What’s so special about organic farming?

In the olden days, there were no chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Everything in farming and livestock and poultry raising was done according to what nature can give.

Chickens were fed with palay and were free to hunt for their own food. Hogs were fed with palay husks, vegetables and assorted leaves of available plants. Palay crops were fertilized with chicken manure and pig wastes. So with vegetables and fruit trees.

Since the beginning of time all foods from plants were grown organically. Synthetic chemicals were used only in the last 50 years to cope they say with the growing population. But health and environment problems cropped up that these days organic food farming is back again on the heels of genetically modified organisms (GMO) and getting popular again. One such popular organic organization in the Philippines is the Organic Producers Trade Association (OPTA).

So what is organic farming? According to OPTA: "Organic foods are grown according to nature’s own recipe– full of fresh flavor and good nutrition without pesticides that damage the environment."

One member of the OPTA is Ever Rich Farm Corp.in Santiago City, Isabela where its produce are served at the DeliFresh Resto at the Carpark Bldg. Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City. Both the farm and the resto are managed by Eva Rose Pua, a BSBA Major in Management and Finance graduate and a jeweler for 15 years before becoming an organic farmer.

At the Delifresh, one can relish the first "certified organic chicken" in the country. These free-range chickens are raised in harmony with nature, devoid of any antibiotics, vaccines and steroid and feed with organically grown grains and cereals. Ms. Pua describes her offerings as "Food to live by — organic from the very beginning."

Its vegetarian entree and all other organic goodies certified as "pesticide free" coming from all over the Philippines are: organic salad greens and herbs from the highlands of Tagaytay and Laguna; organic veggies from the Cordilleras ; organic rice from Nueva Ecija; indigenous rice from Nueva Viscaya and Abra; organic corn and soya from Cagayan Valley; and a variety of nicely packed foodstuffs and fresh seafoods from the Visayas and Mindanao. Their drinks are also from organic fruits.

What is certified organic? To earn the label "certified organic" the food products must meet strict standards from the seeds right through growing, harvesting and being sold in the grocery store, markets and supermarkets. Each organic farm is inspected to be sure that only approved organic methods are applied. Farm owners must have practiced organic methods for three years prior to certification and they must also meet strict requirements of handling foods and their operations must be examined annually by independent inspectors.