Greening the networked economy - Environmental Reform in the Information Age - page 179

are based on governmental laws and policies (in Europe, especially the
General Food Law, obligations for traceability and product labels in
among others the meat and GMO sectors, 24 European environmental
labels), some are pushed and designed by civil society NGOs, and some
find their origin in combinations. Consequently, there is an increase in
tracking and tracing systems, and information and labelling in food
chains and networks, strongly supported by tailor-made (but not yet
very standardised) ICT systems. 25
Organic labels and standards coordinate and govern one of the most
dynamic and fast-growing agricultural markets 26 in the industrialised
world, and increasingly also beyond that (see Chapter 10 ). With annual
growth percentages often between 10 and 20 percent in the United
States and in the EU, organic food markets are increasingly seen as
an interesting niche market (Raynolds, 2004 : 732). The International
Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), established
in 1972, has now seen its definition of organic being accepted within
more than one hundred countries. Its most important governance strat-
egy is the international promotion of certification systems to regulate
organic quality and consolidate markets. Although initially promul-
gated by IFOAM and national private voluntary certification organi-
sations, these IFOAM organic standards and certifications are increas-
ingly included in governmental regulations and guidelines (e.g., the EC
regulation 2092/91 on organic production methods; the guidelines of
the Codex Alimentarius).
It is difficult to get full overviews on the actual amount of environ-
mental, green or organic labels prevailing on the agro-food or any other
markets. An inventory of environmental labels on the Dutch consumer
market in 2001 (Waart and Spruyt, 2001 ), found around one hundred

24

On traceability and labelling of GMO, see EC regulation 1830/2003,
OJ L 268, 18/10/2003, p. 24. For an introduction to the EU General Food Law
(EC Regulation 178/2002), see van der Meulen and van der Velde ( 2004 ).

25

To support the further foundation of ICT in food tracing and tracking, the
Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Protection and Food Quality, and
a number of larger Dutch food industries set up the Platform Transparency and
ICT in 2003.

26

The world market for certified organic foods was estimated to be worth
US$23-25 billion in 2003 and grows roughly 19 percent annually
(Kortbeck-Olesen, 2003 ). Between 1985 and 2001, the average annual growth
rate of acreage being brought under certified organic food production in
Europe was 27 percent (http://www.organic.aber.ac.uk/statistics/euroarea.htm).