This newsletter is published every two weeks and contains the latest news and information about what is happening in the organics sector in New Zealand and overseas.

From the Chief Executive - Dr Jon Tanner

Next week is Bee Week - when we put a spotlight on the honey and bumble bees which are crucial to horticulture and agriculture, with a role far beyond honey production.

Apiculture has much in common with organics - it is a small sector, but provides huge spillover benefits across the primary industry.

Both are critical to the future of production - organics is becoming recognized for its value as an important point of innovation for the farming sector as a whole, while as much as a third of everything we eat relies on bee pollination.

Concern at the world's declining bee population has put an international focus on some of farming's hardest workers. In many countries, the use of toxic agrichemicals is poisoning bees so that they cannot perform their vital pollination role, and during Bee Week OANZ will make the point that bee-friendly farmers and shoppers should accept nothing less than certified organic products.

Here in New Zealand, beekeepers have struggled since the arrival of varroa in 2000. We do not yet have organic options which can control the early stages of varroa infestation, and organic beekeepers in the South Island are in a race against time as the mite - which has already devastated organic beekeepers in the North Island - spreads south. Research into effective organic treatments is urgently needed, and would allow all farmers to reduce their reliance on harmful and expensive agrichemicals.

New Zealand produces around 300 tonnes of certified organic honey annually and, despite the challenges they face, organic beekeepers are generally positive about their future.

Our call for bee-friendly farming - without agrichemicals and led by organic research - will be reinforced to the Minister of Agriculture, other Members of Parliament, senior officials and journalists at a function in Parliament's "Beehive" on Tuesday night.

Bee Week is being coordinated by the National Beekeepers Association, Horticulture New Zealand, OANZ and Plant and Food Research - showing how the primary sector can group together to help focus attention on small sectors.

Free coffee and a new website, as OANZ celebrates Earth Day

OANZ celebrated Earth Day on 22 April by giving away coffee in central wellington and relaunching its website at www.oanz.org.nz.

The new OANZ website hosts a Knowledgebase, which is designed to search across authoritative New Zealand and international websites, providing links to technical, trade and other information about organics. Over time, it will become an essential tool for finding out about how to meet the challenges and achieve the potential of organic farming.

The site also has an organic blog, providing informal up to date information and opinion on organics from New Zealand and around the world.

OANZ also marked Earth Day by giving away organic coffee in central Wellington, in conjunction with partners Inca-Fé coffee and Anchor 'Simply Organic' milk.

Around 1000 people joined OANZ in Wellington's Civic Square for cups of organic coffee, or packs of organic coffee beans to take away. Along with each serving of coffee, OANZ provided information about the proven benefits of organics to increasing biodiversity, improving water quality, reducing energy use and adapting to climate change.

Dr Jon Tanner, OANZ Chief Executive Officer, said Earth Day 2009 was a celebration of 'The Green Generation', and an individual’s commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption. Choosing organic products is an easy way for people to make a real environmental difference, Dr Tanner said.

Organic honey producer sees varroa as only a temporary setback

New Zealand's largest producer of certified organic honey, the Waitaki Honey Company near Kurow in North Otago, is breathing a sigh of relief at having escaped the arrival of varroa this season. But co-director Kate White is realistic the varroa mite will eventually arrive and is resigned to the likelihood of having to use conventional pesticides to treat her hives.

"We'll probably have to go (non-organic) for a couple of years. There is no really effective way to treat varroa successfully organically in a business of our size in the initial stages."

Despite this, Kate sees varroa as only a short-term setback to her long-term vision of continuing to produce organic honey.

Waitaki Honey is run by Kate and her partner, Peter Irving, whose family involvement in beekeeping dates back to the 1940's. The company has been certified organic since 1996. It collects honey from about 3500 hives nestled in the remote valleys of the plateau country below the Southern Alps - a region which Kate says is naturally suited for organic production, because of the type of farming undertaken there.

Organic standards require hives to be located more than 5km away from any intensively farmed properties. Kate says the "wilderness area" surrounding their hives has an abundance of natural clover for the bees.

Waitaki Honey produces on average about 140 tonnes of certified organic honey a year, almost half the total amount of organic honey produced in New Zealand. It specialises in clover honey, plus a small amount of borage honey. Most is exported, with the largest markets being Germany, Denmark and Japan. A small amount of the honey is also used by a New Zealand company, which makes organic fruit drinks.

Late last year, the Waitaki Honey Company was one of the first New Zealand food producers to sign up as a member of Oritain, a company set up to trace and verify the origins of food products. Kate sees membership of Oritain as giving Waitaki Honey a further marketing edge, particularly in Europe and Asia, where consumers continue to demand greater transparency in the food supply chain.

Beekeeper determined to remain organic in face of varroa

A North Canterbury beekeeper, who has been producing honey organically for more than 10 years, is determined to keep his organic status while fighting off varroa using natural remedies.

