Narrator:
By any measure,

00:35:07.292 --> 00:35:10.417
Mark Retzloff's
Aurora Organic Dairy is huge.

00:35:10.459 --> 00:35:13.959
Roughly 1,000 dairy cattle
graze on Aurora's pastures.

00:35:14.000 --> 00:35:16.542
There used to be more,
well over 4,000,

00:35:16.584 --> 00:35:18.584
until the organic consumer
watchdog

00:35:18.626 --> 00:35:21.501
the Cornucopia Institute
stepped in.

00:35:21.542 --> 00:35:24.292
- We had Aurora Dairy,
when they launched,

00:35:24.334 --> 00:35:26.626
providing no access to pasture,

00:35:26.667 --> 00:35:29.042
even though the standards
called for it,

00:35:29.083 --> 00:35:31.959
no access to pasture
for their lactating cows.

00:35:32.000 --> 00:35:33.292
They came up with excuses like,

00:35:33.334 --> 00:35:37.042
"All of our dairy cattle
get grazed some of the year

00:35:37.083 --> 00:35:39.709
"or during some of their life,
when they're dry,

00:35:39.751 --> 00:35:41.501
"between their pregnancies
and lactations.

00:35:41.542 --> 00:35:43.792
"But because of stage
of production,

00:35:43.834 --> 00:35:47.209
we don't graze the cattle
while they're being milked."

00:35:47.250 --> 00:35:48.959
Ironically, that's when pasture

00:35:49.000 --> 00:35:50.792
has its greatest
nutritional impact

00:35:50.834 --> 00:35:52.083
on the milk production,

00:35:52.125 --> 00:35:53.459
and they weren't grazing.

00:35:53.501 --> 00:35:55.918
Narrator: The original
organic regulations

00:35:55.959 --> 00:35:57.375
regarding pasturing cattle

00:35:57.417 --> 00:35:59.626
had left lots of room
for interpretation.

00:35:59.667 --> 00:36:02.834
Cornucopia Institute
was not satisfied with that,

00:36:02.876 --> 00:36:05.542
and so they
filed legal complaints.

00:36:05.584 --> 00:36:08.918
- First of all,
I didn't do anything wrong.

00:36:08.959 --> 00:36:09.959
Okay.

00:36:10.000 --> 00:36:15.125
And so I always felt
that their perspective

00:36:15.167 --> 00:36:18.542
was just really skewed
in the wrong direction.

00:36:18.584 --> 00:36:20.918
- The USDA finally investigated

00:36:20.959 --> 00:36:24.000
and found them
willfully in violation

00:36:24.042 --> 00:36:26.876
of 14 tenets of the organic law.

00:36:26.918 --> 00:36:28.751
They knew exactly
what they were doing.

00:36:28.792 --> 00:36:30.918
And maybe
the most important count

00:36:30.959 --> 00:36:33.250
was that they were selling milk
labeled as organic

00:36:33.292 --> 00:36:35.417
that did not meet
the legal definition.

00:36:35.459 --> 00:36:37.751
That's damning.

00:36:37.792 --> 00:36:40.876
- I knew that we
were doing the right stuff,

00:36:40.918 --> 00:36:42.876
and everybody else
knew that we were...

00:36:42.918 --> 00:36:44.459
You know,
all my friends and associates

00:36:44.501 --> 00:36:46.167
out there
in the natural products industry

00:36:46.209 --> 00:36:48.417
knew that we
were doing the right stuff.

00:36:48.459 --> 00:36:50.876
And the USDA

00:36:50.918 --> 00:36:53.250
finally said that we
were doing the right stuff.

00:36:53.292 --> 00:36:55.751
Narrator: But before the USDA
would say that,

00:36:55.792 --> 00:36:59.167
Aurora had to correct
all of the 14 violations,

00:36:59.209 --> 00:37:02.459
which included reducing its herd
by 3,000 head

00:37:02.501 --> 00:37:04.709
and increasing the acreage
of its pastures

00:37:04.751 --> 00:37:07.334
to conform
to the organic regulations.

00:37:08.459 --> 00:37:11.209
These new organic food giants
are a challenge

00:37:11.250 --> 00:37:13.959
to the founding philosophy
of the organic movement

00:37:14.000 --> 00:37:16.834
which held that big
could never be beautiful.

00:37:16.876 --> 00:37:18.542
- If we want to just be small,

00:37:18.584 --> 00:37:22.959
we will not stimulate
those changes that have to go on

00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:25.042
to really change the way

00:37:25.083 --> 00:37:27.042
food is produced
in North America.

