Do you feel that eventually organic foods will become obsolete? Why or why not?

Expert response from Brian Scott

Farmer

Tuesday, 24/04/2018 14:36

I don't see organic foods becoming obsolete in the future, but I could see what qualifies as certified organic changing over time. There is some debate right now about whether or not the meaning of organic is being diluted. For example, look at growing produce hydroponically. There are some who do not want hydroponics to fall under the organic label. They believe organic should be about taking care of the soil as much if not more than growing the crop, and when there's no soil involved they take issue.

Then there's the issue of new tools entering the ag space. CRISPR-Cas9 is one of those tools. CRISPR allows for the editing of the genome of an organism which is a different than traditional thinking of what a GMO may be. When most people say GMO they are thinking of transgenic modification where a trait from one organism is introduced to another. CRISPR is merely changing what is already there. This makes for interesting debate on whether or not CRISPR modified crops will be recognized as GMO at the federal level or not, and will other countries say CRISPR is GMO or non-GMO when it comes to import and export. Could this tech be under the organic definition someday? I think it's possible. Other modifications turn off or suppress expression of traits in crops. Simplot's potatoes that resist disease and don't produce acrylamide when cooked, and the non-browning Arctic Apple are examples of the next generation of genetic modification.

So, I don't think organic is going anywhere. Will the definition of certified USDA organic evolve over time to include new breeding techniques? Possibly, but there is some resistance so we'll have to wait and see what happens.