Ross McCusker, from Hawarden, recently visited Denmark where he saw beekeepers treating varroa successfully with formic acid and oxalic acid. Mr McCusker is convinced the same treatment can work in his own hives, and has already given his bees a treatment of formic acid.

Mr McCusker acknowledges formic acid has some pitfalls, which is why he says most organic beekeepers are wary of using it and instead accepted they will have to lose their organic status temporarily while they treat varroa with antibiotics. But he says in Denmark, even conventional beekeepers are moving away from antibiotics and switching to formic acid and oxalic acid, as their bees are gaining resistance to the chemical drugs.

Formic acid produces a gas in the hives (as long as the temperature is over 15 degrees) which causes the bees to fan their wings furiously, and the varroa mites are destroyed as a result. In winter, when it is too cold for formic acid, Danish beekeepers are using oxalic acid as an alternative treatment.

Mr McCusker says his determination to remain organic is largely due to the lucrative markets he has built up for his honey in North America, which he is reluctant to lose.  He acknowledges he may appear overly optimistic but won't give up without a fight.

Throughout New Zealand, organic beekeepers are struggling to retain their organic status as the varroa mite continues to spread south. There is now only one certified organic beekeeper in the North Island and fewer than 20 in the South Island.

Varroa is believed to have spread as far south as North Otago and the bottom of the West Coast, and most organic beekeepers have reduced organic hive numbers, or are hoping that urgently needed research will be undertaken to provide new organic options for controlling the mite.

Organic bee product exporter John Hartnell, who is also chairman of Federated Farmers Bees, says beekeepers who are determined to remain organic will need to get a very high price for their bee products, to cover the additional management costs incurred, particularly labour and motor vehicle running costs.

The one North Island beekeeper who is certified organic had to reduce hive numbers considerably through the initial infestation and reinvasion period.

Mr Hartnell says in the longer term, once varroa is fully established and manageable, it may be possible for beekeepers to return to more widespread organic production.

Mr Hartnell notes that in many countries drugs are regarded as a "soft option" by beekeepers, with antibiotics fed to bees as a matter of course, and he doesn't want to see New Zealand go down the same track.

He is particularly keen to see more research into organic methods of controlling varroa. An Australian company is developing a product to manage varroa organically, which is expected to be released in New Zealand in autumn 2010. Mr Hartnell says if it can be released onto the market before the remaining organic hives in the South Island get varroa, they may well be able to retain their organic status.

OANZ congratulates organic groups

OANZ is congratulating regional, sector and other organic groups which have received funding under the User Defined Package programme. Under the two rounds of the programme, groups have received assistance to share ideas about how organic farming can be pursued most effectively, with funding provided for discussion groups, workshops, visiting speakers, focus farms and mentorship programmes.

OANZ Chief Executive Officer Dr Jon Tanner says with the second and final round of User Defined Packages coming to an end, OANZ has been taking stock of how groups have used the funding, which was provided through OANZ and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.

Dr Tanner notes, "Cutting edge agricultural innovation doesn't just take place in the laboratory, but on working farms, with leading farmers sharing ideas over the fence or in the woolshed.

He says OANZ has been pleased to support organic dairy and pastoral farmers, winegrowers, kiwifruit orchardists, avocado growers and pipfruit producers.

"Bringing groups together and giving them the opportunity to share information lifts the performance of everyone involved", he adds.

According to Dr Tanner, thriving networks for sharing knowledge have been set up by biodynamic producers and Maori groups - including the Taitokerau Organic Producers Incorporated Society and Ngati Uepohatu Tribal Organics Association. Dr Tanner says the programme has also provided an excellent example of how MAF's Sustainable Farming Fund works with partners to help grow small sectors.

During the 30 months of the User Defined Package programme, OANZ made almost $880,000 available to organic groups around the country, from the Far North Organic Group to the Southern Organic Group. Programmes have been run in almost every region, including Hawke's Bay, Canterbury, Coromandel, Wairarapa, Tairawhiti and Otago.

The second and final round of User Defined Package projects are scheduled to conclude by the end of June, with project coordinators required to report back to OANZ in July.

Dr Tanner says groups deserve to be congratulated for having seized this chance to share information about 'best practice' around their sectors, and around the country.

Look to organics in lake catchments, OANZ urges councils

A greater uptake of organics in sensitive catchments, such as around the Rotorua Lakes, would reduce the need for regulation, while removing the huge costs to central and local government of cleaning up agriculture-related pollution.

That's the message from OANZ Chairman Derek Broadmore in a recent letter to Rural News. Mr Broadmore notes both the Rotorua and Taupo catchments require huge challenges to restore them to their former pristine condition. In the case of Rotorua, the cost to central and local government has been estimated at more than $70 million each - making a total of $140 million.

