Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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A study of organic food consumers’ knowledge, attitudes and
behavior regarding labor in organic farms
Alyssa-Marie G. Tison
ABSTRACT
Buying organic is considered by consumers as a way to “vote with their dollar” and mitigate the
environmental impacts associated with conventional agricultural systems. Although large scale
certified organic farms that hire labor limit workers’ exposure to known harmful pesticides, low
farm worker wages coupled with higher labor demands, seasonal hiring and limitations of access
to health benefits still pose concerns that are not addressed through the organic certification
process. In this study, I evaluated consumer knowledge and awareness of the current organic
certification process, attitudes about buying organic, and frequency of and motives for
purchasing organic foods. I surveyed consumers online and in two farmers’ markets in Northern
California (San Francisco Ferry Plaza and Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market). Consumers’
lack of knowledge about organic certification standards suggests that their understanding of
organics aligns with the popular public discourse reflecting organic products marketing
strategies. Most participants value the inclusion of labor in organic certification standards,
reasoning that people should be paid fairly for their labor. However, the study suggests that
consumers do not necessarily purchase organics to support farm workers.
KEYWORDS
hired labor, organic food industry, certification standards, consumers’ perceptions, food labels
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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INTRODUCTION
In the 1960s and 1970s, environmentalists focused on the biophysical and human health
effects of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, leading to the popularization of alternative food
systems that take into account consumer safety and paving the way for the development of
organic farming. The alternative food movement opposed pesticide use in food production and
eventually, in the 1980s, genetically modified organisms (Reed 2010). More recently, the organic
food industry has highlighted issues concerning soil quality, food contamination, and
conservation of biodiversity (Guthman 1998, Heckman 2005). The alternative food systems
discourse has increasingly been concerned with natural products and social responsibility
(Williams and Hammitt 2001). However this discourse does not necessarily reflect the realities
behind the production of certified organic food products.
Consumers consider buying organic as a way to “vote with their dollar” and mitigate the
environmental impacts of conventional agriculture (Alkon 2008, Shreck et al. 2006). As organics
have expanded since the 1980s, agribusinesses have appropriated the imagery of organics for
profit (Williams and Hammitt 2001). Essentially, the use of the term organic in the market has
been politically constructed by regulatory agencies and the parties in control—large
agribusinesses (Guthman 2002, Guthman 2004). Today, we see how even small family owned
organic farms rely on corporate farms to obtain tax and liability privileges (Guthman 2004). This
brings up several issues related to how the organic industry moves from an alternative, counter-
conventional agriculture movement to a more industrialized system.
Many consumers assume that all organics are produced sustainably (Rigby and Caceres
2001). This, however, is not always the case because a holistic definition of sustainability must
account for the biophysical, economic, and social implications of production. Today, the
legitimized use of the term “organic” has a structured and narrower meaning. According to the
National Organics Program of the United States Department of Agriculture, the federal agency
responsible for organic certification, organic agriculture is an “ecological production
management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil
biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices
that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony (USDA 2010).” Furthermore, Guthman
(2004) discusses the dilution of organic standards for certain organic products in order to
accommodate certain businesses production. Thus, organic certification does not regulate social
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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factors such as farm worker labor conditions, which serve as the basis of operation and
production in organic farms (Allen and Kovach 2000).
Although large scale certified organic farms that hire labor limit workers’ exposure to
known harmful pesticides, low farm worker wages, seasonal hiring and limitations of access to
health benefits still pose concerns (Guthman 2004). In 2008, there were about 5 million acres of
land allocated for organic farming in the United States (USDA: Economic Research Service
2008). The demand for organic food products has allowed corporations to capitalize on people’s
understanding of sustainability, fostering false ideas of what organic production entails (Shreck
et al. 2006). This high demand for organics allowed agribusinesses to control the organic
industry, using their resources to leverage the politics of organics and certification standards
(Allen and Kovach 2000, Guthman 2004).
Even though most consumers perceive organic as a pesticide-free system, organic farm
workers can still be exposed to allowed synthetic and potentially dangerous substances such as
sulphur (Buck et al. 1997). Farm workers also face the high demands of complying with the
certified organic farming standards, which include crop rotation schedules that allow farms to
hire on a seasonal cycle thereby, limiting worker qualification for health care benefits , and
stringent food harvesting techniques that may require manual labor (stoop and hand harvesting)
(Strochlic et al. 2008, Walz 2004). Furthermore, most California organic growers pay minimum
wage, despite the high ratio of sales per acre of land (Guthman 2004). Some organic farms still
use piece rate payment, where farm workers get paid based on the amount of crops they harvest
rather than by the hour (US Department of Labor 2008). This poses safety concerns because it
forces workers to work more to get paid more (Strochlic et al. 2008). The lack of awareness
about these labor-related issues poses social and ethical concerns, suggesting the need of
incorporating farm labor standards into organics certification processes (CATA 2009, Newman
2009). In order to achieve regulatory reform, consumers must be made aware of the reality of
farm labor issues in organic agriculture, yet few studies have examined consumer perceptions
regarding labor practices in organic agriculture and the organic certification standards itself
(Blum 2006, Howard and Allen 2006, Allen and Perez 2007, Shreck et al. 2006). A first step in
this direction is to document how consumers perceive the current organic food movement, which
may inform political strategies to change public opinion and mobilize support for a reform of
organics certification to incorporate labor standards. Ultimately, this means aligning the public
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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organic food discourse, the ideologies of organic farming and the actual practices of organic
agriculture.
