The CBC is reporting findings that undermine the organic
movement across Canada.
For several days the public broadcaster has been reporting
information about pesticide residues found on organic produce.
Today it reports that up to eight per cent of some
vegetables marketed as organic probably came from fields were pesticides were
applied. In other words, the producer cheated.
The revelations have far more to do with trust than health
risks, although both are at issue because in some cases, the pesticide residues
exceeded Canada’s official limits.
The organic movement has positioned itself as the
holier-than-thou farmers, the ones who are more concerned about the environment
and public health than personal profit.
The movement stands exposed as harbouring frauds and cheats
who deliberately break the rules.
And I accuse the movement because it is self-policing
through various organizations that each has its own standards and enforcement
protocols.
So far the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has, as far as I
can determine, done little or nothing to check the integrity of these
self-policing organic producer organizations.
In fact, today the CBC is reporting that enforcement is far
more vigorous in the United States than in Canada.
But, then again, that seems to be the situation across the
board with issues that fall under the purview of Agriculture Minister Gerry
Ritz and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
From Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE, or mad cow’s
disease) to XL Foods meat inspection to pesticide residues-tolerance infractions,
the Canadian track record lags behind the U.S.