A great memory of being a kid in the early 80’s was Saturday mornings cartoons on ABC beginning at 8:00am and then a good old bowl of Kellogg’s Rice Krispies. Today, there are hardly any great cartoons on at all on Saturday mornings for children, but now at least there is organic Rice Krispies. Kellogg’s has just introduced to the grocery shelves, Organic Raisin Bran, Rice Krispies, and Shredded Wheat.
Theses cereals adhere to the strict regulations for which the USDA Certified Organic standards mandate. Kellogg’s have now, for these particular cereal at least, introduced sustainable farming methods that eliminate pesticides and chemical fertilizers. I wonder what will happen with the rest of their cereals. Since Kellogg’s is such a major power house company in the food industry, will they be able to influence others in the industry to practice sustainable farming methods? This is a great step.
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Although I think its great that Kelloggs is doing this, it reminds me of another company going “organic”…..Wal-mart. What I am afraid of is “organic” becoming yet another product that people expect to buy for cheap at Wal-mart thinking that they are doing the right thing. How in the world does Wal-mart expect to sell organic goods for cheap without changing how organic farmers grow their crops? If you sell your product at Wal-mart, and you have to outsource the building of your product to another country to make it for cheaper in order to accept the low prices Wal-mart will pay you, how will that affect the organic market? Are we going to outsource the organic food market?
Oh its all so scary…
August 4th, 2006 at 1:07 amI do see your concern, for the same thought crossed my mind. At the same time though, the optimist in me would like to believe that sustainable, healthy, and ethical products shouldn’t only beavailableto to the elite category.
I hope that middle & lower America,can all have healthy eating habits and bodies, and eliminate all the fillers that have been injected in the rest of the foods out there.
I hope that it is the newer generation of product developers at Kellogg’s, who want their families healthy, and not just the “trend” casters, that are making these decisions. If the case, such products will be on the shelves for a long time. Hopefully the process of obtaining the certification would be untainted as well. The USDA must stick to their guidelines and not back down to make sure no shady business is going on.
August 4th, 2006 at 4:32 amAlthough I am not that well-read on the topic, from what I have gathered from local farmers and some in the “organic” community, the USDA version of “organic” has changed considerably from what it once was. The regulatory process and defining of the USDA’s “organic” is not the same as it used to be, even ten years ago. This has made it easier and less expensive for companies such as Kellogg’s to claim “organic” on their products… Perhaps the sell out has long begun?
As far as the USDA protecting us from shady business, I ain’t gonna hold my breath on that one.
August 4th, 2006 at 9:11 amBut keep in mind that Kellogs already owns both Kashi and Morningstar Farms, so their involvement (for good or bad) in the organic food movement is nothing new. What is new is large companies using the organic label to appeal to mainstream consumers. The problem I see is that many of us have put too much meaning in organics. This is a label that is about what chemicals do or don’t go into our food, which is vitally important, but many of us also assume it means that the food is ethically produced in other ways. But an organic label, especially on a mainstream food, does not mean that workers or animals involved were treated well; doesn’t mean that the company is otherwise environmentally responsible; and doesn’t mean that we can trust the company to look out for consumers.
August 4th, 2006 at 11:22 amAlthea thanks for reminding us about that. Sometimes we forget the conglomeration of so many purported “organic” health-food companies. Indeed - the term has been co-opted. That was my point about the USDA also.
Organic and green is marketable - its fresh, new and improved. Its bringing in the green, literally. While I agree that its great to popularize notions such as sustainability and ethical growing practices, the integrity of the product might get sacrificed along the way. Its like so many other things that come to the fore in western culture - the content is sacrificed for the sake of the shell. Surfaces rule. These surfaces dwindle eventually, leading back to necessity, so ultimately the fad fades.
It definitely seems that working to buy locally - support regional farms, businesses, and dairy producers (if not vegan) etc… is a good way to really know where your food is coming from.
August 4th, 2006 at 7:23 pm