Talk:Technologies for Rural Development/Ways of farming


 * I think Organic farming practices are the most appropriate for this section. --MJBT 09:58, 5 February 2007 (UTC)
 * In the USA, the term "organic" can only be used for produce grown in compliance with the Organic Food Production Act of 1990. You can read it at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/NOP/NOPhome.html (click on the Act for the pdf file). State governments authorize certain groups to grant organic certification, based on various criteria. Pennsylvania's group is http://www.paorganic.org/. Per their website, "The United States Department of Agriculture requires that anyone who produces, processes or handles organic agricultural products must be certified by a USDA-accredited certifier in order to sell, label or represent their products as "organic." To become certified, an organic producer, processor or handler must develop, implement and maintain an organic system plan." The site hasn't been updated in two years, but I think it's still considered current. "Organic" in the USA means "certified" -- in which growers pay inspectors for certification. It's a bit of a racket.
 * Related, there's some debate about what should be allowed under the umbrella of "organic" farming. Chlorine is generally considered an acceptable chemical. The use of natural acids such as vinegar for sterilization is not accepted because it hasn't been studied or isolated or whatever.
 * I'm not sure what country you're from, but I thought I'd let you know that "organic" is a legally-defined term in the USA, controlled by political interests, not maybe what you might think it to be. --65.78.214.189 01:32, 8 September 2007 (UTC)