The processors play a vital role in satisfying the growing demand for organic foods by Americans.
The 2020 report showed that organic food sales rose 12.8% from $25.2 billion in 2011, to $56.5 billion by 2020. This growth was due to the pandemic. However, if there were more products to sell, the increase could have been greater.
Angela Jagiello, OTA’s director for education and insights said that supply was the only thing that impeded growth in the organic food industry. She made this statement via the organization’s website. “Across all organic categories, growth was restricted by supply. This caused producers, distributors and retailers to wonder where the numbers would have peaked had there been more supply!”
Although the supply situation is primarily a matter of farmers, it also has implications for processing. The walls of any processing plant that processes organic products have to deal with certain problems, particularly if they also handle non-organic products.
Plants must be certified by the USDA’s National Organic Program or another international program to make products eligible for the USDA organic seal. (See To Certificate Product, First Certify Plantsidebar below).
The first step in organic operation is to get NOP certification. Organic ingredients are expensive and rare. This is one of the greatest challenges. It can take up to three years for farmers to get their acreage to organic standards. During this time, they will have lower yields and cannot sell organic products at a higher price.
This situation can lead to a temptation for cheating that some find overwhelming. For example, a Missouri farmer or grain broker misrepresented more than 11.5million bushels of corn and soybeans organically over a seven year period. He then committed suicide after being sentenced at federal prison to 10 years.
This is why fraud in organic ingredients can be a significant processing problem, especially when they are sourced from overseas. An entire program is offered by the OTA to prevent organic fraud. It outlines how processors can create a fraud detection plan, and provides opportunities to connect to OTA-certified “Trusted Advisors”, who are trained to fight fraud. Blockchain and other tracing technologies make verification much easier.
Shannon Murphy, a consultant at The Organic Consulting Firm (an organic certification agency), says that one of the requirements for the organic program is the ability to trace finished goods back from the receipt of the raw ingredient. Organic certification is all about tracking.
Consistently inconsistent
Organic ingredients can present a challenge in terms of their inconsistency in supply and quality, even if there is no question that cheating has been proven. This is less of an issue now than it was in the past, according to consultant Gary Seiffer.
Seiffer states that organic foods in the beginning weren’t always as consistent. For example, the protein content of flour made with organic wheat might range from 8% to 14%. Seiffer and other observers agree that organic food is becoming more popular, which has prompted ingredient suppliers to be more consistent in the quality of their products.
However, this popularity is creating another problem: inconsistency in supply. Ingredients for organic food have become difficult to find, particularly for new processors.
Some processors go to great lengths to own the orchards, fields and other areas where the ingredients they require are grown or manufactured. Seiffer recalls a Maine baker who was frustrated by not being able find organic flour in sufficient quantities. He bought his own wheat field.
In the case AYO Yogurt this process was inverted. For generations, the Billings family have owned organic almond orchards throughout California. They began looking for ways to market their crop a few years back. Almond butter is a niche market and almond milk is saturated. But Phil Gruszka (AYO Yogurt’s operations manger) says that after tasting other almond yogurts they realized they could do better.
AYO was launched about a year ago. It was the perfect timing, as many people were inspired by the pandemic to eat healthier. Almond-based yogurt is now available in California. Some distribution has also been made to the Midwest and East Coast.
AYO claims that its product is “made with organic almonds,” however, the product cannot be labeled organic. AYO does not meet the FDA’s organic requirements. The problem is inulin, which is derived from chicory root and added fiber to the formulation.
Gruszka states that AYO has not been able to source organic products in sufficient quantities. However, he says: “We are really close; and we’re getting closer every day.”
AYO works with a contract manufacturer in Los Angeles that specializes in yogurt. AYO’s ingredients can only be handled in a designated area that is free from cross-contamination with non-organic or dairy materials. Gruzska states that they will run at the beginning and end of each day, once everything has been cleaned. Gruzska is not certain if the co-packer uses equipment for organic or non-dairy yogurt but says it’s moving in this direction because of increased processing of non dairy.
Crossing the street
Cross-contamination is a significant problem in organic food processing. Many plants that produce organic food also process nonorganic. In many cases, the equipment is not dedicated.
“The greatest challenge typically seen in organic and natural product production is cross-contamination,” says Juan Martinez, global product line manager for equipment supplier JBT Corp. “Most producers and companies in this market don’t have one line of machinery or equipment for this purpose.
Machines that are used to produce organic and non-organic products should be designed for fast, thorough cleaning.
Non-organic or other sources of contamination can cause concern in areas beyond processing lines. “A split operation that produces both organic and non-organic products must keep records of each cleaning before running organic production. Organic ingredients need to be stored and labeled so there is no possibility for contamination,” Stephanie Leahy (CS Lead, MOSA) states. Certified Organic.
Not all potential contaminants can be found in contact with non-organic products. Leahy states that bulk organic grain importers have many control points in place to monitor contamination from phytosanitary concerns to unclean transport units.
Organic operations are more vulnerable to pest infestations. Pest infestations are more common in organic crops and other ingredients that must be grown naturally without pesticides. These infestations can be prevented by using pesticides that are not approved for organic plants.
Also, organic standards must be met when sanitizing chemicals are used. These chemicals are different from cleaning chemicals that are applied and then rinsed off. If they are properly rinsed, there shouldn’t be any product contact.
Sanitizers can be used on a clean surface. They can be applied to any surface, although they are not usually rinsed. However, some biocides, according to USDA standards, may require some rinsing. These include acetic acid and ethyl alcohol.
Organic operations aren’t easy. Organic status is the essence of a product or company. It includes details about what happens inside the plants.
It would be much easier if it were organic, as everything can be extended from a fruit perspective, a stabilizer viewpoint, and a shelf-life standpoint. Gruszka from AYO Yogurt says that it doesn’t ring true with what we are all about. It’s not as simple and more costly to do what it takes, but it is something we wanted to do and we want to keep true to our values.