I examined the significance of labor practices to people who purchase organic products by
focusing on their awareness regarding the current organic food standards, perceptions of
different food issues, their consumption patterns and purchasing motives for buying organic food
products. From my findings, I suggest practical considerations that could help align consumer
attitude, knowledge and behavior regarding organics.
METHODS
Study Site
To investigate organic food consumers’ knowledge, attitude and behavior regarding farm
labor practices, I surveyed consumers who purchase organic food at the Downtown Berkeley
Farmer’s Market (Center St. and Milvia St.) and the San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market.
I also surveyed consumers online by distributing the identical instrument on Facebook, Tumblr
and various on-campus and off-campus listservs.
Data Collection
The three-page survey consisted of 13 questions aimed at understanding consumer
knowledge, behavior and attitude towards organic foods (Appendix I). I administered surveys in
person to anonymous participants. The entire survey took between 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
At the farmers’ markets, I randomized participants and surveyed each site around the
same hours, between 10 am and 2pm. In order reduce bias in my sample, I walked through the
farmer’s market and asked every fourth person I saw to take the survey. I collected data for 3-4
hours starting at the opening hour of each farmer’s market.
Statistics and Analyses
Variables
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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To determine consumers’ formal understanding of organics, I included a question that
scores consumer knowledge about the certification standards both in California (state-level) and
the United States (federal-level). I scored each participant’s response and gave them a numerical
score which I then used to get insight as to whether consumers were knowledgeable of the
organic certification standards. The survey questions, the answers to these and the reference to
the answers can be found in the Appendix. I compared the scores from the two groups using a t-
test to check for significant difference between the scores of the two groups. I also included an
open ended question that asked consumers to define organic in the context of organic foods, how
it is used in the market. Answers to this question were compared to and scored based on the
definition used by the United States National Organic Certification Standards. I outlined the
scoring rubric for this part in Table 1. Each consumer received a score based on the number of
key words found in their response that can be found in the USDA organic definition. These
knowledge-based tests helped me assess whether consumers were aware of the absence of the
labor standards in organic food certification standards.
Table 1. Scoring Rubric based on USDA Organic Food Definition question. Each consumer received a score
based on the number of keywords in their response that follow the USDA definition for “organic”.
Score
Rubric
Key Words
0
No key words found in answer.
Cycling resources
Ecological balance
Biodiversity
Production system
Legal term
Cultural
Biological
Mechanical practices
Soil management
Water management
1
1 key word found in the answer.
2
2 key words found in the answer.
3
3 key words found in the answer.
4
4 or more key words found in the answer.
To understand consumer behavior, I asked questions about what organic products
consumers usually purchase, and the frequency of purchasing organic food at different markets
(Whole Foods, Safeway, Locally owned grocery stores, Farmer’s Market). Furthermore, in order
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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to determine consumers’ general attitudes about organics, I asked participants to rank the
importance of the different food issues. I compared how labor ranks relative to other food issues
in order to evaluate how consumers value labor practices as a food issue or a concern compared
to other food issues such as pesticide use, incorporation of genetically modified organisms and
access for low-income people.
In addition, I asked consumers to indicate their position on different statements relating to
organic food consumption practices and production in order to understand consumer motives for
purchasing organic. To understand consumer attitudes regarding labor and motives, I asked
participants, using a Likert Scale, if they were willing to pay more to improve farm labor
conditions and to give farm workers better benefit. I also asked consumers if they believe that
labor standards should ultimately be added in the organic certification standards.
RESULTS
Survey Respondents
I collected 134 survey responses, with 34 from Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market, 30
from San Francisco Ferry Plaza and 70 online. I decided to aggregate the data for the Downtown
Berkeley Farmers’ Market and the San Francisco Ferry Plaza because the populations at these
sites have similar demographics. I address this set as the “Farmers’ Market” (FM) group, and
refer to the online data as the “online” (ON) group. In both groups, more females took the survey
with 53% in the Farmers’ Market group and 74% in the online group. Over half of the
respondents from the Farmer’s Market group are in the “25-30” and “over 30” age groups. These
Farmers’ Market participants have attained their Bachelor’s degree or a higher degree (Table 2).
The respondents from the online group are in the “18-21” and “22-25” age groups. Most of these
online respondents have either finished high school or are still in college.
I will address this set as the Farmers’ Market group. I refer to the online data as the
“online” group. In both groups, more females took the survey with 53% in the Farmers’ Market
group and 74% in the online group. Over half of the respondents from the Farmer’s Market
group are in the “25-30” and “Over 30” age groups. These Farmers’ Market participants have
attained their Bachelor’s degree or a higher degree (Table 2). The respondents from the Online
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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group are in the “18-21” and “22-25” age groups. Most of these online respondents have either
finished high school or are still in college.
Demographic
Farmers’ Market
(n=64)
Online ( n=70)
Gender
Female
Male
Other
NA
34
25
3
2
52
18
0
0
Ethnicity
American-Indian/Native American
African American/Black
Asian/Pacific Islander(Native Hawaiian)
White (not Hispanic or Latino)
Latino/Hispanic
Other
NA
1
3
5
44
1
2
8
0
1
35
15
17
2
0
Age
18-21
22-25
26-30
Over 30
NA
10
8
12
32
2
45
17
5
3
0
Income
Less than $20,000
$20,000-$40,000
$40,000-$60,000
$60,000-$80,000
$80,000-$100,000
More than $100,000
NA
10
2
2
6
7
35
2
26
19
10
6
2
7
0
Highest Level of Education
Some High School, High School, Some College
Bachelor’s Degree
Master’s Degree, Professional Degree, PhD.
