If you’ve been following the Bread Politics blog, you’ll know I wholeheartedly support organics - the principles, the products and the practice.
But I can also see that despite organics having been around for decades, the uptake in the wider farming community is negligible. Only 2% of land farmed in New Zealand is under organic management. The reasons for the minimal uptake of organic farming practices are manifold, but my feeling is that a lot of it has to do with an ideological divide that people on the conventional side of the argument have trouble getting across.
Organic farming has long been seen as ‘hippie’, ‘elitist’ and ‘marginal’ and ‘unable to deliver enough food for the ever-growing human population’. The agrichemical industry certainly making sure that this narrative prevails and gets air time. Longitudinal studies comparing organic farming to conventional farming over decades have, however, proven that this is not true. But with the climate crisis looming ever more ominously, is it time to look for a middle ground that still benefits the planet and the consumer but is more achievable for farmers?
A recent crisis in Australian wheat flour production – where more than 90% of the flour, including organic flour, consumed in New Zealand comes from – has forced us to consider our position on organic flour. The ravages of drought and fires, along with a warming climate, have made it difficult to impossible for the few organic wheat farmers to grow a crop this year. In Australia wheat is a winter crop and organic farmers, who are often also cattle ranchers, can only plant and grow if there has been enough rain throughout the summer and autumn. In 2019 this was not the case for many of the New South Wales farmers that grow the wheat we use.
You can read more about the details in my last post. But, in a nutshell, the climate problems in Australia are forcing us to change the white wheat flour we use in Bread & Butter Bakery. We hope this is only a temporary measure that may not be necessary for future seasons when the conditions might be right for growing wheat. Note: we are not changing any of our other certified organic flours, seeds, nuts or dried fruit! These ingredients will continue to come from certified organic farms.
Our new flour isn’t organic but it is Australian Sustainable Products (ASP) Certified Sustainable. This means it’s been grown using a comprehensive regenerative farming system that improves both soil health and the quality of food. It also reduces and repairs the damage to the environment that industrial farming has caused, improving water retention and sequestering carbon to help reduce global warming. Not organic, but definitely good for the environment and consumers too. Making the decision wasn’t easy but a change was required, and I think this new certification has great potential both in Australia and on this side of the Tasman.
To read up on the full story and all our thinking around this change of flour, please visit my blog Bread Politics and read the last two posts on this topic.