Social Dimensions of Organic Production and Systems Research

Organic food production in the United States began as a social movement response to the perceived negative externalities of an industrial food system. The agro-ecological advantages and production capabilities of organics have been well documented. To harmonize the various organic certification schemes, the national standard was developed and put into law in 2002. Since that time a process of organic conventionalization and bifurcation has occurred as traditional producers have entered the market and major firms have consolidated their organic positions. Conventionalization refers to the process by which organics take on similar characteristics of the mainstream agrifood system. Bifurcation refers to the process of organics dividing into large scale certified-organic operations selling in indirect markets and small-scale operations selling in direct markets based on trust. In this paper, we review the literature on conventionalization and bifurcation and contextualize it within the larger discussion on the sociology of agrifood. We conclude that organics provide a valuable case for looking at the ecological, social, and economic dimensions of an agricultural system and reveal future challenges regarding the long term sustainability of organics.