He stresses that if farming in the catchments was sustainable, there would be no need to spend huge sums of money to rectify problems caused largely by excess nitrogen run-off.

"If the farmers in the many other catchments that are at risk were encouraged and supported to farm organically, everyone would be the winner," Mr Broadmore says.

He adds that after the initial conversion period, the farmers would have more profitable businesses and the lakes, over time, would gradually recover.

Mr Broadmore believes local authorities would use their resources far more effectively by looking to sustainable farming than by continuing down their current track.

Blenheim company develops organic antioxidant

A Marlborough company has launched a new range of antioxidants, which are certified organic.

New Zealand Extracts has developed a unique extraction process to create the new product, Oxi-fend Plus, a special blend of extracts from grape seeds, boysenberries, blackcurrants and kiwifruit.

New Zealand Extracts' Marketing and Sales Manager, Campbell Berry-Kilgour, says the process uses only water to extract and concentrate the antioxidants. This means the antioxidant activity is not destroyed by harsh chemicals or solvents, which are often used to produce other antioxidants.

The product will be officially launched at Vitafoods 2009 in Switzerland next week.

US move to ban antibiotics in animals

A bill introduced in California that would ban antibiotics from meat and poultry in that state passed out of a Senate committee last week by a vote of 3 to 1.

The measure would phase out the use of non-therapeutic antibiotics in animals meant for human consumption. It would prohibit schools in California from serving meat or poultry treated with non-therapeutic antibiotics after January 1, 2012.

By 2015, the ban would apply to any animal raised for human consumption in the state.

Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez notes, "We tell people to take antibiotics only as prescribed for the very reason that they not develop resistance to these drugs they may need when they are truly sick. Then we feed those same antibiotics daily to the animals they will consume; it just doesn't make any sense to take this gamble with the long-term health of our communities."

Not surprisingly, farming lobby groups do not support the measure. Noelle Cremers, director of natural resources and commodities for the California Farm Bureau, argues, "What Senator Florez is trying to do is take away tools we use to keep animals healthy."

USDA: Organic is better for soil than no-till

A study by the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) shows organic farming is better for the long term health of the soil than no-tillage systems.

The study, published in the Agronomy Journal, is the first published scientific research that compares organic tillage with no till.

The researchers concluded, "Our results suggest that systems that incorporate high amounts of organic inputs from manure and cover crops can improve soils more than conventional no-tillage systems despite reliance on a minimum level of tillage... if adequate weed control could be achieved in reduced-tillage organic systems, they would be capable of providing improved soil quality with yield-enhancing benefits compared with conventional no-tillage systems."

Organic NZ  May-June 2009 issue

Health is the theme of the latest issue of Organic NZ magazine, which is just out this week. There are articles on eating safely in a toxic world; raw milk; a critical look at the food pyramid; health during pregnancy; and an encouraging article about empowering yourself to better health.  Roundup and 2-4-5-T come under scrutiny.

Farmers and growers will be particularly interested in Tim Jenkins' article on testing the soil for nutrients, and Annie Wilson's interview with Scott Lawson of True Earth. Denise Cox writes about preparing the garden for winter, and all readers will be inspired by the stories on beekeeping and on marae gardens. Projects include making a mini worm farm, and home insulation.

The theme of the next issue (July/August) will be eco-villages and communities. It's still only $40 to join Soil & Health, which gives you a year's subscription to Organic NZ. Join online at www.organicnz.org or phone 09 419 4536.

Workshop: Financial performance strategies for organic systems  - assessing and improving the organic production dollar

This workshop full of practical examples (primarily pastoral) provides exercises for commercial producers to refresh their financial skills, and helps develop strategies for sound organic production. Presented by John King. (John is the Director of 'Succession' and a Holistic Management educator with 10 years experience.)

• More than accounting: Using your farm financials as a powerful business decision making tool
• How do you optimise what you have to achieve your organic farming goals, while minimising debt?
• Premium vs production cost: future-proofing your organic operation
• Beyond gross margin: What actually makes money on your farm and how should you invest to best effect?
• Savings in your soil: placing a dollar value on organic matter
• The value of variety: the impact of biodiversity on farm production and value

Locations:

May 8 - Northland
May 11 - Waikato
May 13 - Palmerston North
May 14 - Havelock North
June 5 - Gore

The workshop is supported by OANZ and the Organic Dairy and Pastoral Group.

For more information about the North Island workshops, contact Louise Cameron, phone: 07 855 7163 or email organics@groundworkassociates.co.nz. Information about the Gore workshop is available from Rebecca Reider, phone: 03 525 6111 or email rebecca.reider@gmail.com.

