By Nick Muggeridge

A recent study that the British government is calling the most comprehensive on organic food to date, concludes that organic food is not more nutritious than traditional food. The results have caused a ripple effect in Canada, as it was front-page news in the National Post on July 30. But some local organic growers think the study misses the point.

"Nutritional quality of organic foods: a systematic review," was recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The study was conducted by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and commissioned by the British government’s Food Standards Agency. It consulted 162 scientific studies (137 studied crops and 25 studied livestock products) published in the last 50 years.

The researchers say that consumers who pay higher-prices for organic food often perceive it to be healthier and more nutritious. But "there is no evidence of a difference in nutrient quality between organically and conventionally produced foodstuffs," the study says.

Researchers found that in 8 of 11 nutrients studied, organic and conventional foods had similar levels of nutrient value. As for the three nutrient differences, nitrogen content was markedly higher in conventional food, while phosphorous and acidity was much higher in organic food. But these differences, the report states, do not have any impact on health, and are simply due to different production methods.

Farmers Forum spoke to three organic growers, all of whom did not flat-out dispute the results but said that there is more to organics than just nutrition.

"Organics is not a health claim," says the national director of Canadian Organic Growers Laura Telford, based in Ottawa. "It stands on a lot of other claims. Environmental concerns like water contamination and soil degradation are other factors. The food is safer because there are no pesticides or GMO’s."

"Organic food also tastes better," says Tom Manley, owner of Homestead Organics, an Organic farm supplier at Berwick, east of Chesterville. He says taste and food quality are other reasons that people choose organic.

Bananas and carrots, for example, says Maureen Bostock, an organic grower near Perth, are proven to taste much better organically produced than traditionally produced.

Telford does question the science behind the study, suggesting that it was outdated because it examined old reports, sometimes going back 50 years. While the researchers did examine 162 studies, only 55 were deemed to be of "satisfactory quality."

But the researchers do note that the "large proportion of articles identified were published after 2000."

More than simply focusing on the nutrients in the food itself, says Telford, "organics is all about soil building, and putting things in the soil that promote micronutrients." The report does not consider, she says, that conventional production uses pesticides and chemical fertilizers, which damage soil, and leave dangerous residues in finished food products.

But Stephane Shank of Health Canada says that use of pesticides in conventional food production does not pose any health risk.

"Canada has one of the most stringent pesticide regulatory systems in the world," he says, "Before any pesticide is allowed for use in Canada, it must be evaluated by Health Canada to ensure there are no health or environmental concerns related to its use."

In Britain, many critics are outraged because the report did not consider pesticides as a health risk. Head researcher for the study, Dr. Alan Dangour, even received hate mail. But the British Government’s Food Standards Agency defended the study, saying that pesticide use "does not pose an unacceptable risk to human health and helps to ensure a plentiful supply of food all year round." The government-funded study was not meant to slam the organic industry, the standards agency says, but rather to provide information in order to make sure people eat a balanced diet.

"The report won’t have any effect on the industry," says Bostock, "consumers are becoming more sophisticated and they understand that health is not just about nutrients."

"We’re seeing more trends towards consumers buying organic for environmental reasons," says Telford. These consumers, she says, will not be fazed by the nutrition report. "I think the recession has spooked quite a few more people than the report."

The market for organic food has seen a drop over the last year, Telford says, as the economic downturn has forced many consumers to stop buying higher-priced food products.