A shopper looks at organic produce in a New Seasons Market. Organic farm sales reached $9.6 billion in 2022, nearly $1 billion more than in 2017, according to the USDA Census of Agriculture.

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Organic agriculture gained momentum in the 1960s amid protest movements, but conventional growers at the time viewed it with disdain as “hippie fluff.”

“Organic was a four-letter word,” said Diane Dempster, chairwoman of the Tilth Alliance, a Washington organic nonprofit.

Initially, organic growers were small-scale, selling at cooperatives and natural food stores, Dempster said during the recent Tilth Conference.

Now, the largest conventional growers in the world also ship organic products around the globe.

“Big industry has taken over and that’s kind of inevitable,” said Arran Stephens, who founded the organic brand Nature’s Choice in Vancouver, B.C.

As Bob Dylan sang, “The times, they are a-changin’.”

While some organic producers balk at the arrival of the big growers, other organic champions welcome them.

“If you want to save the planet, you need more acres of organic ag,” said David Granatstein, Washington State University sustainable agriculture specialist.

But with large farms driving sales and acreage growing, what does that mean for the soul of organic agriculture?

Bullish on organic

The organic segment is booming as consumers pay premium prices for products grown and processed whenever possible without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.

“Organic is a moneymaker and that brought large corporate enterprises into the game,” said Melissa Spear, Tilth Alliance executive director.

Inflation, rather than volume, delivered sales increases in 2023, and the price gap between conventional and organic products is shrinking, according to the Organic Trade Association.

Economists remain bullish on the segment, which relies on the USDA organic certification.

“Growth will continue as long as there’s not a widespread economic downturn,” said Michael Brady, a WSU economist.

Still, unique headwinds remain for organic ag, including certification and paperwork burdens, other labels creating confusion and increased labor costs.

Though organic farms may have fewer inputs, they generally require more workers, Spear said.

Organic sales surge

Organic farm sales reached $9.6 billion in 2022, 32% more than in 2017 when adjusted for inflation, according to the USDA Census of Agriculture.

The West Coast led the way, thanks to a mixture of culture and growing conditions.

The region excels at growing fruit, vegetables and nuts, the top organic categories.

California was No. 1 in organic production at $3.7 billion, or roughly 40% of the nation’s total. Washington was second at $870 million and Oregon was fifth with $316 million.

But the impact of organic ag stretches far beyond food. Organic sales, including fiber and other categories, reached nearly $70 billion in 2023, representing 4.4% of all purchases, according to the Organic Trade Association.

That’s up from $39 billion in 2014, when organics comprised 3.4% of sales.

What consumers want

WSU economist Jill McCluskey said shoppers are turning to organic products to address health and safety concerns.

“Consumers want to avoid antibiotics and hormones, they want to avoid pesticide residues,” she said.

McCluskey added that some people think everything organic tastes better, too.

Younger generations prioritize the environment and animal welfare and buy organic at higher rates, said Tom Chapman, the Trade Association’s co-CEO.

Brady said consumers aren’t all-or-nothing with organic purchases, and price is a factor. Sales shrink during tough times.

Why farmers switch

Farmers’ reasons for going organic include environmental concerns, diversification, less risk and greater profits.

Organic often offers a combination of advantages, they said.

David Wills-Ehlers owns Zephyr Organics near Gales Creek. He said his 40-acre farm has been organic since the beginning because he’s taking a big picture approach to community health.

But organic certification also brings better margins.

“We couldn’t be in business if we were selling food at the prices conventional growers fetch,” Wills-Ehlers said.

No size limits

Chapman said organic regulations don’t limit farms’ size.

“Organic is offering folks an opportunity. The reason why you go for that opportunity, I don’t judge. We’re just trying to create this system of agriculture that works,” he added.

Mac Riggan, vice president of sales and business development for Chelan Fresh, a major Washington fruit company, said many growers feature both organic and conventional produce out of necessity.

“If you’re going to be a supplier to the majors today, you have to have organics because everybody is carrying them to some extent,” he said.

It also makes business sense with consumer preferences.

Amy Wong, Oregon Organic Coalition director, said there are more “split operations” than people realize.

“Conventional farmers are also organic farmers and vice versa,” she said.

According to USDA data, 41% of organic certified farms also sell into conventional markets.

Apples to organic apples

Granatstein helped Washington’s apple industry transition from a minuscule percentage of organic to 16% of the 2024 harvest.

He sees organic as a means to an end with sustainability as the main goal.

“Size does matter. Organic doesn’t equal small. A lot of people are hung up on that,” Granatstein said.

About 2% of Washington’s cropland is organic. Half of organic growers are small farms that represent 6% of that acreage.

Still, there’s been tremendous growth.

“Fifty years ago, organic agriculture didn’t exist. Now a huge percentage of Americans grow organic ag,” he said.

Organic acreage skyrocketed from 1.8 million in 2000 to 4.9 million in 2021, according to the USDA. Despite the increase, that is still less than 1% of U.S. farmland.

