Organic farmers in talks over gloom
Organic farmers are talking about ways to tackle the economic downturn as consumers are increasingly turning away from organic products due to high costs.
However, a spokesman for UK certification body Organic Farmers & Growers (OF&G) denied that there was a "panic" among organic farmers in the face of the financial crisis.
He said: "I suppose it is preparing for the worst and hoping it does not happen. There is extra pressure but there is not a great panic amongst the organic community at the moment."
A number of possible measures are being debated to combat the economic gloom, including allowing farmers to use conventional feed instead of organic food concentrate.
OF&G said this would mean that animals given conventional feed would lose their organic status but the rest of the farm could continue to maintain organic standards.
A spokesman added: "What we are looking at here is if things get worse in the future. Feed costs are high and that could increase and have a greater impact in the future."
According to a study by Ipsos Mori, just 31% of shoppers thought buying organic was important while 48% did not care if a product was organic or not.
The poll found that 64% of consumers thought organic products were too expensive in the current climate.
Copyright © Press Association 2008
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