NA
14
29
17
4
42
19
6
3
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Knowledge of Organic Certification
Out of 7 questions, participants in the Berkeley-San Francisco “Farmers’ Market Group”
(n=64) has a mean score of 3.22, with mode 3 and median 4 on knowledge of the federal
(USDA) organic certification standards tests. This group has a mean score of 2.75 for the
California (CCOF) organic certification standard.. Participants f or the “online” group (n=70) has
the mean score 1.1for the knowledge of US organic certification test and 0.71 for the California
organic certification test. Using t-test, it shows that there was a significant difference in the
scores between the sites for both the US and California tests (US: p-value<0.05, p=value=
4.347e-12; CA: p-value<0.05, p-value=1.673e-12) (Fig 1.) In the Farmers’ Market group, 60.9%
correctly responded “No” to the inclusion of labor regulations in the current federal organic food
certification standards. For the same set of standards, 24.3% answered correctly with 64.3% as
“unsure” from the online Group. Twenty- nine out of 70 respondents from the online Group
(41.4%) and 26 out of 64 from the Farmers’ Market group (40.6%) wrote that labor-related
certification standards should be included in the United States organic certification.
Fig1. Federal and State Certification Knowledge Scores. These boxplots show the difference in scores for the
federal (US) and state (CA) certification knowledge test between the Farmers’ Market Group and the online Group.
Defining Organic
When asked to define “organic” as used in the organic food context, a majority of
participants related “organic” to ideas of freshness, natural, health, lack of pesticides,
US Certification Knowledge Score
CA Certification Knowledge Score
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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biodiversity, and social responsibility. When I compared participant answers to the definition
used by the United States National Organic Certification Standards, 83% of the Farmers’ Market
respondents scored 0, as did 83% of the online participants. The rubric can be found in Table 1.
From both groups, no one scored over 2 (Fig 2.). The following keywords showed in the
answers but do not match the definition as defined by the USDA National Organic Program
definition: no pesticides, no synthetic substances, no chemicals, healthy, sustainable,
environmentally friendly, pure, and small-scale.
Fig 2. Distribution of consumers “Define Organic” question for both the Farmers’ Market (FM) and online
groups (ON).
Consumption Pattern
When consumers were asked to indicate which products they purchase at farmer’s
markets, 94% of the Farmers’ Market group respondents indicated buying produce (vegetables
and fruit). Sixty-one percent of the online participants buy organic produce. Consumers also
indicated the frequency of buying organic food at different markets. From the Farmer’s Market
group, 42% buy at farmer’s market ‘often’ and 44% buy “sometimes”. Nine percent of the online
participants buy from farmers’ market “often” and 44% buy sometimes. Forty-one percent of the
consumers from the Farmers’ Market group shop at locally owned stores “often”. Twenty-nine
percent of the consumers from the online group buy at locally owned grocery stores “often”.
Figure 3 outlines the summary of the frequency of shopping from different sources of organic
food purchases both for the Farmers’ Market group and the online group.
0 1 2 3 4
0 1 2 3 4
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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Figure 3. Frequency of Shopping at different markets that offer organic products. “Often” is defined as
purchasing organics once a week, “Sometimes” defined as a few times a month, and “Never” as not at all. FM is for
farmers’ market data and OL is for the online data.
Motives for Purchasing Organic Food
When asked to indicate their position on certain statements, 38% from the Farmers’
Market group indicated that they “Agree” and 23% said that they “Strongly Agreed” with the
statement “I buy organic food to support farm workers” (Table 3). From the online group, 21%
agreed with this statement and 11% said that they “Strongly Agree”. Nineteen percent of the
respondents from the Farmers’ Market group either Disagreed or Strongly Disagreed with this
statement. From the online group, 11% either indicated that they “Disagree” or “Strongly
Disagree” with this statement.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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Table 3. Percent of people who indicated “Agree” and “Strongly Agree” on statements related to labor.
Site
I buy organic to support local
farm owners.
I buy organic to support farm
workers.
Farmer’s Market
n=64
38% Agree, 38% Strongly Agree
38% Agree, 23% Strongly Agree
Online
n=70
21% Agree, 20% Strongly Agree
21% Agree, 11% Strongly Agree,
Importance of Labor
“Reduction of pesticide use in food” ranks as the highest priority for the consumers in the
Farmers’ Market group with 69% ranking this as the “Top Priority”. “Protecting farm workers’
rights by improving job conditions” was ranked the highest by the online group, with 34% of the
participants ranking this as “Top Priority” (Table 4.) Of the 6 food issues, “Food processing
techniques” and “Increasing Farm worker salary” were ranked 5
th
and 6
th
respectively by the
Farmers’ Market group. These same issues were ranked 3
rd
and 5
th
priority, respectively, by the
online group. Consumers from the Farmer’s Market group ranked labor-related issues the lowest
(bottom 3) compared to the online group, which ranked “Protecting farmworkers’ rights by
improving job conditions” as the 1
st
priority.
