OACC Launches The Organic Policy Tool Shed

By Lori Stahlbrand

An authoritative and reputable new resource is now available on-line for anyone interested in the organic food system. Everyone, from growers to retailers, processors to consumers, young to old, will feel confident to call this new homepage home.

The Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada (OACC), based at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College, is launching an Organic Policy Tool Shed on its website. The idea for the Tool Shed grew out of recommendations made in the National Strategic Plan for the Canadian Organic Food and Farming Sector. The Organic Policy Tool Shed provides practical tools to engage community members and policy makers in the discussions that need to take place to advance these policy recommendations toward growing more Canadian organic food.

Explosive growth of the organic sector has been notable for some time. Retail sales have maintained 15-20% growth a year over the last ten years, making the organic sector the fastest growing retail sector on the continent. Cash receipts from Canadian organic farms totalled about $600 million at the turn of this century, representing about 1.5% of all farm sales. However, about 80% of the organic food consumed in Canada is grown elsewhere. So there's lots of room for continued rapid growth.

What's almost unknown to the general public is that this explosive growth took place with virtually no government support of any kind - be it for producer training, public education, insurance or marketing. That's where the Organic Policy Tool Shed comes in. It's designed to provide the tools needed to increase understanding of the public benefits of organic food and some of the simple policy changes that could enhance those benefits and sustain growth.

The Organic Policy Tool Shed provides impressively researched background documents and downloadable fact sheets on the economic, environmental and social benefits of organic agriculture, and how governments in other jurisdictions such as Europe and the United States have successfully supported efforts to climb the early learning curve in organic food and farming. There is also an opportunity for Tool Shed users to comment on the National Organic Strategic Plan and related documents in order to maintain a fresh perspective for on-going strategic planning.

But that's not what makes this site unique. It also features ways for everyone to engage, whatever their previous level of involvement in policy. The Tool Shed lays out how to identify all opportunities for engagement, and it provides samples and tools for taking concrete action to further the dialogue on organic food. There are tips on how to write a letter to your Member of Parliament, how to make a presentation at a public meeting, and how to approach the editorial board of your local paper and other ways to engage the media. There is a discussion about forming alliances with non-profit organizations.

The premise of the Organic Policy Tool Shed is that no one tool can lead the way to the policy changes needed to support increased progress towards increasing the availability of Canadian organic food. Just as a farmer chooses the appropriate tools for the job, so does the Tool Shed provide a range of tools, each appropriate in a different circumstance. And, of course, each person will have his or her own reasons for preferring a particular tool.

One feature of the Organic Policy Tool Shed is the Canadian Organic Database. This database will feature synopses of important, leading edge, and often replicable initiatives across Canada that are supporting the growth of sustainable food and farming. Users will be able to search by province, by level of government (municipal, provincial, or federal) and by type of initiative (policy, program or promotion) The OACC hopes that the database will grow as those involved in initiatives of interest to others across the country send details of their work to the site. No initiative is too small, and while organic food is the focus, projects that support the growth of a sustainable food system of interest to those in the organic sector are welcome. Simple instructions for sending information to the database are on the site.

To check out the Organic Policy Tool Shed and the Canadian Organic Database.

Lori Stahlbrand is developing the Organic Policy Toolshed for the Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada. Please send comments or questions by phone to 902-893-7256 or by email to oacc@nsac.ca.