00:37:30.042 --> 00:37:32.042
Narrator: Just minutes
from the Vancouver airport

00:37:32.083 --> 00:37:34.083
sits the headquarters
of an organic company

00:37:34.125 --> 00:37:37.042
that's grown into
a major cereal manufacturer.

00:37:37.083 --> 00:37:38.083
And it's done so

00:37:38.125 --> 00:37:41.918
by following a distinctly
noncorporate-like path.

00:37:41.959 --> 00:37:44.542
Here, the organic garden has
been turned into the company's

00:37:44.584 --> 00:37:47.042
virtual office watercooler.

00:37:47.083 --> 00:37:48.083
- Inhale.

00:37:48.125 --> 00:37:50.876
Bring your arms
out in front of you.

00:37:50.918 --> 00:37:53.042
Narrator: The yoga classes
are just one of the perks

00:37:53.083 --> 00:37:54.626
offered at Nature's Path,

00:37:54.667 --> 00:37:57.876
a company dedicated
to the original organic ideals.

00:37:57.918 --> 00:37:59.125
- Inhale, the arms up.

00:37:59.167 --> 00:38:02.042
- We felt that eventually
the organic food movement

00:38:02.083 --> 00:38:03.918
would become more mainstream.

00:38:03.959 --> 00:38:06.959
So now we go head-to-head
with Kellogg's and General Mills

00:38:07.000 --> 00:38:09.417
and Kraft and other companies

00:38:09.459 --> 00:38:12.417
that are 1,000 times
bigger than us.

00:38:12.459 --> 00:38:14.042
But we have a lot of fun
doing it.

00:38:14.083 --> 00:38:16.042
We tweak their noses sometimes.

00:38:16.083 --> 00:38:18.375
We're like the little dog

00:38:18.417 --> 00:38:20.083
that runs around the elephant,
you know,

00:38:20.125 --> 00:38:22.000
and nips at its heels.

00:38:22.959 --> 00:38:24.667
Narrator: After spending
some time in India

00:38:24.709 --> 00:38:26.751
in the 1960s and early '70s,

00:38:26.792 --> 00:38:29.167
Arran Stephens
returned to Canada with his wife

00:38:29.209 --> 00:38:30.709
where they eventually created

00:38:30.751 --> 00:38:35.000
the largest organic breakfast
cereal company in North America.

00:38:35.042 --> 00:38:37.459
Except for a dip
in the recent recession,

00:38:37.501 --> 00:38:40.834
its sales have grown annually
by 20% to 30%.

00:38:40.876 --> 00:38:43.292
Those kinds of numbers
have attracted the attention

00:38:43.334 --> 00:38:46.876
of virtually every major
food conglomerate out there.

00:38:46.918 --> 00:38:49.876
- Weekly,
we get approached by companies

00:38:49.918 --> 00:38:51.542
that want to buy Nature's Path.

00:38:51.584 --> 00:38:52.876
And I tell them,

00:38:52.918 --> 00:38:54.209
"Thanks for your interest,

00:38:54.250 --> 00:38:56.584
but no part of Nature's Path
is for sale."

00:38:56.626 --> 00:38:59.709
Many of the pioneering
organic food companies

00:38:59.751 --> 00:39:01.292
have sold out over the years.

00:39:01.334 --> 00:39:04.417
We wanted to be strong enough
when competition did come

00:39:04.459 --> 00:39:05.876
that we
would be able to maintain

00:39:05.918 --> 00:39:09.709
our independent course
and not sell out.

00:39:09.751 --> 00:39:11.751
- All right, so the full name
of this one

00:39:11.792 --> 00:39:15.959
is brown sugar, cinnamon,
apple, pecan.

00:39:16.000 --> 00:39:17.751
Narrator: The plan
to remain independent

00:39:17.792 --> 00:39:19.792
that Arran and his wife
and co-founder Ratana

00:39:19.834 --> 00:39:22.375
came up with
is to turn Nature's Path

00:39:22.417 --> 00:39:24.542
into a family enterprise.

00:39:24.584 --> 00:39:26.751
Their son Arjan
is working in the marketing

00:39:26.792 --> 00:39:28.834
and product development
departments.

00:39:28.876 --> 00:39:32.000
Their daughter Jyoti
is director of sustainability

00:39:32.042 --> 00:39:34.959
and social responsibility.