Table 4. Percentage of consumers who ranked these food issues as “Top Priority”. Labor issues are highlighted.
Food Issue
Farmers’ Market
Ranking
Online
Ranking
Food processing
techniques
41%
5
27%
3
Increasing farm worker
salaries
31%
6
21%
5
Limiting the number of
GMOs in food.
47%
2
26%
4
Reduction of pesticide
use in food
69%
1
33%
2
Improving food access
for low-income people.
64%
3
33%
2
Protecting farm
workers’ rights by
improving job
conditions.
45%
4
34%
1
.
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Including Labor in the Certification Standards
When asked which factors should ultimately be included in the organic certification
process, 33% and 54.4% of the respondents from the Farmers’ Market group and online group,
respectively, indicated that Labor should be included. Responses as to why “Labor” should be
incorporated into the standards include farm worker health and safety. Consumers also wrote
down responses pertaining to sustainability and labor equity. There is a higher number of
consumers from the online group who indicated that labor standards should be included in the
certification process (Table 5).
Table 5. Which factors should be included in the organic certification standards? This shows the percentage of
consumers from the Farmers’ Market (FM) group and the online (On) group who think that labor standards should
be included and the coded responses for their justification.
Factor
% of people who said “Yes”
Why?
Aesthetics
FM: n=13 , 20.3%
On: n=11, 15.7%
FM: marketing strategies
On: marketing strategies
Carbon Emissions
FM: n= 16, 51.5 %
On: n=31, 44.2%
FM: important
On: mitigate global warming,
sustainability
Soil Management
FM: n=54, 84.3%
On: n=48, 68.6%
FM: soil health, production benefits
On: soil health, production benefits,
sustainability, conservation,
Water Management
FM: n=51, 79.6%
On: n=41, 55.4%
FM: water quality
On: conservation, important
Labor
FM: n=21, 33%
On: n=36, 51.4%
FM: health, important, fair trade
On: equity, health, sustainability
Animal Welfare
FM: n=50, 78%
On: n=44, 62.8%
FM: animal rights
On: animal rights
Public Health
FM: n=49, 76.5%
On: n=41, 58.5%
FM: disease control
On: consumer safety, worker safety
Price Control
FM: n=29, 45.3%
On: n=30, 40.5%
FM: lower prices, accessibility
On: lower prices, accessibility
Sourcing
FM: n=29, 45.3%
On: n=37, 53%
FM: mitigate global warming
On: local, sustainability
When given the statement “I am willing to pay more if I can ensure that farm labor
conditions are improved”, 55% indicated that they agree and 17% strongly agreed from the
Farmers’ Market group. From the online group, 24% agreed and 16% strongly agreed. I ran a
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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chi-squared test for this statement and found that there is a statistically significant difference (p-
value<0.05, p-value=1.6E-6) between these sites for the responses. There is also a statistically
significant difference (p-value<0.05, p-value=0.01) between the Farmer’s Market and online
group for the “Agreed” and “Strongly Agreed”. There were more participants from the Farmer’s
group who “Agreed” or “Strongly Agreed” with this statement. For the statement, “I am willing
to spend more if I can ensure that farm workers get health benefits”, 45% respondents agreed
and 23% strongly agreed from the Farmers’ Market group .The online group had 26% people
agree and 17% people strongly agree. A chi-squared test shows that there is a statistically
significant difference (p-value<0.05, p-value=0.006) between the Farmers’ Market group and the
online Group for the overall responses to the second statement. However, there is no statistically
significant difference between the number of respondents who agreed with the statement from
these two sites.
Table 6. Willingness to pay for improved labor practices. These two statements particularly looks at willingness
to pay to improve job conditions and for workers’ increased access to health benefits.
Site
I am willing to spend more for organic
food if I can ensure that farm labor
conditions are improved.
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure
that farm workers get health benefits.
Farmers’ Market
n=64
55% Agree, 17% Strongly Agree
45% Agree, 23 % Strongly Agree
Online
n=70
24% Agree, 16% Strongly Agree
26% Agree, 17% Strongly Agree
DISCUSSION
Organic food consumers seem to value labor highly in their attitudes toward food
purchases, but their behavior and knowledge do not align with these attitudes. Most consumers
think that all organic farming is biophysically, socially and economically sustainable, defining
“organic” as “natural,” “lacking pesticides,” “fresh” and essentially, good for the environment.
The high demands of complying with the standardized organic farming regulations require 15%
more labor in organic farms than conventional systems (Pimentel et al. 2005). Twenty four
percent of hired labor is considered year round workers while the rest work seasonally (Waltz
2004), and seasonal workers earn a dollar less than year round workers (US Department of Labor
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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2005). Seasonal hiring brings into question job stability and health care access for organic
farmers. Consumer attitudes, which I measured through “willingness to pay” survey responses,
prioritization of labor-related food issues, consumer willingness to include labor standards in the
organic food standards, and motives for purchasing organic food, suggest that organic food
consumers are aware of these labor concerns. However, their attitudes towards labor equity and
support for farm workers do not translate into labor conscious consumer purchasing patterns.
Increasing knowledge about what the certification actually regulates can increase consumer
awaren ess and therefore, open up dialogue about organic farm labor issues.
