BioFach Events: Between Realpolitik and Rebellion

With a furious speech against genetically modified food at the opening event, Slow Food President Carlo Petrini got BioFach 2007 underway. In the course of BioFach, genetic modification was condemned not only by other important representatives from the organic movement, like Vandana Shiva, but also by politicians. People heard thoughtful contributions on other topics too. In contrast, the lofty representatives of national and EU politics were far from convincing.

Picture: Lively Music at the Opening of BioFach 2007

During his speech, to the applause of the audience, the charismatic Italian Carlo Petrini declared in German: “I’m an organic farmer”, recalling Kennedy’s statement: “I’m a Berliner.” He also alluded to the fall of the Berlin Wall: the wall of organic piracy built by the big seed companies had to be pulled down. “Anyone who sows utopia will harvest reality; we are not looking backwards but forwards.” He demanded zero tolerance for genetic modification.

Picture: Bernward Geier, Carlo Petrini

The Mayor of Nuremberg, Mr Maly, a familiar face at BioFach’s opening events, was applauded too for his rejection of GM and the commitment shown by the model organic city Nuremberg. Using the analogy of the snail, he declared that Slow Food had proved that a symbiosis between sustainability and taste was possible. In his view, BioFach had for its part proved that a symbiosis between ethics and earning money was possible.

As the highest representative in the EU in the sphere of agriculture, Mariann Fischer Boel (picture) opened BioFach this year. After the surprising unanimity of the Ministers of Agriculture in December 2006 regarding the new EU Organic Regulation, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture was anxious to create a positive atmosphere. In her speech that was listened to with rapt attention, she defended the compromise reached by the EU Ministers of Agriculture in respect of the revision of the EU Organic Regulation as ‘well balanced’. “I would like the organic industry to exploit its full potential, and we will create the necessary framework conditions for this to happen,” Mrs Fischer Boel announced.

Recognition of national logos and associations’ logos would continue to be acceptable. The Eco-action plan was being implemented, and a large number of advertising and information campaigns for the summer were being prepared. The aim was less bureaucracy with regard to importing organic products into the EU. The graphic design of the EU logo, that would be obligatory as an imprint or in lettering, was to be amended. She promised the more than 700 visitors attending the opening of BioFach that there would be a new draft. The promulgation of the new organic regulation was scheduled for June and, with its introduction, all the issues relating to organic food would be dealt with in a single law. The audience responded to her speech with restrained applause. The organic industry still does not know what to think of the Commissioner for Agriculture, still does not know precisely where she stands.

Unlike his predecessor Renate Künast, the Secretary of State for Agriculture, Mr Seehofer, did not attend the opening in person but sent his minister Gerd Müller to represent him. His speech met with hardly any approval at all. His lack of connection with the industry was very apparent when he spoke about the 5 % of the market that felt it was the avantegarde and the 95 % who similarly ‘had to reach high standards.’ There were even some interruptions from the audience pointing out the lack of a clear approach to genetic modification. The Ministry in Berlin has still not adopted an unequivocal position. The minister did, however, promise that grants that had been withdrawn would be reinstated ‘in the medium term’.

During the opening event, the Italian Minister Stefano Bocco took a clearer line. He considered that protecting the idea of organic only in respect of food was insufficient, and he called for regulations relating to the non-food sector, such as textiles and cleaning materials, as well. On the subject of GM, he was of the same opinion as Carlo Petrini when he demanded zero GM in all foodstuffs.

On the day preceding the opening of BioFach, the worldwide umbrella organisation of the organic movement, IFOAM, held a congress. The topic of this event was the question whether the conventional trade was to be regarded as friend or foe of the organic industry. Three speakers from the conventional trade and an American consultant had been invited. The contribution by the head of Alnatura Götz Rehn (picture) was interesting for the international audience, because he described the input made by his company in the search for holistic and radical solutions regarding environmental compatibility of products and of the whole company management. The representative of Hain-Celestial, Bruno Fischer, responsible for purchasing in Europe and South America, expressed the view that the declining availability of organic raw materials would, in the longer term, be conducive to higher product quality.