Diary these dates

May 5, 2009. Organic sheep, beef and cropping public field day. Maurice & Nearoli Hellewell's farm, 894 Ikawai Middle Road, Ikawai. An informative day where you will be able to delve into the workings of organic sheep, beef and cropping farm systems. Peter Carey (Land Research Services) will be describing healthy soils and Aaron Miekle will be discussing opportunities that Meat and Wool NZ have available for farmers. More information: Dave Lucock, 03 365 6804.

May 5, 2009. Field Day at Gray and Marilyn Baldwin's organic dairy farm at Putaruru. The farm won the Supreme Award at the recent 2009 Waikato Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
More information: David Natzke, phone 07 834 0400 or email waikato@bfea.org.nz.

May 15, 2009. Biodynamic/Pastoral field day at Waitawheta, near Waihi.
May 16, 2009. Bio Dynamic Farming and Gardening Association AGM and mini-conference at Aongatete lodge, near Katikati.

The mini conference will discuss mentoring. A panel comprising Andy Black (horticultural mentor, Hawke's Bay), Erin Simpson (orchardist, Hawke's Bay), Andrew Seager (vege grower and adviser, Hawke's Bay) and Dieter Proebst (orchardist and adviser, Motueka).

Annie Perkins will explain the Rural Mentor Programme. Annie is the Northern Regional Coordinator for the OANZ Organic Advisory Programme, one of the partners in mentoring.

Forms and information can be found on the Biodynamic Association website www.biodynamic.org.nz.

Organics News Roundup

USDA to conduct first wide-scale survey of organic agriculture
AgWeekly.com  20/04/2009

The 2007 Census of Agriculture counted more than 20,000 U.S. farms engaged in organic production. To learn more about how the growth of organic farming is changing the face of U.S. agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will soon conduct its first wide-scale survey of organic production.

"The Organic Production Survey comes in direct response to the growing interest in organics among consumers, farmers, businesses and others," said Vince Matthews, Director of the Idaho Field Office of USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). "This is an opportunity for organic producers to share their voices and help ensure the continued growth and sustainability of organic farming in the United States."

The survey will look at many aspects of organic farming during the 2008 calendar year - from production and marketing practices, to income and expenses. It will focus not only on operations that are currently engaged in organic production, but also on those making the transition to organic agriculture. More...

Spray war on defiant weeds gets costly
The Land (Australia)  26/04/2009

The spread of herbicide resistance and a growing list of chemical-defiant weeds pose a growing challenge to farmers, particularly those operating herbicide-dependent cropping systems.
There are now 34 species of summer and winter weeds with populations resistant to one or more agricultural herbicides.

Of particular concern to NSW producers are herbicide-resistant populations of winter-growing annual ryegrass, wild oats and wild radish, and the summer species, liverseed grass and barnyard grass. Three of these - annual ryegrass, barnyard grass and liverseed grass - are resistant to the popular and relatively cheap Group M herbicide, glyphosate.

University of Adelaide lecturer, Dr Chris Preston, says while the initial focus has been on glyphosate, ryegrass has now also developed very high levels of resistance to Group A and Group B herbicides. And although ryegrass still had relatively low levels of resistance in NSW to Group D chemistry - the trifluralin products - the future of those chemicals was also coming under threat. More...

Fresh produce tops organic sales at retail
ThePacker.com 21/04/2009

There has been some pullback on organic fresh produce purchases because of the recession, but long-term prospects appear strong for the category, retail and government reports indicated in April. Fresh produce is still the top-selling organic category in retail sales, according to an April 15 U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service report.

Consumer research from West Dundee, Illinois-based "the Perishables Group" shows that more than half of consumers surveyed in March - even in high-income groups - said they would reduce or eliminate organic fruit and vegetable purchases because of higher prices compared to conventional produce.

That trend might continue for those consumers as long as the economy is weak, but Steve Lutz, executive vice president of the Perishables Group, said core organic consumers have shown commitment to the category.

In surveys from March, 6% of consumers said they always bought organic fruits and vegetables, 5% said they usually purchased them and 24% said they sometimes purchased organic fruits and vegetables. More...

Organic dairy manure may offer fertilizer option
USDA Agricultural Research Service 22/04/2009

Dairy cows that produce USDA-certified organic milk also produce manure that may gradually replenish soil nutrients and potentially reduce the flow of agricultural pollutants to nearby water sources, according to findings by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and colleagues.

Cows on organic dairy farms generally consume forage feeds cultivated on soils that are fertilized with manure and compost rather than manufactured fertilizers. This organic management, in turn, may significantly affect how easily nutrients are converted in soil into forms readily taken up by crops.

Working with colleagues at the ARS New England Plant, Soil, and Water Laboratory in Orono, Maine, and elsewhere, chemist Zhongqi He showed that conventional and organic dairy manures from commercial dairy farms differed in concentrations of plant nutrients, including phosphorus, metals and minerals. More...

The individual comments and views in this newsletter do not necessarily represent the view of OANZ.