Knowledge
The low average scores for both the Farmers’ Market group and the online group on the
certification test suggest that consumers lack knowledge about the certification standards that
define organic foods. The USDA defines “organics” as food produced in accordance with the
organic certification standards: “Organic production refers to the production system that
integrates cultural, biological and mechanical practices that fosters cycling of resources,
promotes ecological balance and conserves biodiversity (USDA 2010, National Organics
Program 2012).” No participant scored 100% on knowledge of the organic certification process.
In the Farmers’ Market group, over half of the participants correctly answered that labor
regulations are not included in the federal certification standards. From the online group, 64.3%
(n=45) respondents did not know if labor regulations are included in these standards. No labor
standards are included in the organic certification in both the United States and California. The
fact that we, as a society, have relied on other people to produce our food have made it easier for
us to detach ourselves from the production end of the process. Unfortunately, we have forgotten
who takes part in this process and thus, consumers tend to focus more on the end results, the
actual product (Guthman 2004). This pattern was also evident in consumers’ understanding of
the use of the term organic. Consumers wrote responses such as “natural,” “no pesticides or
chemicals” and/or “environmentally friendly.” These definitions do not align with the USDA-
certification definition of organic. These popular definitions of organic can be attributed to the
lack of awareness and interaction of consumers with what is actually going on in the farm.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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Consumer perception of organic agriculture is mostly, if not solely, shaped by public discourse—
through media, the presentation of organic food products in grocery stores and farmers’
markets—create concepts that relate to this idea of “going back to nature” (Alkon 2008).
Defining Organic
Consumers seem to relate their ideas of organics to notions of sustainable agriculture.
However, unlike the “lite” version of organic production that is most common, “sustainable
agriculture” takes into account environmental health, economic profitability, and social and
economic equity (Feenstra 1997). The low mean scores from the certification test from both the
Farmer’s Market group and the online group show that none of the participants knew fully what
the federal and state (California) organic standards entail. Despite lack of knowledge regarding
the stipulations of the organic standards, consumers still support this industry. This may relate to
how consumers understanding of organics are heavily influenced by the public discourse, the
way that the market presents organics. Survey respondents’ definition of the term “organic”
provides further evidence for this claim. Consumers from both groups wrote down responses
including “natural”, “fresh”, “no pesticides”, “healthier”, “sustainable”. These terms relate to the
ideas of organic as either a connection to nature or an avenue for environmental justice (Alkon
2008). Although organic, during its earlier phase as an alternative food movement, embodied
these two nuances, the institutionalized meaning of the word had become regulated that the
actual use of the term of organic shifted into a narrower, more structured, regulated and “lite”
(or shallow) definition (Allen and Kovach 2000, Guthman 2004). Essentially, this
standardization of organics led to the proliferation of bigger businesses in the organic food
industry and the movement of organics into an industry that simulated conventional farming
(Guthman 2004).
Ranking Labor Issues
Participants from the Farmers’ Market group ranked labor-related issues as the last three
priorities relative to pesticide use, accessibility of healthy food for low-income people, and
limiting GMOs. Online participants ranked increasing farm worker salary as the lowest while
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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improving job conditions ranked first. This finding aligns with those discussed by Perez and
Allen in a survey of college students from a liberal college, University of California Santa Cruz,
in that college students ranked improving job conditions for farm workers as one of the top food
issues (Allen and Perez 2007). College students, especially those from more liberal colleges, tend
to be more exposed to liberal thinking and social justice issues. Awareness about these issues
politicizes students and helps them understand the injustices revolving around the socially
problematic conventional agricultural system. This can be related to the intergenerational gap
between the Farmers’ Market group and the online group, where there are more college aged
students currently in college who rank labor issues higher than the older respondents who have
finished college from the Farmers’ Market group.
Inclusion of Labor Standards and Willingness to Pay
Most participants valued the inclusion of labor in organic certification standards,
reasoning that people should be paid fairly for their labor. Those who said that it should not be
included reasoned that labor standards should be certified under a separate label or certification
process. This suggests that most consumers value labor but are split between wanting to include
labor standards in the current certification process and creating a new certification process purely
based on labor regulations. For consumers purchasing other “environmentally-friendly”
products, they perceive single issue certification labels as a way for them to take into account
and focus on individual issues that they value and support (through purchase) (Young et al.
2010). In a survey of 1000 households, consumers expressed interest in having standards and a
separate food label that would guarantee a living wage for farm workers (Howard and Allen
2006). Including labor standards in the organic certification standards may put pressure on these
organic farms to improve the quality of labor for their workers. It can also imply increased prices
on top of the already premium prices of organic food which brings into question accessibility for
people who cannot afford these goods. A majority of the consumers in this study, the people who
buy and therefore have access to these products, indicated their willingness to pay more to ensure
that farm workers get treated fairly through increased access to health benefits and improved job
conditions. This suggests that consumers who already purchase organic on a regular basis would
be willing to support this fair labor label.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
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Behavior
From the Famers’ Market group and the online group, most survey respondents often
purchase produce in the Farmers’ Markets. This suggests that consumers, whether they are aware
of this or not, are buying from smaller organic farms. The study by Strochlic et al. concludes that
smaller farms with high organic production tend to have better wages and better opportunities for
their employees (Stochlic et al. 2008). This contradicts the claim that working in conventional
farms is better because there are fewer abuses (Buck et al. 1997). These contradicting notions
stems from the varying attitudes of farm owners and ultimately, the capitalist agenda of these
farms. A number of small farms rely on corporate farms for resources, subjecting them to the
stipulations of agribusinesses (Guthman 2004). This implies that produce coming from farmers’
market or smaller farms do not automatically indicate the presence of fair labor.
