Abstract
Organics is the one of the fastest growing segments in food sales. Though the amount of certified organic land is increasing, the supply of organic foods lags behind demand in the United States. The reasons for this gap include a lack of government support for organics, and the peculiarities of organics as an innovation. In an attempt to close this gap, and increase the environmental sustainability of U.S. agriculture, this paper has two objectives. The first is to document the structural and institutional constraints to organic adoption. This is accomplished through a review of organic programs and policies in the U.S., in particular the National Organic Program. The second objective is to investigate the predictors of interest and the perceived barriers to organic adoption among pragmatic conventional producers in Texas, compared to organic and conventional producers. This is accomplished through a survey of a representative sample of producers in Texas. The results indicate that more than forty percent of producers who currently have conventional operations have at least some interest in organic production (pragmatic conventional producers). There are significant differences among the three groups in their structural and attitudinal characteristics related to organic adoption. For the pragmatic conventional producers, an increase in revenue would be a major facilitator of organic adoption. Their high levels of uncertainty regarding organic production and marketing, and especially organic certification constrain organic adoption. The results also reveal that the institutional setting in the U.S. hindered adoption. The paper concludes that increased institutional support would facilitate organic adoption.
Highlights
Despite the potential for organic agriculture to improve the environmental performance of U.S.agriculture [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8], the national standard is having only a modest impact on environmental externalities caused by conventional production methods because the organic adoption rate is so low [9]
Thereby close the gap between domestic production and consumption, while at the same time increasing the environmental sustainability of U.S agriculture, this study responds to calls for research on the complex mix of institutional and individual factors that influence organic adoption
The National Organic Program (NOP) supported the growth of the consumer market by providing accurately identified organic products, the institutional context constrained the kinds of financial and technical support necessary to prompt sufficient numbers of conventional producers to convert
Summary
Despite the potential for organic agriculture to improve the environmental performance of U.S.agriculture [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8], the national standard is having only a modest impact on environmental externalities caused by conventional production methods because the organic adoption rate is so low [9]. While over the past 20 years U.S organic production has more than doubled, consumer demand has increased at an even faster pace. Organic foods and food supplies that meet the USDA regulations are being imported to supply the growing demand in the U.S In an attempt to close the gap between domestic production and consumption, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Act) included several new provisions to increase organic adoption rates [9]. Growing at a rate of between 12 and 21 percent annually, the market for organic foods in the U.S. has quintupled since 1997, increasing from $3.6 B in 1997 to $21.1B in 2008 [17]. Organic foods account for 3% of total U.S food sales and are expected to grow at similar rates for the few years [12]. Significant entry into the organics market is expected to continue [12]
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