00:39:35.000 --> 00:39:37.209
Jyoti's grandfather had a rule

00:39:37.250 --> 00:39:38.959
that had been passed down
to his progeny:

00:39:39.000 --> 00:39:41.334
to leave the Earth
better than they found it.

00:39:41.375 --> 00:39:45.792
And that's become part
of the family and corporate DNA.

00:39:45.834 --> 00:39:47.000
- The deeper the red,

00:39:47.042 --> 00:39:50.334
that indicates more vitamins
and more antioxidants.

00:39:50.375 --> 00:39:51.417
So that's a good way to pick

00:39:51.459 --> 00:39:53.250
when you're
picking in the store.

00:39:53.292 --> 00:39:54.709
You can pick the deeper colors,

00:39:54.751 --> 00:39:56.292
and then you're
getting more benefit.

00:39:57.250 --> 00:39:59.459
Narrator: Among some 400
Nature's Path employees

00:39:59.501 --> 00:40:00.626
is Dag Falck,

00:40:00.667 --> 00:40:03.876
an agronomist
and a former organic inspector.

00:40:03.918 --> 00:40:05.250
He came to Nature's Path

00:40:05.292 --> 00:40:07.375
just as it was
about to face a problem

00:40:07.417 --> 00:40:09.626
that seems to plague
organic companies

00:40:09.667 --> 00:40:12.876
when demand for their products
suddenly takes off.

00:40:12.918 --> 00:40:14.876
- Before the recession,

00:40:14.918 --> 00:40:17.876
we were growing
at 20%, 25% per year.

00:40:17.918 --> 00:40:20.083
And we were looking
at our supply situation

00:40:20.125 --> 00:40:21.375
and saying,

00:40:21.417 --> 00:40:23.709
"We are not going to be able
to have enough supply

00:40:23.751 --> 00:40:26.459
of certified organic grains
if this continues."

00:40:26.501 --> 00:40:28.459
- So we decided at that point

00:40:28.501 --> 00:40:30.501
that we should really
buy some land

00:40:30.542 --> 00:40:33.250
and we should start
growing our own organic wheat.

00:40:33.292 --> 00:40:36.459
Narrator: In a remote corner
of the Saskatchewan prairie,

00:40:36.501 --> 00:40:39.125
Nature's Path
is taking its first step

00:40:39.167 --> 00:40:42.042
in securing a steady supply
of organic wheat.

00:40:42.083 --> 00:40:44.584
Local farmers
are growing organic grains

00:40:44.626 --> 00:40:46.459
with exotic names like Kamut

00:40:46.501 --> 00:40:48.959
specifically for Nature's Path.

00:40:49.000 --> 00:40:51.292
- I find that, you know,
the first reaction

00:40:51.334 --> 00:40:54.083
when you don't use chemicals
is kind of a flush of weeds

00:40:54.125 --> 00:40:56.626
and, you know,
it's a little harder to manage.

00:40:56.667 --> 00:40:58.292
Narrator:
Just three years ago,

00:40:58.334 --> 00:41:00.334
the land that Garth Glass
and his son now farm

00:41:00.375 --> 00:41:03.459
was routinely sprayed
with chemicals.

00:41:03.501 --> 00:41:05.584
- Slowly but surely,
as we work with the soil,

00:41:05.626 --> 00:41:07.959
it becomes better.

00:41:08.000 --> 00:41:10.000
The soil
becomes more in balance,

00:41:10.042 --> 00:41:13.834
and then we have less
of a weed problem overall.

00:41:13.876 --> 00:41:15.542
Narrator:
Nature's Path has come up

00:41:15.584 --> 00:41:17.167
with an innovative solution

00:41:17.209 --> 00:41:20.250
to their looming shortage
of organic cereals.

00:41:21.918 --> 00:41:24.751
Keeping a steady supply
of produce is also a concern

00:41:24.792 --> 00:41:28.209
for the world's largest grower
of organic produce.

00:41:28.250 --> 00:41:31.292
California-based Earthbound Farm
competes head-to-head

00:41:31.334 --> 00:41:34.542
with the biggest
of the conventional producers.

00:41:34.584 --> 00:41:37.125
Myra Goodman,
a co-founder with her husband,

00:41:37.167 --> 00:41:39.125
is out promoting
the Earthbound brand

00:41:39.167 --> 00:41:40.542
and her new cookbook.

00:41:40.584 --> 00:41:41.584
- It's a big book.