Attitude-Behavior Gap
I observed the attitude-behavior gap in the findings of this study. Over half of the
consumers from both the Farmers’ Market and the online group indicated that labor should be
included in the organic certification standards. However, less than half of the consumers agreed
with the statement “I buy organic to support farm workers”, suggesting that consumers do not
necessarily prioritize farm workers and thus, labor concerns when purchasing organic foods
(Hearne and Volcan 2002). This can be further observed particularly in the Farmer’s Market
group wherein consumers ranked labor-related issues as the least of their priorities relative to
other food issues. This implies that other motivations for buying organic may include mitigating
environmental issues and health and safety concerns about pesticides (Zanoli and Naspetti 2002).
Although consumers agree that labor practices should be regulated, consumers purchase organic
produce for reasons other than supporting farm workers.
This same gap can be observed through the consumer responses on the willingness to pay
statements. A higher percentage of consumers from the Farmers’ Market group were willing to
pay more to ensure that farm working conditions are improved than the consumers from the
online group (Table 6). Increased prices of organic produce by taking into account social
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
18
externalities may hinder low-income consumers from purchasing more socially responsibly
produced organic products (Vermier and Verbeke 2006, Padel and Foster 2005). Most of the
online group consumers indicated a yearly income of less than $40,000 (Table 2). This difference
between the Farmers’ Market and the online group indicates how socio-economic status can
deter labor conscious consumers from supporting a more ethical organic industry, thus,
contributing to the existence of the consumer attitude and behavior gap.
Limitations
Time, sample size, sample site and the demographic information of the participants
limited the scope and inference of this study. I was only able to go to 2 sites (San Francisco
Ferry Plaza and Downtown Berkeley Farmer’s Market) to survey participants. The rest of the
participants were recruited online through listservs and social networking sites (Facebook,
Tumblr, etc.). Furthermore, although the randomization technique mentioned in the Methods
section was implemented, the participants were mostly to older, upper middle class female, and
White/Caucasian- identified. Also, the survey findings tend to be limited to the more liberal
thinking consumers, which essentially make up a majority of the population in this study.
Future Directions
Increasing sample size, sampling in different areas, and refining the questionnaire can
help improve the study in the future. Increasing sample size can increase the power of the
analysis. Sampling in different areas can increase the diversity of the sample (demographics) and
can possibly give a better inference as to consumer behavior, knowledge and attitude towards
labor. Finally, refining the survey and making the questions more specific and less wordy can
help consumers focus more on the questions rather than on the length of the survey, which in
turn, can give more accurate responses.
Broader Implications
Production in organic farms needs change. The gaps in consumer knowledge, attitudes
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
19
and behavior may be closed through increased visibility and public awareness about the realities
of labor in organic farming. By doing so, this can open the way to the inclusion of labor
standards in the certification process and bringing consumer practices more in line with their
perceptions. Increased public awareness about labor on organic farms and its similarities with
labor on conventional farms can influence the public’s attitudes regarding the organic label.
It can bring more awareness to the politics behind the organic industry, thereby allowing
consumers to understand how their ideas about organic and sustainability do not actually follow
the shallow or “lite” definition of organic as it is used in the market (Guthman 2004). Making
organic certification more transparent may change behavior to align it with attitude by educating
the public about organic certification with attitude by educating the public about organic
certification. Changing this discourse makes it possible to change the political economy of
organics Furthermore, this increased awareness and possibly the politicization of people around
the issue of labor in organic farms can leverage reform of the current certification standards that
may close the gap between consumer attitudes and consumer knowledge. Making certification
standards more holistic, taking into account economic, social and biophysical factors, may align
consumers’ attitudes and perceptions of organics with what the standards actually includes.
Finally, the possibility of creating separate labor standards may expose the farms with fair labor
practices and those that do not. A study surveying 1000 households show that consumers would
support a label associated with giving farm workers fair living wages (Howard and Allen 2006).
By having this label, labor in farms become more transparent for consumers who actually want
to support farms that guarantee economically, socially and environmentally conscious and just
labor practices.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you to my mentor, Kurt Spreyer, for helping me define my research and communicate this
thesis. Thank you to the other ES 196 instructors, Patina Mendez, Melissa Eitzel and Seth
Shonkoff, for guiding me through this process and for preparing workshops that helped me
construct my thesis. Finally, thank you to my friends, family and my community for continuing
to ground me in the work that I do and for inspiring me to keep on fighting for social justice.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
20
REFERENCES
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Urban Farmers’ Markets and their Implications for Environmental Justice and
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Allen, P. and M. Kovach. 2000. The Capitalist Composition of Organic: The Potential of
Markets in Fulfilling the Promise of Organic Agriculture. Agriculture and Human Values
17: 221-232.
Allen, P. and J. Perez. 2007. Farming the College Market: Results of a Consumer Study at UC
Santa Cruz. The Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 11:1-6.
Blum, Andrea. 2006. Organic Farming’s Labor Problem. Common Ground. Columbia
Foundation. http://www.columbia.org/pdf_files/cainstituteforruralstudies.pdf
Buck, D., C. Getz, and J. Guthman. 1997. From Farm to Table: The Organic Vegetable
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Allen, P. and J. Perez. 2007. Farming the College Market: Results of a Consumer Study at UC
Santa Cruz. The Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 11:1-6.
