Organic foods are foods produced by methods that comply with the standards of organic farming. Standards vary worldwide; however, organic farming in general features practices that strive to foster the cycling of resources, promote ecological balance and conserve biodiversity. Organisations regulating organic products may choose to restrict the use of certain pesticides and fertilisers in farming. In general, organic foods are also usually not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents or synthetic food additives.
Currently, the European Union, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and many other countries require producers to obtain special certification to market food as organic within their borders. In the context of these regulations, organic food is produced in a way that complies with organic standards set by national governments and international organisations. Although the produce of kitchen gardens may be organic, selling food with the organic label is regulated by governmental food safety authorities, such as the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the European Commission.
There is significantly less evidence in medical literature to support claims that organic food is safer or healthier than conventionally grown food. While there may be some differences in the nutrient and anti-nutrient contents of organically and conventionally produced food, the variable nature of food production and handling makes it difficult to generalise results. Claims that organic food tastes better are generally not supported by evidence.
For the vast majority of its history, agriculture can be described as having been organic; only during the 20th century was an ample supply of new products introduced into food production, generally deemed not organic. The organic farming movement arose in the 1940s in response to the industrialisation of agriculture.
In 1939, Lord Northbourne coined the term organic farming in his book Look to the Land (1940) out of his conception of “the farm as an organism” to describe a holistic, ecologically balanced approach to farming—in contrast to what he called chemical farming, which relied on “imported fertility” and “cannot be self-sufficient nor an organic whole.” Early soil scientists also described the differences in soil composition when animal manures were “organic” because they contain carbon compounds, whereas soils enriched with fertilisers containing superphosphates and nitrogen do not.
Their respective use affects the humus content of the soil. This is different from the scientific use of the term “organic” in chemistry, which refers to a class of molecules that contain carbon, especially those involved in the chemistry of life. This class of molecules includes everything likely to be edible and includes most pesticides and toxins. Therefore the term “organic” and, especially, the word “inorganic” (sometimes wrongly used as a contrast by the popular press) as they apply to organic chemistry is an equivocation fallacy when applied to farming, the production of food, and foodstuffs themselves. Properly used in this agricultural science context, “organic” refers to the methods grown and processed, not necessarily the chemical composition of the food.