Food Eco-labels

Eco-labels are useful in changing consumer patterns. However, one must be careful of opening up a pandora's box. By labeling something as dangerous, we fool ourselves into thinking it is ok because it is labeled, and still consume it. Take for example cigarettes - a product everyone knows is dangerous to health and has been labeled as such for decades, but still more and more smokers start every day. I would much prefer to see the precautionary approach applied to all technologies and practices. First, we must ask if the product or technology is necessary. If not, there is no reason to go further. If it is necessary, then, is it safe? If it is not safe, but it is necessary, then let's label it. But, let's have the public debate FIRST about its necessity and its safety for the environment and human health. By focusing strictly on labels, one allows potentially harmful products to enter the market if labeled, and then it is a thousand times more difficult to remove them. (see GMOs, cigarettes, DDT, etc.).

Which eco-labels will be used as standards (UN/German Blue Angel, Norwegian, Demeter (bio-dynamic)? Strict standards must be in place defining for example, "bio," "natural flavors," "natural," "organic," "GMO Free," "recyclable," "recycled," "energy efficient," "biodegradable," "environmentally-friendly," etc. I have even seen a couple "bio" hair dressers pop up lately...

Moreover, there must be mechanisms in place to control against false advertising and greenwash, including strict penalties. Companies that misuse eco-labels, such as the case of TetraPak in Macedonia in 1993 and Serbia and Kosova on 2002, must be adequately punished for false advertising and misuse, and misleading the public.

Organic/Bio. Organic" means agriculture that not involve the use of artificial pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), antibiotics, irradiation or such potentially harmful "inputs" like sewage slurry. In other words, food, coffee and other things made in a way that, if you saw them being made, you'd still want to eat or drink them. The Hungarian market is very confusing because producers and manufacturers use the Biokultura and Biokontroll ecolabels almost inter-changeably. In practice, both guarantee 100% organic products, but the organisations themselves are quite different. Biokultura is the largest organic farmer and consumer association in Hungary. The association primarily provides advice, as well as a logo that identifies products that conform to international (IFOAM) organic standards. Biokontroll is mainly an organic inspection and certification company.

Both the Biokultura and Biokontroll labels guarantee the consumer a 100% organic product. However, this does not necessarily also mean that the packaging is environmentally friendly. For example, one may find organic milk, soymilk, rice milk products, and apple juice, but it is packaged in multi-layered, multi-material, non-reusable, non-refillable, non-recyclable cartons such as those made by Tetra Pak, Combibloc and Europak. Some products may also have been imported from Asia, the US and elsewhere, thus increasing their ecological footprint. I recommend that you buy organic, but also pay special attention to both local and environmentally-friendly packaged products. Making juices at home from local organic fruit and vegetables significantly reduces the environmental impact of packaging and transportation. Moreover, the nutritional and health benefits of any individual product, organic or not, must be evaluated - for example organic potato chips are still full or oil!

Not all products in organic shops in Hungary are organic. Don't just assume - look for the label!

This lists of organic shops and vegetarian restaurants below have not been updated in a couple years, some have closed, some new ones have opened, but you should be able to search the Internet and call to verify they still exist.

List of organic shops in Hungary

List of organic and vegetarian restaurants in Hungary

Biodynamic

Dr. Rudolf Steiner, a philosopher, the founder of anthroposophy launched biodynamic farming in 1924. The strict agricultural system is based on cosmic forces, in particular, the cycles of the moon. Adherents of biodynamic farming practice crop rotation. Different "preparations" are used by farmers. The compost preparations consist of: chamomile, nettle, dandelion, milfoil flower, ground oak roots. The fertiliser preparations based on cow manure and the cow's horn, because it can stimulate the life processes in soil. The quartz preparations assimilate the ripening process to facilitate and improve the quality of use. Demeter, the biodynamic farming organisation since 1932, controls and certifies biodynamic farms. Furthermore, you can trust biodynamic products to be 100% organic.

