BY MARK McKELVEY
m.mckelvey@ulsterherald.com
SINCE the turn of the century, the organic food market has experienced an explosion in popularity. As people become more health and environmentally conscious, farmers have had to react to change in consumer demand.
At the first ever organic conference held in Greenmount Campus last Wednesday, Seskinore organic dairy farmer John McCracken represented the views of the dairy sector and gave an enlightened talk on his entry into agriculture, his conversion to organic farming, and the recent research carried out into the health benefits of organic milk.
John outlined that, as a student in Glasgow, his decision to enter farming was against the flow within the industry at that time, as most young farmers were seeking ways out of agriculture. However, he could see the world of agriculture modifying along with people's attitudes.
"When I decided I wanted to come home, I felt organic farming was the right way to go .
"I had seen people in Glasgow starting to take more interest in the way food is produced, and could see consumer demand was going in that direction," said John.
"People were starting to be more concerned where their food came from so demanded the food they purchased was more traceable and environmentally sensitively produced.
"Also government legislation was beginning to change in this direction. That coupled with the fact this type of farming appealed to me, we analysed the situation and decided to go ahead with the conversion in 2001."
As organic production uses no artificial fertilisers, no harmful pesticides or sprays, no genetically modified feed it takes a two and a half year period to convert the ground and animals into a certified organic farm.
With a growing body of scientific evidence pointing to many reasons why choosing organic can be extremely beneficial to human health, John disclosed how his farm is currently part of a government led study into the health advantages of organic produce.
"We are involved in a government led study at the moment, that is carrying out research on omega 3's and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which help your heart, encourages bone growth and helps your immune system," said John.
He explained, "They take a non-organic test and compare the results taken from a number of organic farms and our farm is in terms of omega 3's and CLA's are above the organic average, so it is very encouraging."
After converting his farm to Organic status he and seven other farmers from across the North co-operated to form Emerald Organics Ltd to market milk under The Organic Dairy brand.
He explained that this had been very successful and the company who distributes and packs its milk through Strathroy Dairy sells 50% of all the organic milk sold in the North.
John remarked, "As well as smaller independent stores we are pleased that our milk is now listed in Centra, SuperValu and some local independent stores which provides us with an outlet in every main town.
"Our milk is easily recognised by the inclusion of a large butterfly on the packaging."
He concluded, "If agriculture is to be sustainable we need to learn lessons from the past, we must get close to the consumer, be involved in the supply chain, and work with each other to meet the expectations of the market."
