With more farms getting the 'sustainable' label, do the labels really matter?

Demand for food-bearing labels like ‘organic’ or ‘sustainable’ is soaring, but some growers question whether the name is really worth the pain.

While some industry groups say that labels help consumers make choices, and getting the right credentials can offer manufacturers a valuable point of difference, others worry that the labels present a barrier to those wishing to adopt some of the practices associated with them.

Consumers push the urge, but when they buy organic, natural, regenerative or conventional agricultural products, do they really know what that means?

Stay out of the label box

Labels such as “certified organic” require farmers to meet certain production standards, which can limit chemical use and regulate farm management.

Herders Peter and Nikki Thompson use mostly natural practices such as multi-species planting and reduced input use on their 4,000 hectare Echo Hills property, 80 kilometers northeast of Rome in Queensland.

But they haven’t found a label that reflects their production style while still giving them flexibility.

“We’ve talked about labeling things and often forcing you to put yourself in organic or just conventional,” says Mr Thompson.

“We haven’t used herbicides for three years, but if any cattle come here it comes from ticks. [infested] our country will carry out the treatment up front.”

Farmer Ian Beard chooses not to label his farm and operates with a “no rules” mindset.(Rural ABC: Lucy Cooper)

Being able to respond to problems with the most effective solutions has led farmer Ian Beard to run his property at Wyreema in the Toowoomba area on what he calls “no rules”.

“By labeling your farm you put yourself in a box and it really closes the toolbox,” he says.

“If I need it, I will use chemicals, plow, or choose to cultivate it. I need any tool that can make me sustainable and profitable.”

But are farmers like Mr. Beard and Thompson missing out on profit opportunities?

Labels can carry better price tags

Niki Ford, chief executive of Australian Organic Limited, the leading industry body that represents producers, said without agriculture and food labels, the entire industry would not exist.

“This is a very important part of being an organic farmer because you have your credentials,” he said.

“From a consumer’s point of view, it’s important to know when you’re buying something, especially if you paid a fortune for it, whether it’s been audited, and whether it has the rigor it claims to be.”

Farmers are noticing that labels can fetch a premium — and not just in organic — according to agronomist Ian Moss.

“I think farmers are adopting the term regenerative because it comes from the consumer side,” he said.

“Consumers are looking for people who do the right thing on their farms, animals and land.

“I think there will be a certain percentage of consumers who are willing to pay more for the kind of food they want.”

CEO of Australian Organic Limited Niki Ford.(Supplied: Australian Organic Limited)

Ms Ford said consumers want transparency and assurance that what they buy meets their expectations of how the product is manufactured.

“Nearly a third of Australian consumers take [what they think are] organic products and they’re not what they say they are, which is a big problem,” he said.

“That’s why food labeling is becoming more important.”

Division for industry

While it may offer clarification for consumers, some in the agriculture industry fear labels can be more divisive than inclusive and act as a barrier to new practices being adopted.

The Mulloon Institute is a non-profit research and education organization that advocates for sustainable and regenerative agricultural practices.

Its chief executive, Carolyn Hall, agrees that labels often create divisions.

“I think labeling can be very divisive and it’s not necessarily of value to anyone,” he said.

“I think labeling has the potential to alienate some people, especially in small communities.”

Muloon Institute CEO Carolyn Hall.(Rural ABC: Lucy Cooper)

Mr Moss agrees there may also be a stigma attached to owning or not owning some labels, which some manufacturers despise.

“I’ve never met a farmer who didn’t want to leave their country in better shape than they are now, and I think everyone is doing the best they can,” he said.

“I think people are missing out on great learning opportunities from other industries or other certifications because we turn off when we see something that’s labeled.”

Fellow agronomist Jess Bailey sees a variety of farmers in their daily lives.

He said feelings of abandonment were a common theme for producers.

“If a farmer feels they are not doing everything right to conform to a certain label, then they feel like they are excluded,” he said.

But this is not an opinion shared by everyone.

Greg Youngberry is the national sales manager for his family-owned operation, Inglewood Organic.

Selling certified organic poultry products to the market, he said, labels are an integral part of business transparency.

“It is important to have labeling but also certification associated with a product so that the claim is not without basis,” he said.

Rather than being a point of division among industries, Mr Youngberry believes labeling only provides a point of difference.

“There are a lot of different processes in organic systems that are very different from conventional farming,” he said.

“I really think it’s important that consumers are aware that we are following very strict farming practices, which require organic.”

‘Normal’ farming is changing

Instead of looking for ways to define their practice under a one-size-fits-all label, Ms Hall said farmers should think of themselves as stewards responding to their land needs.

“When we think about land use, it’s all about taking care of the land, taking care of the land, which is what farmers naturally do,” he said.

Agronomists Ian Moss and Jess Bailey.(Rural ABC: Lucy Cooper)

By taking that approach, Ian Moss says farmers can create a “new normal” by bringing organic or regenerative practices into the mainstream, without the need for labels.

“Normal is what we would see as standard practice or industry recommended practice … what most people do,” he said.

Mr Moss said the increasing amount of money needed for traditional or conventional farming due to rising input costs led many farmers to seek alternative farming routes.

“A lot of new farmers are taking this regenerative path, a more environmentally conscious path, just trying to get away from having to spend so much money,” he said.

“They won’t care about the label at all.”

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