Recognize real organic goods

Organic goods must be clearly marked

02/12/2014

Bio-Ware is on everyone's lips, correspondingly large is the range of food from controlled organic cultivation. Many manufacturers of conventional agricultural products want to capitalize on this trend and pack their goods „Bioart“, so that consumers can not always tell right away whether it's actually organic. In conversation with the news agency „dpa“ explains the food expert Laura Gross of the consumer initiative Berlin, where organic food is clearly recognizable.

Organic goods must be marked with an eco-control number
Organic goods have been offered for some time not only in organic stores. Foods from certified organic farming are now an integral part of the range almost every supermarket. In addition, growers sell their organic goods at weekly markets.
The decisive factor in the production of organic goods is the renouncement of chemical-synthetic pesticides, the residues of conventional products often remain on or in the food and are sometimes harmful or at least suspected of triggering allergies or even to promote cancer. In addition, the soil is not treated chemically-synthetically, so that groundwater and soils are spared. „In a closed-loop economy, foodstuffs are to be produced in a way that conserves resources, "says Laura Gross, explaining the concept of organic farming." Livestock farming also has requirements for organic farmers, so farms should never keep more animals than they can feed themselves.

However, the nutrition expert points out: „Sometimes 'bio' is faked by the presentation. "This happens especially at weekly markets. „Just because something is in a chip basket or sticks a feather on the egg, it is still far from being an ecological product. "Gross says that all organic distributors must have an eco-control number for their products, which must be assigned to the respective product With the number of the fruit box is enough to trace the origin of the food on the basis of the eco-control number.

Organic goods are subject to the requirements of the EC Organic Regulation
Very confusing for the consumer are the names that are used for food from conventional production, but indirectly simulate organic goods. „From the region“, controlled cultivation“ or „careful production is not a protected term and, according to the food expert, does not mean that a product is organic. The names are also particularly opaque in chicken eggs. So it is with eggs with the names „Bodenhaltung“ or „Free range“ not organic food. Each egg carries a code whose first number indicates the form of keeping. The number 0 means that it is a bio-egg (1 = free range, 2 = floor keeping, 3 = caging).

Generally, the names are „Eco", „ecologically", „Bio ", „biologically ", „from controlled organic farming "or „organic "are protected by the EC Organic Farming Regulation and therefore refer to organic goods: According to Gross, this product must comply at least with the legal requirements of the EC Organic Regulation and organic products bear the EU Organic logo , which looks like a leaf with twelve white stars on a green background The German organic seal, a green and white hexagon with the inscription „Bio“, is also printed on many packaging of organic food.

„In addition, there are additional labels from organic farming associations such as Demeter, Bioland or Naturland, as well as regional organic labels and organic retail brands such as Alnatura, Naturkind or BioBio, "reports the food expert. „The guidelines of the cultivation associations are generally stricter than the requirements of the EC Organic Regulation. "(Ag)

Picture: berggeist007