ABSTRACT
Organic farming encompasses a wide range of practices; not all of these are associated with the strongest or most positive rural development impacts. The Soil Association and Organic Farmers and Growers certification agencies set many of the standards for British organic agriculture and they could make considerable changes that incorporated rural development goals. For instance, the development of a higher-level trading network in which farmers are bound to sell through local markets or direct to the end consumer, coupled to obligations to honour fair trade and good employment practices, could be used to reward such farms through the marketplace. Such a development has been resisted for fear of confusing consumers yet those purchasing organic goods are already differentiating between organic foods whose labels signal distinctive social-economic footprints. Many farmers, especially those in commodity sectors under price pressure such as dairying, argue that there is no direct supply option for them.