Feenstra, Gail. 1997. Locl food systems and sustainable communities. American Journal of
Alternative Agriculture 12: 28-36.
Guthman, Julie. 1998. Regulating Meaning, Appropriating Nature: The Codification of
California Organic Agriculture. Antipode30: 135-154.
Guthman, Julie. 2004. The Trouble with ‘Organic Lite’ in California: a Rejoinder to the
‘Conventionalisation’ Debate. Sociologia Ruralis 44: 301-316.
Guthman, Julie. 2004. Agrarian DreamsThe Paradox of Organic Farming in California.
University of California Press, Berkeley, California, USA.
Guthman, Julie. 2004. Back to the land: the paradox of organic food standards. Environment and
Planning 36: 511-528.
Hearne, R and M. Volcan. May 2002. The Use of Choice Experiments to Analyze Consumer
Preferences for Organic Produce in Costa Rica. Journal of Environmental Management
65: 153-163.
Heckman, Joseph. 2005. A history of organic farming: Transitions from Sir Albert Howard’s
War in the Soil to the USDA National Organic Program. Renewable Agriculture and
Food Systems 21:143-150Reed, M. 2010. Rebels for the Soil: the rise of the global
organic food and farming. Earthscan, Washington, DC, USA.
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Howard, P. and P. Allen. 2006. Beyond organic: consumer interest in new labeling schemes in
the Central Coast of California. International Journal of Consumer Studies 30: 439-451.
Newman, Sarah.2009. Organic Consumers Association. Labor Exploitation: The Ugly Truth
Behind Organic Food. http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17971.cfm
Padel, S. and C. Foster. 2005. Exploring the Gap between Attitudes and Behavior:
Understanding why Consumers Buy or Do Not Buy Organic food. British Food Journal
107: 8 606 – 625.
Pimentel, D, P. Hepperly, J. Hanson. D. Douds and R. Siedel. 2005. Environmental, Energetic,
and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems. BioScience
55: 573-582.
Rigby, D. and D. Caceres. 2001. Organic farming and the sustainability of agricultural systems.
Agricultural Systems 68: 21-40.
Shreck, A., C.Getz, and G. Feenstra. 2006. Social Sustainability, farm labor, and organic
agriculture: Findings from an exploratory analysis. Agriculture and Human Values 23:
439-449.
Strochlic, R., C. Wirth, A. F. Besada and C. Getz. 2008. Farm Labor Conditions on Organic
Farms in California. California Institute for Rural Studies.
Vermeir, I. and W. Verbeke. 2005. Sustainable Food Consumption: Exploring the consumer
attitude- behavioral intention” gap. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 19:
169-164.
Walz, Erica. 2004. Final Results of the Fourth National Organic Farmers’ Survey: Sustaining
Organic Farms in a Changing Organic Marketplace. Organic Farming Research
Foundation.
Williams, P. and J. Hammitt. 2001. Perceived Risks of Conventional and Organic Produce:
Pesticides, Pathogens, and Natural Toxins. Risk Analysis 21: 319-330
Young, W., K. Hwang, S. McDonald, and C. Oates. 2010. Sustainable consumption: green
consumer behavior when purchasing products. Sustainable Development 18: 20-31.
Zanoli, R. and S. Naspetti. 2002. Consumer motivations in the purchase of organic food: A
means-end approach. British Food Journal 104: 643- 653
2005. Findings from the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS) 2001–2002: A
Demographic and Employment Profile of United States Farm Workers. US. Department
of Labor Publication No. 9, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC, USA.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
22
2008. Data Sets. Table 2. U.S. certified organic farmland acreage, livestock numbers, and farm
operations.USDA, Economic Research Service, based on information from USDA-
accredited State and private organic certifiers. [http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/organic/]
2008. Wage and Hour Division (WHD). Fact Sheet #12: Agricultural Employers Under the Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLSA). US Department of Labor.
[http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs12.htm
2010. Manual Two: USDA National Organic Program Standards. CCOF Certification Services,
LCC. [http://www.ccof.org/pdf/US%20National%20Organic%20Standards.pdf]
2012. Title 7—Agriculture, Part 205—National Organic Program. Electronic Code of Federal
Regulations. [http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-
idx?c=ecfr&sid=3f34f4c22f9aa8e6d9864cc2683cea02&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title07/7cfr205_
main_02.tpl]
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
23
APPENDIX
I.Surv ey. My name is Alyssa Tison and I am a 4
th
year undergraduate student at UC Berkeley, majoring in
Environmental Sciences. For my Senior Thesis, I aim to understand organic food consumers’ preferences and
purchasing behavior. This survey includes 3 pages, with a series of 13 questions. It will take 10-15 minutes to
complete. Please read each question thoroughly and answer each to the best of your abilities. Thank you for
participating in this study. If you would like to get more information, please feel free to email me at
alyssatison@berkeley.edu.
Age (in years): __________
Gender: Male Female Other
Race/Ethnicity:
Indicate how often you shop at the following markets.
