No pesticides please, we're British: Organic sector swells with wines the winner
As the Soil Association kickstarts Organic September, new statistics show a sector that is demonstrably more healthy in terms of value and volume sales compared with conventional food and drink.
It's long been said that if there was to be a 'positive' of a warming climate, it would be English wine. But it seems that organic English wine is the real winner, with organic viticulture in England is increasing by between 15%– 20% annually, a trend already seen in Europe as growers convert vineyards to contend with extreme weather conditions.
As the hot sun beat down relentlessly this summer on the vineyards at Oxney Estate in East Sussex, owner Kristin Syltevik admitted that a warming climate is ideal for her organic grapes. ‘It’s the silver lining of climate change; I go to wine tastings around Europe and everyone says: “How can you make this kind of wine in England?”’
Fourteen hectares (35 acres) of vines were planted on the estate in 2012 and organic standards focus on cover cropping and composting to preserve topsoil and encourage deep root structure. Every once in a while, Syltevik’s vines receive tisane, which is made from yarrow, nettle and horse tail, steeped for several weeks and delivered from a large agricultural sprayer. ‘I make all my own compost,’ Syltevik revealed. ‘A neighbour grazes his sheep and cattle here and pays me in muck. I add woodchips made from willow, which has medicinal qualities. Organic is like a religion for me.’
'Growers in Burgundy and Bordeaux will have to adjust their systems to cope with the weather — and we may be the beneficiaries'
Twenty miles inland over the Sussex High Weald into Kent, winemaker Will Davenport agrees that a warming climate makes growing grapes in England easier. ‘It is still marginal, but watch this space,’ he said, adding that ‘growers in Burgundy and Bordeaux will have to adjust their systems [following the wildfires] to cope with the weather — and we may be the beneficiaries’.
Davenport planted his first vines in 1991 and joined the Soil Association in 2000. ‘Our vines are good at coping with drought because of all the organic matter we put into the soil. That helps with heavy winter rainfall, too.’ The Davenport vineyards were picked last week. ‘It used to be September 20; we’re now looking at planting later-ripening varieties.’
Almost 75% of us admitted to being concerned about exposure to the likes of pesticides and PFAS ‘forever chemicals’.
Beyond wine, organic products form part of every-day British life, with 83% of households plumping for certified items, a trend that is behind the boost of organic sales values for the year to mid June. These rose by 5.4%, versus 3.7% (conventional), with volume up 0.1% versus -0.1%, according to market research tool NielsenIQ Scantrack.
Two major drivers of organic volume growth are eggs and milk, with the former rocketing by 16.3% (versus 1.8% for non-organic eggs) and the latter by just over 9% (versus 0.4% for non-organic milk).
Separate questioning of 2,000 adults by Mortar showed one in five trying to avoid pesticides, food contaminants and GMOs when food shopping and almost three-quarters admitted to being concerned about exposure to the likes of pesticides and PFAS ‘forever chemicals’. Meanwhile, only 44% of consumers trust food labels.
With suspicion over sustainability, sourcing and animal welfare, most shoppers admitted that seeing an organic logo would give them more faith in a product. ‘Attention-grabbing headlines around the contamination of everyday food and drink products with PFAS, glyphosate and artificial pesticides — including some pesticides that are still sprayed on produce in the UK, despite being banned in the EU for health reasons — is no doubt driving more consumers to buy organic, which people recognise as a healthier and safer option,’ said Alex Cullen of Soil Association Certification.
