by Lauren Todd

Created on: April 05, 2010

Why does organically grown food cost more? It is because the business of creating food worthy of the famous green “Organic” seal of approval, in all its aspects, is a very involved one that entails a very strict certification procedure, and this cost, both in time, labor required, energy and materials used, gets passed on to the consumer.

Included in any and all discussions on organic food as it relates to cost should be the understanding that many organic foods cost either: a lot more, somewhat more or just a little more as compared to their conventional counterparts, depending on the type of food and here is why -

* A lot more - dairy and meats, to include organic beef and organic chicken can cost twice as much. This is because the animals involved in the process are being grass fed, which can cost twice as much as corn feed.

* Somewhat more - fruits and vegetables are usually around 10-20 cents more per pound, depending on the store and the season. This is because the farmer cannot rely on pesticides and the process becomes more labor intensive and the organic fertilizer is more expensive to transport. Also, the rotation of crops is not only labor intensive but it is also means that higher value crops will not always be the one’s planted as the soil needs rest and nutrients found in a variety of different types of plantings.

* A little more - A box of organic cookies or crackers is usually a few cents more than a box of non-organic, or both packages are the same price. The reason for this is because of the amount of ingredients that goes into any processed and packaged food is high, so therefore each step of the process is more involved, whether the product is organically produced or conventionally created. Also, most organic food is considered high quality food and so other high quality packaged food items compare in value, and this reflects in the price of the organic packaged food, being set at close to or equal to the conventional packaged food.

The increase in price, that applies to all organically produced food is the increase in administrative costs and fees involved, the cost of heath and welfare to all people and animals involved in non-organic production as a comparison and the sales being somewhat less productive, due to the fact that some of the commercialized brand foods still sell faster than the organic ones.

Cost is measured in as many ways as the comprehensive and intricate process of growing and producing these foods is. When all is taken into consideration- food quality, labor, natural process followed, safety and environment factors and the health risks involved as a comparison, in the non-organic model, as well as administrative costs and supply and demand quantifiers, the higher cost is just part of the deal.

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