Positioning Organic Ethics - Re-Thinking Organic Food and Farming in a Changing World - page 305

institutionalized bureaucratic structures, and globalized markets. Moreover, the
dominant large retailers do not contribute seriously to a shift toward a more socially
and economically balanced relationship between organic farmers and commercial
businesses. The IFOAM Principles do not appear to be of concern to these corporate
actors and in many ways, the current neo-liberal system fundamentally contradicts
the IFOAM Principles (James et al. 2012 ).
It is increasingly obvious that the social, economic, and some of the ecological
values of organic are under pressure and are at risk of disappearing among various
actors in the organic agrofood chain. Many farmers and consumers disagree with
the influence of corporate power in organic, but at the same time find few political
opportunities to bring about change.
Realistically, while organic may attempt to espouse ethical conventions and to
delineate a moral economy, the organic systems cannot be separated from market
conventions and, indeed the political economy (Brown and Getz 2008 , p. 20). In
other words, organic is both 'in and against the market' (see Raynolds 2000 , p. 298;
Alrøe et al. 2006 ; Nicholls and Opal 2008 , p. 229).

14.2 Bringing Ethics into Organic Practice

Based on our review in this volume, IFOAM needs to rethink how to promote its
values to all the actors in the organic system. In this way, IFOAM can distinguish
organic from other value-oriented approaches and offer a convincing model that
stands apart from other so called sustainable approaches. This final section discusses
some of the activities that could contribute to creating a more value driven organic
agrofood chain.

14.2.1 Need for a Social Agenda and a New Agrofood Contract

with Society

One of the central observations throughout this volume is, that in those cases where
social and economic values in the organic agrofood chain do play a minor role,
organic is losing its ethical integrity. In contrast, numerous alternative guarantee
systems, internal control systems, PGS, CSR, and food coops, but also closely
associated movements like fair trade, slow food or transition towns in which
“nearness” and shared responsibility are relevant, organic needs to become more
authentic and in ways that embrace the IFOAM Principles of Fairness and Care.
Consequently, IFOAM should invest in a social agenda that makes its social features
more visible and explicit in concrete practice.
If the organic movement is to play a serious role in the future of world food
and agriculture, and seeks to embrace and uphold the IFOAM Principles, coalitions