What does organic mean?

“Organic”, in itself, is a legal term. For foods to be labelled “organic”, at least 95% of the ingredients must come from organically produced plants or animals. The current rules require organic foods to be approved by an organic certification body, which carries out inspections at least once a year to ensure that the produce meets the regulations. 

Fundamentally, organic agriculture is a systems approach to food production that is working towards environmentally, socially and economically sustainable production. Organic farmers and producers use methods that deliver benefits across our whole food system, from plant health and animal welfare, to people and the planet as a whole, based on the principles of health, ecology, care, and fairness. In practice, organic agriculture involves fewer pesticides, no artificial fertilisers, no routine use of antibiotics, higher animal welfare standards and no artificial colours and preservatives. The agricultural systems rely on crop rotation, animal and plant manures, some hand weeding and biological pest control.