What is Organic?

In the context of food and farming, ‘organic’ is used to describe practice that sustains the health of soils, ecosystems and communities. Organic farming relies on natural resources, systems and cycles, without adding artificial chemicals.

The term ‘organic’ is protected by law – this means that any food product labelled ‘organic’ must have been produced in accordance with strict regulations.

The Organic Principles

The four principles of organic agriculture are: health, ecology, fairness and care. These inter-connected ethical principles guide international standards.

Health: Organic agriculture should sustain and enhance soil, plant, animal, human and planet, as one and indivisible.

Ecology: Organic agriculture should be based on living ecological systems and cycles, work with them, emulate them and help sustain them.

Fairness: Organic agriculture should build on relationships that ensure fairness with regard to the common environment and life opportunities.

Care: Organic agriculture should be managed in a precautionary and responsible manner to protect the health and well-being of current and future generations and the environment.

Source: IFOAM

Why The Garlic Farm is Organic

Quite simply, we believe organic food and farming is better for the planet and for people. Since 2023, our farmland has been certified as organic by the Soil Association. This means we don't rely on synthetic input; instead, we have adopted practices that enhance soil fertility and promote biodiversity. We use nature-friendly farming methods, such as mob-grazing, the resulting organic manure and crop rotations, and manage weeds and pests through mechanical weeding, hand weeding and encouraging natural predators.

Moving to organic farming methods has meant we’re witnessing, first-hand, the positive impact organic farming has on the natural world around us. We have been tracking changes, using software such as Soilmentor, to monitor soil health and biodiversity.

Our own evidence shows that organic farming is better for soil health and biodiversity (examples pictured above), and this has galvanised us to transition all our products to organic. The process will take a while, but it's already underway, and we've made some great organic products - all packed full of flavour and with a healthy dose of garlic.

So far, our organic collection includes cooking pastes, sauces, salts and dressings, as well as our own home-grown garlic. If you haven't tried any of our new organic products, please do. We hope you’ll love them as much as we do.