00:41:41.626 --> 00:41:44.209
- 462 pages.

00:41:44.250 --> 00:41:45.250
[woman laughs]

00:41:45.292 --> 00:41:47.584
It took me two years.

00:41:47.626 --> 00:41:49.834
Narrator: It was a little
over 25 years ago

00:41:49.876 --> 00:41:51.542
when the two natives
of Manhattan

00:41:51.584 --> 00:41:54.876
stumbled into farming
and the world of baby lettuce.

00:41:54.918 --> 00:41:57.167
They started out by selling
their pre-packaged greens

00:41:57.209 --> 00:41:58.792
to local restaurants.

00:41:58.834 --> 00:42:00.918
Today, Earthbound Farm
organic products

00:42:00.959 --> 00:42:03.375
are shipped
across North America.

00:42:03.417 --> 00:42:04.751
- In our category,

00:42:04.792 --> 00:42:08.918
48% of the tender leaf salads
are organic.

00:42:08.959 --> 00:42:11.250
So that's just unheard of
in the food industry.

00:42:11.292 --> 00:42:15.667
And I think the reason
why that's happened is that

00:42:15.709 --> 00:42:18.584
we've reached economies of scale
with that product,

00:42:18.626 --> 00:42:20.250
and so people
are choosing organic

00:42:20.292 --> 00:42:22.626
when it's there
and when it's affordable.

00:42:22.667 --> 00:42:24.209
And it's wonderful
to see the potential

00:42:24.250 --> 00:42:25.626
of the organic market.

00:42:25.667 --> 00:42:28.375
Narrator: Earthbound Farm
does own land,

00:42:28.417 --> 00:42:29.501
but most of its produce

00:42:29.542 --> 00:42:32.250
comes from some 150
independent growers

00:42:32.292 --> 00:42:33.709
who supply them.

00:42:33.751 --> 00:42:35.042
For some, the sheer size

00:42:35.083 --> 00:42:36.792
of this kind
of organic agriculture

00:42:36.834 --> 00:42:39.834
seems uncomfortably close
to the industrial model

00:42:39.876 --> 00:42:42.167
common
to conventional agriculture,

00:42:42.209 --> 00:42:44.292
something
that early organic pioneers

00:42:44.334 --> 00:42:46.209
wanted no part of.

00:42:46.250 --> 00:42:47.250
- We're a good size.

00:42:47.292 --> 00:42:50.042
And I think we're a size
where our impact

00:42:50.083 --> 00:42:51.334
is significant enough.

00:42:51.375 --> 00:42:54.334
We're a size
where our farming every year

00:42:54.375 --> 00:42:55.417
eliminates the use

00:42:55.459 --> 00:42:58.626
of over 11 million pounds
of synthetic chemicals.

00:43:01.000 --> 00:43:04.000
Narrator: An occasional supplier
to Earthbound is Dick Peixoto.

00:43:04.042 --> 00:43:06.334
Unlike a lot
of organic farmers his age,

00:43:06.375 --> 00:43:08.918
he's no former hippie
driven by idealism.

00:43:08.959 --> 00:43:13.542
His switch to organics was
motivated by the bottom line.

00:43:13.584 --> 00:43:15.167
- It was strictly
a business decision.

00:43:15.209 --> 00:43:17.125
You know, I'm not gonna say
that I'm here

00:43:17.167 --> 00:43:18.792
to save the world or anything.

00:43:18.834 --> 00:43:20.667
It was strictly
to survive financially.

00:43:20.709 --> 00:43:22.292
Narrator: His company
Lakeside Organic

00:43:22.334 --> 00:43:23.334
is not only surviving.

00:43:23.375 --> 00:43:24.584
It's flourishing

00:43:24.626 --> 00:43:27.334
and has become a major grower
in California.

00:43:29.209 --> 00:43:31.501
And one crop that he's shipping
more and more of these days

00:43:31.542 --> 00:43:33.584
consistently shows up
near the top

00:43:33.626 --> 00:43:37.083
of that Dirty Dozen list
of fruits and vegetables.

00:43:37.125 --> 00:43:39.876
- I was a conventional
celery grower for 15 years

00:43:39.918 --> 00:43:41.292
before I became organic.

00:43:41.334 --> 00:43:43.250
And it's one of the crops,
when I got into organic,

00:43:43.292 --> 00:43:44.751
I said, "You know,
we'll never be able

00:43:44.792 --> 00:43:46.125
to grow celery organically."