American Indian/Native American
African-American/Black
Asian/ Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian
White (not Hispanic or Latino)
Latino/Hispanic
Other: ____________
Highest Level of Education Completed
Less than $20,000
$20,000 -$40,000
$40,000-$60,000
Detergent and other cleaning supplies
Cooked food
Other:______
Certification of the Source
Source’s Labor Practices
Packaging
Taste
Yearly Household Income:
$60,000 -$80,000
$80,000-$100,000
More than $100,000
4-year Bachelor’s Degree
Master’s Degree
Doctoral Degree (PhD)
Professional Degree (JD, MD)
Other:
Produce (Vegetables, fruit)
Dairy Products (Cheese, yogurt, milk)
Cooked food
Less than High School
Some High School
High School (Diploma, GED)
Some College/Associates Degree
2-year Associates Degree
Price
Aesthetics
Health Implications
Location of the Source
What organic products do you buy? Mark all that apply.
How often do you buy organic food with these labels important are these food labels to you? Indicate their importance to you.
Certification Label
Frequency
Importance
Often (once a week) Sometimes(Few times/ month) Not at all Is this important to
you?
Fair Trade Label
Yes
No
Certified Organic
Yes No
Locally Produced Label
Yes No
Water Quality Protection
Yes
No
Humane Animal
Treatment
Yes No
US Grown
Yes
No
Union Label
Yes No
Other:________
Yes No
What do you consider when you buy organic food? Rank these 1-8, 1 being your #1 priority. Use #1-#8 ONLY
Often (once a week) Sometimes( few times/ month) Not at all
Farmer’s Market
Whole Foods
Safeway
Trader Joe’s
Locally owned grocery stores (Berkeley Bowl, etc.)
Other (Please indicate):
Define Organic, as used in the context of organic food products. Write no more than 3 sentences to answer this.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
24
Read the question and answer Yes or No.
Question Included in US
Federal
Certification?
Included in
California
Certification?
If you answered NO,
should it be included in
the certification
standards?
Organic Food have NO contact with ANY
synthetic substances.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Pests may be controlled using synthetic
substances.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
All organic foods contain only non-organic
substances.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Organic Food standards include farm labor
practices.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Organic Food standards regulate human
health.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Organic Food standards regulate Carbon
Emissions/Footprint
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Organic Food standards consider soil quality
and management.
Yes No Yes No Yes No
Indicate how important these food issues are to you.
Top Priority
Important but low priority
Somewhat Important
Not Important
Food processing techniques
Increasing farm worker salary
Limiting the GMOs* in food
Reduction of pesticide use in food
Food access for low-income people.
Improving job conditions
*GMOs: Genetically Modified Organisms
Indicate your position about the following statements.
Question Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
Farmers meet organic food standards.
The government effectively regulates food
production.
Organic food standards help the food industry.
Organic food standards should include labor
standards.
Organic food standards should include
standards on animal welfare.
I buy organic to protect myself from consuming
pesticides.
I buy organic food to support local farm owners.
I buy organic food to oppose industrialized
conventional agriculture.
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
25
I buy organic because it is a political stand.
I buy organic to support farm workers.
I buy organic food because it is fresher than
convetionally grown food.
I buy organic to interact with people growing
my food.
Question Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure that
all the organic standards are met.
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure that
animals are treated humanely.
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure that
carbon emissions are regulated.
I am willing to spend more for organic food if I
can ensure that job conditions are improved.
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure that
farm workers get health benefits.
I am willing to spend more if I can ensure that
there are no GMOs in my food.
Ultimately, what do you think should be included in the organic production process? Why? Write your answer in
1-2 sentences.
Factor
Should this be
included?
Why?
Aesthetics
Yes No
Carbon Emissions
Yes No
Soil Management
Yes No
Water Management
Yes No
Labor
Yes No
Animal Welfare
Yes No
Public Health
Yes No
Price Control
Yes No
Sourcing (ie. Where items
Yes No
Alyssa Tison Consumer Knowledge of Labor in Organic Farms Spring 2012
26
are sold)
Other (Please indicate):
Yes No
Thank you for participating in this study. If you would like to get more information, please feel free to email me
at alyssatison@berkeley.
II. Answers to the Certification Knowledge Test. Citations from the USDA and CCOF Organic Certification
Standards
Regulation
Included in the
US?
Included in
CA?
Cited in the USDA/CCOF
Standards
Organic Food have NO contact with ANY
synthetic substances.
NO
NO
§ 205.105. (a) Synthetic
substances and
ingredients, except as provided in
§ 205.601 or § 205.603;
Pests may be controlled using synthetic
substances.
YES
YES
§ 205.603 Synthetic substances
allowed for use in organic
livestock production.
All organic foods contain only organic
substances.
No
No
Claims. Oral, written, implied, or
symbolic representations,
statements, or advertising or other
forms of communication
presented to the public
or buyers of agricultural products
that relate to the organic
certification process or the term,
"100 percent organic,"
"organic," or "made with organic
(specified ingredients or food
group(s))," or, in the case of
agricultural products
containing less than 70 percent
organic ingredients, the term,
"organic," on the ingredients
panel.
Organic Food standards include farm
labor practices.
No
No
None found.
Organic Food standards regulate human
health.
Yes
Yes
§ 205.236 Origin of livestock.
§ 205.238 Livestock health care
practice standard.
Organic Food standards regulate Carbon
Emissions/Footprint
No
No
None found.
Organic Food standards consider soil
quality and management.
Yes
Yes
§ 205.203 Soil fertility and crop
nutrient management practice
standard.
