Allies in Local Farming: Wedge Joins Midwest Food Alliance

In the past year, Wedge members and shoppers have started a veritable drumbeat, asking for more Minnesota-grown fruits and vegetables. Many folks took the time to write us, saying that they'd be willing to forego organic produce if it meant supporting small, local farmers during our tragically brief growing season.

In response to the steady requests for more local produce, the Wedge has joined the Midwest Food Alliance (MWFA). This St. Paul-based group is a coalition of growers, processors, distributors, grocers, and consumers promoting the expanded use of good ecological practices on Midwest farms. They accomplish this by recognizing farmers who produce food in environmentally and socially responsible ways through MWFA's third-party certification program.

Everyone knows that the fresher ingredients are, the better the finished meal will taste, and by expanding the Wedge's line of high-quality, locally grown fruits and veggies, we offer our members more and better dinner options.

The Wedge joined MWFA because their certified farms and ranches follow environmentally positive growing practices. While they're "conventional" by organic standards, these farmers are anything but run-of-the-mill. They reduce/eliminate pesticide use, conserve soil and water resources, and protect and enhance wildlife habitat. They grow crops without GMO seeds, create safe and participatory conditions for workers, and provide healthy and humane care for livestock. "The Midwest Food Alliance certification helps consumers identify local farmers who are doing good work trying to improve the sustainability of their operations," says Jean Andreasen, MWFA's Marketing Coordinator.

The overlap with organics is considerable, but MWFA and organic certification have distinct differences. On one hand, organic product has been scientifically proven to be cleaner - MWFA standards merely call for "reductions" in pesticides. On the other hand, however, Food Alliance farmers seek to lessen the impact on environment, native habitat, and workers - issues that organic certification doesn't always address. Ever wonder about the environmental impact of organic melons grown in the desert for your winter consumption - or labor conditions on a Dole organic banana plantation? "Midwest Food Alliance certification is a broader set of standards than organic certification," says Andreasen.

Because of these differences, the Wedge feels that the organic and MWFA labels will work well in tandem, giving co-op shoppers the choice between buying less toxic, organic product (an advisable strategy, particularly for pregnant women and kids aged seven or less) versus food grown with broader social and environmental issues in mind.

Furthermore, the two systems even work in tandem on individual farms, since several Minnesota organic farms are also members of the Midwest Food Alliance. This makes sense, since a third-party inspector, unaffiliated with either the Food Alliance or the grower, inspects the farms in question - the same way that organic certification operates. Like organics, MWFA certification requires farmers to uphold the guiding principles of the program, so that, according to Ray Kirsch, Certification Coordinator of the Midwest Food Alliance, "If egregious violations of these principles were found through inspection (or brought to our attention by other means), the farm's certification would be revoked." This is how organic certification works, as well.

As with any new eco-label, there are certain shortcomings. The biggest problem with the Food Alliance label is the lack of oversight for their standards, as organic certification enjoys. International service organizations like ISO-65 "certify the certifiers" in the organic industry, and consequently, organic certification standards have exceptionally high integrity. Because the Midwest Food Alliance is a fairly new group, says Kirsch, it doesn't currently have the funding to seek this kind of comprehensive verification of standards. That said, The Consumer's Union gives the Food Alliance its highest marks in a study of the food label's standards and claims. The Wedge hopes to encourage the Food Alliance toward certification with a group like ISO-65 through our active involvement.

In late June, the Wedge started carrying its first Midwest Food Alliance product, sweet strawberries from Lake City, Minnesota, which customers loved. Bi-color sweet corn and snappy green beans from MWFA-certified Axdahl Farm north of Stillwater were right around the corner, and by the time you read this, Food Alliance melons and crunchy apples grown along the Mississippi River will probably be making their way into the Wedge, too.

We hope this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. As the co-op's relationship with the Midwest Food Alliance deepens, come next August, the Wedge hopes to offer you a bigger cornucopia of Minnesota fruits and veggies.