Photograph by Chad Pilster
Adrian Albor of Happy Boy Farms in San Juan Bautista sells a customer organically grown specialty produce at the farmers market at Saratoga High School.
Impending organic foods law will impact vendors at farmers market
By Rebecca Ray
Growers and producers nationwide find they have to either change the ways they grow, produce and handle food, or opt not to label their produce as "organic" before the Federal Organic Foods Production Act goes into effect in mid-2002. But those who organize the farmers market every week at Saratoga High School don't seem concerned about the new law.
Greg Beccio, owner of Happy Boy Farms in San Juan Bautista, said he didn't think the act had affected, or would affect, the Saratoga farmers market. His company sells organic salad mixes, vegetables and Heirloom tomatoes at the farmers market in Saratoga. The act will establish national standards for the production and handling of foods labeled as "organic."
Private certification agencies, such as California Certified Organic Farmers and Quality Assurance International, have already certified most of the growers who claim to sell organic produce at the Saratoga farmers market, Beccio said.
At the farmers market in Saratoga, about 15 percent of the produce sold is organic, according to Doug Hayden, president of the California Farmers Markets Association that has run the local farmers market since 1997. Unlike Berkeley--where residents prefer organic produce--and Daly City--where residents prefer conventional produce--shoppers at the Saratoga farmers market tend to like a mix of both, Hayden said.
Until the Federal Register published the final rule for the production and handling of "organic" foods in December 2000, private and state certifiers had different standards as to what was organic. Often, private agencies' certification standards were much stricter than those of state agencies, so produce that a state agency might have considered organic might have not been considered organic by a private agency, Beccio said.
Under the federal act, all agricultural products labeled "organic" must originate from farms, or handling operations, certified by an agency accredited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Before the new law takes effect, all certifying agencies must apply for accreditation.
The agriculture department will oversee the National Organic Program that will establish the national standards and oversee certification once the law takes effect. Labeling a noncertified product as "organic" will be a federal offense.
The new law will "definitely keep people more honest" and establish stricter guidelines for certification agencies, Hayden said.
In addition to Happy Boy Farms, organic growers and producers who sell products at the local farmers market include High Ground Organic from Watsonville, which sells vegetables, green leafy produce and flowers; Splendor Salad from Morgan Hill and Gilroy; Prapher Ranch, which sells beef; Kashewase Farms from Winton, which sells stone fruits--peaches, nectarines and pluots, hybrids of apricots and plums that have an intense flavor; and Schmidt Farm from Selma, which sells grapes. While High Ground Organic, Splendor Salad, Happy Boy Farms and Prapher Ranch are now selling their organic products, Schmidt Farm will sell its grapes in August, and Kashewase Farms will sell its stone fruits in a few weeks.
Farmers markets around California are just entering their peak season, which lasts from June to October, Hayden said. Usually, during the peak season, about 40 trucks sell produce in Saratoga, and about 2,500 customers visit the local farmers market during the four hours it's open on Saturday mornings.
During the nonpeak, or winter, season that lasts the rest of the year, between 25 and 30 trucks sell produce at the Saratoga farmers market to about 1,500 visitors.
Currently, until the new law takes effect, some growers will claim to be certified by certain agencies when they're not, Beccio said. He suggests that customers who want to make sure that growers are certified should verify by asking for documents that reflect certification, or call the grower's certification agency.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
