ABSTRACT
Organic agriculture has become the fastest-growing sector in U.S. agriculture (Jamison, 2003; Heckman, 2006). Internationally, it is a multibillion-dollar industry fully integrated into the global food system. Despite this rapid growth, signi- cant barriers still hinder the future course of the organic sector, and the history of organic agriculture can help us to understand the nature of these impediments. This chapter traces the historical origins of organic agriculture with emphasis on the United States.