Tom Harding is known for his activities at the Organic Trade Association (OTA) but had been invited in his function as consultant to the IFOAM event. He stressed that everyone was needed – including everybody in the conventional trade who was interested - to keep on developing the organic trade. In this process, the old hands had to be the teachers and mentors. “The door has to stay wide open so that we can capture the 97% of the market that is not yet organic.”

Mathew Miller (picture), deputy Marketing Manager at the US food chain Safeway, presented a much appreciated video on Safeway’s organic own brand ‘O Organic’. Mr Miller explained that O Organic, with 150 organic items that were launched in October 2005, was now one of Safeway’s five most successful own brands. In the USA, Safeway has 1800 supermarkets with an annual turnover of $ 40 bn.

It was a matter of regret that the speakers at the IFOAM symposium restricted themselves to their own successful operations, with the result that there was no critical evaluation of whether the conventional retail food trade was friend or foe. Questions from the audience did not get straight answers. More information on the event can be found on the IFOAM web site.

Carlo Petrini and Vandana Shiva from India wanted to draw attention to the GM topic. The press conference was organised by Bernward Geier (Colabora) and Benny Härlin (Save our Seeds). “All initiatives against GM are welcome, even if they break the law,” said the Slow Food President, clearly calling for civil disobedience. As a weapon to fight organic piracy, Mr Petrini proposed an open source databank that could be accessed by the public. He explained that the aim was that individual seed varieties would be described in detail in the databank so that companies would not be able later to claim they had ‘invented’ something. Vandana Shiva accused these companies, with their ‘perverse technology’, of being guilty of destroying the livelihoods of 150,000 dependent farmers in India. Women in India were now the pioneers of new seed breeding, with the slogan ‘Breeding for Diversity’. Both speakers mentioned the new joint project ‘Future of Food Commission’ with the manifesto on the future of seeds www.future-food.org. Benny Härlin took the opportunity of having well known organic celebs gathered together to launch this year’s Bantam Maize Campaign.

Picture: Benny Härlin, Vandana Shiva 

Representatives from five countries came together at a meeting of various specialist organic magazines. After introducing themselves and their magazines, and describing their particular operations, it was decided to collaborate much more in future and to exchange information. Twice as many media organisations are said to be interested in cooperation at BioFach 2008 via an improved European network.

Photo: Bernard Faber/Biofood Holland, Ferenc Frühwald/Biokosar Hungary, Kai Kreuzer/Bio-Markt.Info, Magdalena Przybylak/Eko-Arka Poland, Zeynep Gelenkuru/Bugday Turkey.

On Thursday evening, the traditional come-together of BNN (National Association for Natural Foods, Manufacture and Trade) attracted 500 participants. Hermann Heldberg (picture) from Naturkost Elkershausen, who will soon have been involved for thirty years in developing the industry, gave the introductory address. With his statement: “In the early days, we wanted to do everything differently from our parents. Now we have managed it, we have arrived,” he looked back over the evolution of the organic movement. He did add a word of caution, however, saying that we should pause every so often and consider ‘whether we are on the right path.’

On the BioFach Hall evening (Friday, 16th Feb.) more than 20 stand parties were in full swing. One of the biggest was the party on the Italian piazza in Hall 4, a large circular platform with a band playing lively music (picture). Guests helped themselves to pasta, millet pan bakes, steamed vegetables and cake for dessert. For most people, the evening drew to a relaxed end with dancing and chatting at the party in the Natural Cosmetics Hall (7a, organised by the Association of German Industry and Trade). As usual, the big Italy fest on Saturday evening was very popular, and it attracted more than 1000 visitors used to good food and drink (picture below).

Conclusion: the organic industry between globalisation, company interests and resistance is now far from displaying the unity that characterised it ten or twenty years ago. It has fragmented into separate movements, even though they are brought together by specific topics like strict organic guidelines and the rejection of GM.  BioFach, with its many press conferences and around 150 seminars in the congress, brings the many factions together under one roof. Nevertheless, the contradictions between globalisation and regional marketing, conventional trade with organic products and the specialist trade could in the future become even more marked.