Shoppers may encounter labels such as "Magor" which encourage domestic products over imports. Besides the obvious economic and cultural benefits of local shopping, there are added environmental benefits because of less pollution from long-distance shipping: exhaust, particulates, climate-changing gases, refridgeration, energy, delayed chemical ripening, etc. While such labelled products are not organic (unless otherwise stated), at least they have a lower environmental impact than imports.

TransFair/FairTrade - Fair Trade generally means trading partnerships based on reciprocal benefits and mutual respect. This means that the prices paid to producers - especially small farmers - reflect the work they do; that workers have the right to organize; and that national health and safety regulations are enforced. It means providing equal employment opportunities for all people, particularly the most disadvantaged, being "transparent" and accountable to the public, and providing appropriate financial and technical assistance to producers whenever possible. To become fair trade certified, an importer must meet stringent international criteria, including paying a minimum price of $1.26 per pound for coffee (as opposed to the usual 50 cents or less). As a result, Fair Trade producers can invest in health care, education, and their local environment. It also means knowing where your coffee, chocolate, rugs, footballs, etc. come from. Child labor, prison labor and slave labor are also prohibited under the Fair Trade label.

While it is very worthwhile to support fair prices, humane working conditions, and third world development, one must still consider the pollution from transport for these goods over such long distances. But, if you are going to buy a product from the third world, please look for an organic, or at least a fair-trade label. For example, we have Fair Trade organic coffee, teas, chocolates, hot chocolate, and spices at Treehugger Dan's.

GM food
By law, all food products in Hungary containing genetically-engineered ingredient(s) must bear this label. Although there are many imported processed food products that do, I have yet to spot this on any packaging.Governing law: 1/1999. (I.14) FVM sz.r. 15 § (1) bek.

Ionizing radiation-treated food (Irradiated)

Food irradiation was the brainchild of the US Atomic Energy Commission's efforts in the Eisenhower administration to find practical uses the radioactive wastes from nuclear weapons. Special permits are granted to some food producers to use ionizing radiation for disinfection and preservation (dried vegetables, fruits, spices, raisins, potatoes, onions). Spoilage-causing microorganisms cannot continue their activities. Insects do not survive, or become incapable of reproduction. Plants cannot continue their natural ripening processes. The use of the term "cold pasteurization" to describe irradiated foods is controversial, since pasteurization and irradiation are fundamentally different processes. Claims of safety are unproven at best. High-energy irradiation produces complex chemical changes in food. Governing law:1/1996. (I.9) FM-NM-IKM sz. Rendelet 27 § (4) bek.

The Grüne Punkt

The symbol used by the Duales System as well as Eco-Emballages is often mistaken for an eco-label. The Grüne Pünkt ("Green Point") or similar symbol is seen by the general public as an eco-label, while in fact all it symbolizes is that the manufacturer has paid for the collection or recycling company (Duales System, Fost Plus, Eco-Emballages...) to collect and dispose of its packaging waste, and fund the necessary infrastructure. Other objections to this type of waste management have included separate collection for recycling but inadequate capacity for processing resulting in illegal waste shipments to Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Southern Europe. A disproportionate amount of collected packaging waste is often incinerated with or without "energy recovery" rather than recycled. Maximizing re-use is de-empha­sized and often ignored. In addition, Friends of the Earth has found that these projects have created the false impression that selective collection solves all the environmental problems associated with packaging.

Packaging producers in Macedonia and elsewhere print the Green Point on their products, without any ties to the Duales System, and probably without any knowledge of what it truly symbolizes. Furthermore, some CEE consumers are influenced to purchase the product because they think it is an eco-label, or at least a foreign product.

Buyer beware! There are quite a number of products that companies that are out to deceive consumers into thinking they are buying environmentally-friendly products. For example, one might see the phrases "Natural," "includes natural flavourings," etc. In fact, these phrases could mean anything, and are not regulated by any office in Hungary, the EU or elsewhere. The bottom line is, if you want to guarantee that you are buying organic food - trust only the Biokontroll, Biokultura and Demeter labels, or the organic labels on imported products from other national organic certification organisations such as the Soil Association (UK).