00:43:46.167 --> 00:43:47.667
We would spray...

00:43:47.709 --> 00:43:51.334
Sometimes 15 to 20 times,
we'd spray the celery plants

00:43:51.375 --> 00:43:54.042
just to get them to harvest,
to kill the leaf miner.

00:43:54.083 --> 00:43:56.083
I said, "Well, we'll never
be able to grow it."

00:43:56.125 --> 00:43:58.834
Probably about 10 years now,
we've grown organic celery.

00:43:58.876 --> 00:44:01.834
I can tell you today that
our organic celery program...

00:44:01.876 --> 00:44:04.042
We get more production
organically,

00:44:04.083 --> 00:44:05.959
and we use half as much
fertilizer

00:44:06.000 --> 00:44:08.292
to produce celery
today organically

00:44:08.334 --> 00:44:10.334
than we did
in the conventional days.

00:44:10.375 --> 00:44:12.167
Narrator: It has taken years
of trial and error

00:44:12.209 --> 00:44:13.959
for Dick Peixoto
to learn how to become

00:44:14.000 --> 00:44:16.876
a highly successful
organic farmer.

00:44:16.918 --> 00:44:18.417
Along the way,

00:44:18.459 --> 00:44:21.542
he's had
a surprising revelation.

00:44:21.584 --> 00:44:23.542
- I hear a lot of times
that people say organic

00:44:23.584 --> 00:44:25.292
will be the biggest disaster
to ever happen

00:44:25.334 --> 00:44:27.000
because you won't be able
to feed the world.

00:44:27.042 --> 00:44:28.417
I think quite the reverse.

00:44:28.459 --> 00:44:30.751
I think that what we find is...

00:44:30.792 --> 00:44:32.083
And what I've found
over the years

00:44:32.125 --> 00:44:35.334
in conventional farming—
Our ground tends to get tired.

00:44:35.375 --> 00:44:37.125
Our yields are going down.

00:44:37.167 --> 00:44:39.626
And organically,
we can show you soil samples

00:44:39.667 --> 00:44:41.627
where the ground's
only got better over ten years.

00:44:41.667 --> 00:44:43.876
So if you're looking
at long term,

00:44:43.918 --> 00:44:45.083
our ground's getting better,

00:44:45.125 --> 00:44:46.125
it's gonna produce more.

00:44:46.167 --> 00:44:48.501
And right now,
I can tell you for a fact

00:44:48.542 --> 00:44:53.459
that our organic, on average,
our organic production

00:44:53.501 --> 00:44:56.501
is as good or better than it was
in the conventional days

00:44:56.542 --> 00:44:58.000
on almost every crop we grow.

00:44:59.209 --> 00:45:01.167
Narrator: Dick Peixoto's
personal observations

00:45:01.209 --> 00:45:04.792
are now supported
by a recent scientific study.

00:45:04.834 --> 00:45:07.417
Scientists
focused on the strawberry.

00:45:07.459 --> 00:45:09.751
In one of the most
comprehensive analyses

00:45:09.792 --> 00:45:11.751
comparing nutrition and soils

00:45:11.792 --> 00:45:14.667
between organic and
conventionally grown produce,

00:45:14.709 --> 00:45:17.250
the report concluded
that organic strawberries

00:45:17.292 --> 00:45:20.125
were higher in antioxidants
and vitamin C

00:45:20.167 --> 00:45:22.334
but not in phosphorous
and potassium.

00:45:22.375 --> 00:45:25.167
And so the nutrition debate
goes on.

00:45:25.209 --> 00:45:26.626
Where the real difference
showed up

00:45:26.667 --> 00:45:30.375
was in the quality of the soil.

00:45:30.417 --> 00:45:31.417
In the organic fields,

00:45:31.459 --> 00:45:34.584
the soil was richer
and more resilient to stress...

00:45:34.626 --> 00:45:35.834
All highly valued attributes

00:45:35.876 --> 00:45:39.250
if the world is going
to be able to feed itself.

00:45:39.292 --> 00:45:42.083
If further studies
show the same results,

00:45:42.125 --> 00:45:44.250
it might very well prove to be

00:45:44.292 --> 00:45:47.250
that all these
new organic green giants

00:45:47.292 --> 00:45:49.792
who are leaving
their huge footprints everywhere

00:45:49.834 --> 00:45:51.667
are leaving those footprints

00:45:51.709 --> 00:45:56.334
in soil that has become better
because they exist.