Paul Holmbeck: How Denmark Went Organic

Real Organic Podcast

#012: Organic food is a big deal in Denmark, where it makes up the majority of all food sold. The Danish government believes that even if you don't buy and eat organic food, all Danes benefit from organic agricultural practices that promote clean water, healthy soil, and biodiversity. US Transplant Paul Holmbeck has been deeply involved in executing the strategies that led to this outcome in Denmark and talks about how we can encourage the same ideas to grow here in the US.
After moving from North Carolina to Denmark, Paul Holmbeck served as the Director and Political Director of Organic Denmark for 20+ years. His involvement in political strategy, policy development, and market initiatives have helped to protect organic agriculture, vital ecosystems, and the nutritional health of the Danish population. Paul currently works hard to ensure that those who claim their products and services benefit the planet's climate are being true to their word.
To watch a video version of this podcast please visit:
https://www.realorganicproject.org/how-denmark-went-organic-episode-twelve
The Real Organic Podcast is hosted by Dave Chapman and Linley Dixon, engineered by Brandon StCyr, and edited and produced by Jenny Prince.
The Real Organic Project is a farmer-led movement working towards certifying 1,000 farms across the United States this year. Our add-on food label distinguishes soil-grown fruits and vegetables from hydroponically-raised produce, and pasture-raised meat, milk, and eggs from products harvested from animals in horrific confinement (CAFOs - confined animal feeding operations).
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We believe that the organic standards, with their focus on soil health, biodiversity, and animal welfare were written as they should be, but that the current lack of enforcement of those standards is jeopardizing the ability for small farms who adhere to the law to stay in business. The lack of enforcement is also jeopardizing the overall health of the customers who support the organic movement; customers who are not getting what they pay for at market but still paying a premium price. And the lack of enforcement is jeopardizing the very cycles (water, air, nutrients) that Earth relies upon to provide us all with a place to live, by pushing extractive, chemical agriculture to the forefront.
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