The Logic in Biological Food
NOTE : The term 'biological' is a European term synonymous with 'organic'.
by Liz in Amsterdam
Almost every single day our world gains a vegetarian. Most people become a
vegetarian out of respect for our animals, some because just don’t like
meat.
But we live in a world where meat is consumed on a daily basis and in large quantities. A world where chickens spend their entire life in a room the size of an A4 piece of paper and where calves are held in boxes from 0.71 x 0.31 inch in which they can barely move. Every year over 15 million chicks die due to rapid growth.
So what can you do if you’re not a vegetarian? For starters you could buy biological (organic) food. But what does this mean? Is it really biological, where can you get it, does it cost more, why would you buy it?
First of all, biological meat is better for the environment. The animals at biological farms have a better life, they can move around freely, get outside and eat proper food. Furthermore, biological farms do not use fertilizers, chemical supplies or gene technology, so the meat you are buying is actually better for your own health! Just think about mad cow disease or salmonella; these are serious issues.
Today you can get biological meat at wholefood and healthfood stores, some farm shops, and biological butchers and even the better supermarkets. The environment department of the Dutch government is supporting supermarkets to get biological food and to set up a good campaign, because biological food is still more expensive. In the Netherlands we find that people do not mind the extra eurocents, but they do want to know why and what they are buying. Just because it says ‘biological’, doesn’t mean it has to be true.
This is why we have Skal. In The Netherlands Skal has been assigned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality as an inspection body for the organic production. Skal performs this task by means of inspection finally leading towards certification. Skal also informs the organic farmers and processors about the legislation concerned. Organic production is based on EU-regulation (EEC), which is very strict. Skal’s work involves farm visits, examination of samples taken from the soil, crops or products and administrative assessments. If a company fails on just one of these subjects, it can loose its certificate.
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If you want to make sure you’re buying biological food in The Netherlands, look for this logo. It is the EKO quality symbol. This symbol stands for organic production certified by Skal that meets the requirements of the national Dutch legislation, this means the EU-regulation for organic production. In the past Skal also allowed the use of this symbol by organic producers outside the Netherlands and by producers of sustainable textiles, forest and wood and of specific inputs for organic production. This is no longer the case. The EKO Quality symbol can only be used by organic producers that are Skal licensees and have been certified by Skal.
The British equivalent to EKO is The Soil Association.
So just to refresh your memory, a quick summary why biological food is just plain logic :
- Healthier (no mad cow diseases for you!)
- Tastier, due to proper feeding
- Good for the environment (biological manure can be recycled instead of regular manure getting dumped in our lakes)
- More humane for animals (no gene technology, more moving space, outside life)
- And just a bit more expensive!
How is the last one a plus? Actually it is, because it will make you think before you buy, so you become more aware of what you are eating and will appreciate your food.
We still have a long way to go. You have to find a supermarket that sells biological meat or drive a few miles before you locate a biological farm or butcher, but slowly, we’re getting there. And when you take into account that even McDonalds has decided to sell only biological milk, than you know we’re on the right track. So think about what you put into your mouth : put the logic in biologic!
Lisa
April 2005
donderstraal [at] zonnet [dot] nl