Research Reports

For many consumers, the question no longer is whether to go green but how to go green.

One reliable way is to buy organic-certified fresh produce. But what if shoppers are looking at “green” from a different perspective? What if they’re looking for sustainably grown produce?

That’s more complicated because some consumers are confused about exactly what “sustainability” means. Some think it means local produce. Others think it means organic. Still others think it means limiting inputs.

Jeanne von Zastrow, senior director of sustainability and industry relations at the Food Marketing Institute, Arlington, Va., says that with more than 90 environmental labels for food items, there is “overwhelming confusion” among consumers. Because there is no industrywide or legal definition of sustainability, many grower-shippers use their own definitions.

Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce, San Diego, defines sustainability in its simplest form as “the pursuit of profitable farming practices,” says Mark Munger, vice president of marketing. At its core, sustainability means minimizing inputs while maximizing outputs. Andrew & Williamson’s broader definition includes social responsibility and environmental effects, too.

“In its simplest sense, sustainability is doing business — or living — in a way that doesn’t damage or deplete our resources,” says Samantha Cabaluna, director of communication for Earthbound Farm, San Juan Bautista, Calif. Its concept of sustainability includes the health and well-being of people and the planet, as well as organic practices.

Cabaluna says Earthbound Farm describes its organic practices as “sustainable” because it’s a term consumers know. It doesn’t, however, use “sustainably grown” as a marketing technique on labels.

Organic = sustainable?

“Organic agriculture emerged from the desire to produce food in ways that harmonized with natural ecosystems, rather than damaging or depleting natural resources — which is the simplest definition of sustainability,” Cabaluna says.

Although Earthbound Farm says its produce is a perfect example of sustainably grown food, producing organically is not necessarily the same as operating sustainably.

Simcha Weinstein, marketing director for Albert’s Organics, Bridgeport, N.J., says that although “organic” and “sustainable” are commonly used interchangeably, the agricultural practices are not the same. The USDA’s organic certification process reviews production processes, including types of pesticides used, for example, but it doesn’t assess producers’ long-term effects on the environment.

A key difference between organic and sustainable is the issue of food miles, Weinstein says. Organic foods are typically sourced year-round and globally. Weinstein says blueberries, for example, are abundant in U.S. stores in January, but they are not sourced locally at that time of year. They may be organic, but they might require the use of many nonrenewable resources to ship them.

“Typically, with sustainable farming, the focus is on long-term economic profit, social benefits to the farm and community, and environmental conservation,” Weinstein says. “It relies on a whole-system approach with the overall goal being the health and well-being of the land and the people.”

For each of its eight U.S. distribution centers, Albert’s has a local and regional program with smaller producers that focus on sustainability, he says.

Munger of Andrew & Williamson says growing organically might not be most efficient. Barbara Meister, marketing and communications manager for Protected Harvest, Soquel, Calif., says that Protected Harvest’s sustainability program considers people and wildlife habitats in ways an organic program probably wouldn’t.

Moving toward industrywide agreement
Using sustainability as a marketing and sales tool requires consumers to understand it and want it. Grower-shippers need for “sustainability” to be a meaningful term with consistent and legitimate definition and standards, Weinstein says.

Sustainability in the food industry is about balancing the outcomes for people, the planet and for profitability, von Zastrow says. A new FMI publication, “Sustainability on the Shelves: A Guide for Category Managers,” analyzes sustainability in the food industry and offers advice to retailer buyers and category managers. It offers a list of questions retailers can ask suppliers to judge sustainability practices, and it says good topics to ask about are: carbon footprint, water usage, waste management, packaging and agricultural trends, including local sourcing and organics.

Questions from buyers spurred Oxnard, Calif.-based Gills Onions LLC several years ago to begin formally analyzing its sustainability practices, says Nikki Rodoni, director of sustainability. Rodoni says that sustainability is profitable and that Gills has the economic and environmental data to prove it. Gills includes effects on employees and the local community in its sustainability model.

Among Gills’ initiatives is a zero-waste initiative at its processing facility in partnership with the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California-Santa Barbara. Another project with the school, which is expected to result in recommendations for growers to reduce environmental effects and resource usage, is a pilot for the Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops.

The Stewardship Index is an effort by growers, produce associations, environmental groups, trade associations and other parties to establish measurable outcomes-based socially, economically and environmentally sustainable standards. The group piloted eight metrics in 2010 and expects to publish the results and a beta set of metrics in the spring, Meister says.

Certified sustainable

One reason to certify sustainability is to reward growers for good stewardship, Meister says. Certification can create opportunities for more sales for growers. Meister says Parlier, Calif.-based Sunwest Fruit Co. Inc.’s sustainably grown certification helped it land an account with a major retailer. Protected Harvest certifies stone fruit, citrus, mushroom, strawberry and potato growers as growing sustainably. Its crop-specific standards include measurements of effects on the environment, employees and communities.

Until there is industrywide agreement, grower-shippers say transparency is key. Munger says Andrew & Williamson is open about its practices. Gills Onions’ website, www.gillsonions.com, was redesigned in the fall, in part to better communicate to buyers and end-users about its sustainability practices, Rodoni says.

“If companies who use the word ‘sustainable’ are very transparent about what they mean by that term, they will gain the trust of consumers,” Cabaluna says. “But I do think that until there is wide acceptance of what the term means, its value will be limited.”