ABSTRACT
Some standards relevant to agricultural sustainability are widely known because they are accompanied by certification and labelling schemes that increase their visibility to consumers. Food produced to organic and fair trade standards have come to occupy highly visible market niches in most developed countries. While standardization is intended to harmonize processes and/or outcomes, in reality producers are often forced to deal with a plethora of competing standards and standards-setting bodies. Standards and labels based on the principle of fairness place more emphasis on what are arguably private benefits such as increased farm revenue. Standards for organic agriculture are explored first as they are possibly the most widely recognized of all standards relevant to agri-environmental policy. Organic standards are often criticized as being little more than lists of permissible and prohibited inputs. Working backwards from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) definition of standards quoted is possible to identify a range of circumstances unfavourable to standardization.
