growing food – Blog Greenearthorganics

Supermarkets have a stranglehold on our food system, whatever way you look at it they set the rules, they control 93% of a €22 billion pie, that is some power when you think about it. The argument goes that supermarkets are only giving us as consumers what we want, but how would we know what we want?

Please watch my Instagram video this week. http://instagram.com/greenearthorganics1

There is immense psychology around getting people to buy high margin low value products (think ultra processed food). I was at panel discussion during the week chaired by Aoibheann O’Brien who runs Food Cloud, and the title was the “myth of choice in supermarkets” a very interesting discussion.

We have been conditioned for instance to expect vegetables and fruit to come in a certain shape and size and look a certain way, if we only ever shop in supermarkets how would we know that fresh produce comes in all sizes, and in fact comes out of the ground with soil on it, and that this is, ok? In fact, it is more than ok, it is amazing and wonderful.

The shiny plastic packs keep us in our box so to speak; they convey a very comforting all is well and this is the way things should be feel. But you know what it is not “all is well” and don’t even get me started on all the plastic rubbish generated by these single use plastics. At the excellent Climate Carnival discussion there was a discussion on plastic, and the big elephant in the room, is what truly happens to the contents of our blue recycle bin?

We pack in paper and compostable bags, and the reality is supermarkets will not pack their veg in compostable bags because they are expensive.

I spoke to a man who knows the food system and knows the buying behaviour of supermarkets, and his take was ultimately fresh food is too cheap, and supermarkets are responsible of bringing us to this point, end of story. I spoke to Philip Dreaper who is an amazing carrot grower, and he reminded me that we as consumers paid more for a kg of carrots 20 years ago that we do today. He also reminded me that growing is getting more challenging as a result of climate change.

We had an amazing day of celebrations last weekend at our 20 year anniversary Sustainable Festival. It was emotional and uplifting and enlightening and I cannot begin to convey my thanks to all of you who came, to all the suppliers and vendors, and to all our amazing team that made it all work.

It was then with all of this as a backdrop that we faced into our usual Monday morning with orders not at all where they needed to be for mid-September, each week we had been waiting for the routines to set in and things to improve for our deliveries, and we were left with a massive glut of cherry tomatoes, for us we counted nearly 400kg which is a true mountain of tomatoes. It was with a bittersweet taste in my mouth that I had to go to the tunnel and ask again as I did in the summer if you could support us this week. I would much prefer not to have to do this.

We I am sure could improve so many things, and so many things we need to address such as cost. We know there is a cost-of-living crisis we know our produce is expensive relative to supermarkets. But we simply cannot compete on some things with them, but we would hope that how we conduct ourselves as a farm and business and community, and the value that is in the fresh organic food would speak for itself.

I am sure I am missing something, so please if you know of ways we could make it easier and better for you to order from us and help us to ensure we keep more of you our customer supporting us, please send us an e-mail (info@greenearthorganics.ie) or leave us a comment. We will take it all on board.

Thank you so much for the last 20 years, and here is to the next 20 years.

Kenneth

PS We have reduced prices on several key items to help address some of the cost issues, check out our website. Also, as an added celebration of the start of Irish apple season, we are giving away a FREE portion of IRISH organic apples from Richard Galvin in Waterford when you spend over €80, just enter the code FREEAPPLES

We need glyphosate, it is as simple as that, without it we can’t grow enough food, excuse me?

We never really know what is going on behind the scenes, what is decided and talked about behind the closed doors. We are told things and we need to figure out if it is in our best interests to believe what we are told. For instance, we are told we need glyphosate to produce all the food that is produced in the world. That there would be real trouble if it was banned.

This was exactly the case in 2024, when an exceptionally strong agricultural lobbying group COPA-COGECA successfully lobbied the EU Commission to throw out their pesticide reduction target, this new law part of the EU green deal was formally withdrawn by the Commission in February 2024.

The EU green deal for farmers was going to cut pesticide use in half.

Thomas Waitz A green MEP from Austria said “Copa Cogeca focused on sabotaging, delaying and ultimately stopping the sustainable use of pesticide regulation. They are acting in the interests of large agrichemical and multinationals against the wellbeing of small and medium famers.” The pesticide regulation was withdrawn in 2024.

This organisation set out to protect in particular the use of Glyphosate and the bee harming pesticides neonicotinoids.

This union does represent the rights of farmers, but it represents the rights of some more than others, bigger industrial groups for one.

This same lobbying group (insert link 2) that got an agreement on the extension of the use of cages for chickens for another 10 years. In fact, behind the scenes files captured by “Grilled” (the investigative journalist website) show this organisation receiving support from EU commissioners in blocking parts of the EU effort to beat cancer, pressuring ministers to weaken protections for wild animals, securing emissions exemptions for factory farms, and prolonging the use of cages for livestock. Using the tactics of large tobacco to lobby, cajole and convince that it is in our best interests as farmers and consumers to do things such as this. (insert link 1)

One analysis found the EU’s agricultural promotion programme had spent €252 million over four years advertising meat and dairy products, making up a third of its budget. Imagine if that budget was used for promoting vegetables!

The EU is now debating a proposal to remove the periodic safety reviews of pesticides always on the market, effectively giving pesticides a carte blanche for ever.

It is safe to say that organic farming is not a perfect system, but it represents a system that attempts to bring farmers back to being guardians of the planet and in so doing creating a more sustainable food system without the use of glyphosate.

Thank you for supporting a different way of growing food.

Kenneth

PS please continue to support us during the difficult summer months if you can, it makes all the difference to our farm, and if you haven’t got your ticket yet for the sustainability festival please click here to get yours.

Link 1

https://www.grilled.media/inside-copa-cogeca-plot-to-kill-eu-green-deal

link 2

https://corporateeurope.org/en/2025/12/pesticide-lobby-instrumentalising-farmer-protests-its-attack-eu-health-regulations-0

An emotional rollercoaster of a week

Glyphosate is needed to feed the world