New practices

Organic ag creates a ripple effect even for those without certification, as traditional farms follow some organic practices that have gone mainstream, including composting, integrated pest management and cover crops.

Spear said split operations often see benefits on their organic land and transfer those over to conventional acreage.

Organic methods also are adopted because they’re less expensive, Wong said.

Hesitancy and distrust

Though some organic leaders encourage big companies’ participation, there’s hesitancy and distrust among some small players.

Some small growers think they can’t compete with huge companies, though they usually tap into different sales channels such as farmer’s markets and subscription boxes.

“I think there’s market segmentation there. There’s room for both,” Spears said.

Others believe big farms can’t take the same care with production and are more likely to have food contamination problems or use prohibited materials.

Power of certification

USDA organic certification means cheating equals fraud and is punishable by fines or even prison.

The certification’s creation in 2000 was critical as the USDA organic label functions almost as a trusted brand.

According to the Organic Trade Association, consumers value organic more than any other product claims, with 59% believing that it justifies a higher price.

However, the organization also found consumers need more education on organic attributes such as animal and sustainable production practices.

Competing certifications

Ray de Vries, owner of Ralph’s Greenhouse in Mount Vernon, Washington, said different labels and certifications confuse customers.

Ben Johnson, president of Bridges Organic Produce, acts as an agent for farmers and said it was difficult to see price gains from labels other than USDA organic.

Various regenerative and sustainable labels sometimes don’t have well-defined rules or accountability, and product claims can amount to “greenwashing,” growers said.

“It’s definitely easier to call your product sustainable when it’s not a regulated term and to try and capture some of the organic market,” Wills-Ehlers said.

Wong said many farmers legitimately pursue additional certifications to go above and beyond the organic guarantee.

Paperwork woes

The USDA organic certification alone costs hundreds to thousands of dollars a year based on the size and complexity of the farm.

“The reality is they all cost money and bottom lines are tight,” said Amanda Stevens, owner of Nottinghamshire Farms near St. Paul.

Paperwork has also become a massive burden.

“Trying to make everything run on a small farm is impossible. Then you add in the certification,” said Ryan Lichttenegger, owner of Steel Wheel Farm in Fall City, Washington.

“I want to put the stamp on my products, but when they make it really time-consuming. … There’s just a lot of hoops you have to go through,” Lichttenegger said.

The diversity of his small farm — he grows more than 50 crops on 15 acres and sells into several channels — adds to the paperwork difficulty.

Nonprofits are trying to make certification easier and more affordable, in part by securing government assistance, so more farms adopt the organic label.

Fewer organic farms

Despite advantages such as premium prices, some growers are leaving organic behind.

In 2022, 17,321 farms had organic sales, down 5% from five years prior.

However, the overall number of farms dropped 7% during the same five years, so the organic segment survived better in the period of farm consolidation.

The highest rate of leaving organic is two years after certification — and that’s really a five-year commitment. Organic certification first requires land to be free of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides for three years.

Certifications provide data

Farmers markets might be an unlikely culprit for the decrease, as selling local food directly to consumers delivers a premium. Organic doesn’t provide another boost, said Brady, the WSU economist.

“They may continue to produce organically, but they didn’t see the value in going through the paperwork,” he added.

Lichttenegger said his farm wasn’t seeing more revenue and wondered if he should continue securing certification.

That poses a problem, as certifications provide data that deliver policy and government aid, said Anne Schwartz, owner of Blue Heron Farm in Rockport, Washington

“We have to prove we exist,” she added.

Organic leaders said government funding already isn’t provided proportionally.

Lack of processing

Additional funding could help create more organic processing facilities that would allow growers to enter the segment.

“One of the biggest challenges we face is building out every link of that supply chain,” said Pryor Garnett, owner of Garnetts Red Prairie Farm, an organic small grains grower near Sheridan.

MaryClair Birkemeier Stehman, owner of Meridian Orchards, near Aurora, said there’s only one sheller for organic hazelnuts nearby, and her business was the sole organic grower that could meet its minimum capacity for custom processing.

Cultivating relationships

Part of the solution for organic ag also is cultivating better relationships with conventional growers.

“They feel dismissed by the organic community. They feel they’re seen as the evil farmers. This makes it difficult for us to have policy wins,” Spear said.

Organic pioneers said it was important not to be judgmental, and that solutions arise through collaboration, not polarization.

The same impact

Small growers can succeed by tapping into niche markets, adapting and telling the story of their products, farmers and wholesalers said.

But that won’t dramatically increase acreage.

“I support large farms adopting organic practices and becoming certified, as long as the integrity of organic is protected,” Spear said.

She said the segment has to embrace organic operations regardless of their size or motivations, whether that’s prioritizing community impacts or making money.

“At the end of the day, the same impact is being delivered as far as the environment and public health,” Spear added.

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