September is upon us and as well as marking the start of autumn and the kids returning to school, it is also the month to celebrate all things organic.
Organic September is an initiative by the Soil Association to encourage the whole nation to try organic and throughout the month, shops, farms and producers are inviting everyone to join them and experience what it means to be organic and why organic is food as it should be.
Organic September is perfectly timed to see some of Britain’s most popular everyday fruits and vegetables coming into season, such as apples, blackberries, pears and plums, while vegetables include beetroots, carrots, field mushrooms, kale, leeks, lettuce, potatoes, pumpkin and squashes, sweetcorn, tomatoes and watercress.
However, it is not only fruit and vegetables that are organic, it’s the full shopping basket. This year alone, more than 1,000 new products were certified by Soil Association Certification, ranging from red wine and decaffeinated tea, to indulgent truffles and hot cross buns.
Clare McDermott, from Soil Association Certification, advised: “Small changes can make a huge difference. Choosing organic means helping protect our vital wildlife and reducing your exposure to potentially harmful pesticides and chemicals. Demand for more organic food means more organic farms. More organic farms mean more wildlife and more animals raised to the highest welfare standards.”
Visit www.soilassociation.org/organicseptember for more information.
