Ananova

Organic Food Complaints Upheld

Advertising watchdogs have upheld complaints against claims that organic food is tastier, healthier and better for the environment and animals.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld four complaints against claims in a Soil Association leaflet entitled Five Reasons To Eat Organic.

It said the claims that consumers could taste the difference, it was healthy, it was better for the environment and organic meant healthy, happy animals had not been substantiated and asked that they be removed.

The Soil Association, the UK's leading organic food and farming organisation, said it was "amazed" at the ruling and was challenging it. It has referred the ruling to the independent reviewer of ASA adjudications, Sir John Caines.

A complaint against the leaflet's fifth claim that it was free of genetically modified organisms was not upheld by the ASA. The complaints were made by the National Office of Animal Health, which represents animal medicines companies.

In support of the claim that organic food is tastier the Soil Association provided the results of a Mori poll to the ASA.

It showed 43% of consumers who preferred organic food did so because it tasted better but the ASA said more rigorous evidence was needed.

The same research showed 53% of people buying organic produce did so because they thought it was healthy. But the watchdog said the association had not provided clinical evidence that an organic diet was healthier than the same diet consisting of non-organic food.

The ASA accepted organic farming set out to protect the environment and that organic farmers were expected to ensure ethical treatment of animals. But it said the Soil Association had not proved this was achieved in practice.

It accepted the Soil Association claim that organic food was GMO free noting that genetically modified organisms were banned in organic farming and food processing.

for everything organic demonstrates a public and market confidence in the Soil Association's standards that far outweighs this dismal decision."