Organic Rice Farming
Organic rice farming is a form of agriculture that excludes the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, plant growth regulators, livestock feed additives, and genetically modified organisms. As far as possible, organic rice farmers rely on crop rotation, green manure, compost, biological pest control, and mechanical cultivation to maintain soil productivity and control pests.
Preliminary findings from the Organic Trade Association’s (OTA’s) 2007 Manufacturer Survey, U.S. organic food sales totaled nearly $17 billion in 2006, representing approximately 3 percent of all retail sales of food and beverages.
Organic foods’ share of total food sales is up from 1.9 percent in 2003 and approximately 2.5 percent in 2005. According to survey results, sales of organic foods grew by 22.1 percent in 2006 to reach $16.9 billion. Sales in 2005 were $13.831 billion.
This demand has driven a similar increase in organically managed farmland. In the United States, according to the latest available statistics for U.S. organic production from USDA's Economic Research Service (ERS), there were at least 8,445 certified organic farms in the United States in 2005, up from 8,035 certified organic farms in 2003. The 2005 operations represented slightly more than 4 million acres under organic management, up from 3 million acres in 2004 and nearly 2.2 million acres in 2003. For the first time, all 50 U.S. states had some certified organic farmland. Approximately 75 million acres worldwide are now farmed organically, representing approximately 2% of total world farmland.
Organic agricultural methods are internationally regulated and legally enforced by many nations, based in large part on the standards set by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, an international umbrella organization for organic organizations. IFOAM began in Versailles, France, on November 5, 1972, during an international congress on organic agriculture organized by the French farmer organization Nature et Progrès. The late Roland Chevriot, President of Nature et Progrès, took the initiative. There were 5 founding members representing different organizations: Lady Eve Balfour representing the Soil Association of Great Britain, Kjell Arman representing the Swedish Biodynamic Association, Pauline Raphaely representing the Soil Association of South Africa, Jerome Goldstein representing Rodale Press of the United States, and Roland Chevriot representing Nature et Progrès of France.
The founders believed that the federation would meet what they saw as a major need: a unified, organized voice for organic food, and the diffusion and exchange of information on the principles and practices of organic agriculture across national and linguistic boundaries.
In 2002, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) established organic production standards, under the National Organic Program (NOP), which regulates the commercial use of the term organic. Farmers and food processors must comply with the NOP in order to use the word. There are several private certifying agencies, as well as state (such as the Texas Department of Agriculture), but they all must be accredited under the USDA standards.
Founded in 1997, the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) provides organic certifiers, growers, manufacturers, and suppliers an independent review of products intended for use in certified organic production, handling, and processing. OMRI is 501c3 nonprofit organization. OMRI reviews applying products against the National Organic Standards. Acceptable products are OMRI Listed® and appear on the OMRI Products List. OMRI also provides subscribers guidance on the acceptability of various material inputs in general under the National Organic Program.
