UnSymmetrical

In response, major food retailers, including discount giant Wal-Mart, are joining the ranks of Whole Foods Market, Earth Fare and smaller health-food stores that once dominated the organic and natural foods market.

Today, most major grocery chains sell organic fruits and vegetables in their produce departments and are devoting a growing amount of shelf space to natural and organic foods from cereal to milk.

But as the organic movement goes mainstream, some devotees worry about product shortages and a weakening of fairly new federal standards for organic items.

In recent months, shortages of organic milk, citrus fruits and grains have been reported, said Ronnie Cummins, national director of the Organic Consumer Association, a Minnesota-based public interest group.

Organic dairy producer Horizon Organic, for one, had to ration its milk supplies from November through June. "There was not enough milk to meet orders," said Caragh McLaughlin, spokeswoman for Horizon, a division of Dean Foods.

Supermarket chains such as Bi-Lo and Piggly Wiggly Carolina Co. say it's not uncommon for their stores to run out of certain organic items. At the Piggly Wiggly off Ben Sawyer Boulevard in Mount Pleasant, organic milk is especially popular, said Kevin Cone, store manager.

"We have a hard time keeping that in stock," he said.

Such shortages can drive up the prices of already pricey organic products. On average, consumers pay 50 percent extra for organic food, but they easily can end up spending double that, especially for milk and meat, according to Consumer Reports.

Many organic fans, such as Prenner, say the supposed health benefits of foods grown without the use of chemical pesticides are worth the extra cost. But for others, the higher prices are a deterrent.

"When there are shortages (of organic products), the prices just go way up, eliminating some people who don't buy it at those prices," said Joyce Smart, spokeswoman for Mauldin-based Bi-Lo.

Organic industry advocates say the higher prices stem partly from the stricter regulations that organic farmers must meet for growing, harvesting, transporting and storing their products.

Supply and demand play a factor, too. For now, there are too few certified organic farms in the United States to keep up with demand for the products, said Cummins of the Organic Consumers Association. In response, some groups, including the OCA, are pushing for the federal government to ante up more money to help conventional farms transition to organic methods.

Healthy growth

It's been almost four years since the U.S. Department of Agriculture established national standards for organic products. During that period, U.S. sales of organic foods have jumped 60 percent to almost $14 billion last year, according to the Organic Trade Association of Greenfield, Mass.

Sales are expected to reach nearly $16 billion by the end of 2006. And while organics' share of the total food market still is small, it's growing - from 1.6 percent in 2002 to almost 2.5 percent last year.

While most consumers equate the organic label with healthier food, the government doesn't claim organically produced products are more nutritious or safer than conventionally grown items.

The USDA standards were just one factor fueling public interest in organics. The movement also got a boost from increased media attention and the growth of natural food chains such as Austin-based Whole Foods, which has a Mount Pleasant store.

In response, conventional grocers began pumping up their organic offerings.

Wal-Mart, for one, this spring launched a well-publicized push to expand its organic food selection in its Supercenters and Neighborhood Markets.

Lee Scott, chief executive of Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc., touted the company's renewed commitment to organic during a shareholders meeting last year.

"We are particularly excited about organic food, the fastest-growing category in all of food," Scott said, according to a news report. "It's a great example of how Wal-Mart can appeal to a wider range of customers."

Pumping up the volume

But big chains need big-volume suppliers. And that has some organic purists questioning whether the industry's growth will stretch the true meaning of organic.

Large corporate farms "have a lot of power in our economy," said Celeste Albers, who runs the organic-style Green Grocer Farm on Wadmalaw Island.

Albers worries that the big players, trying to meet high-volume demand and cut costs, could use their clout to lobby for watered-down organic standards. Already, she said, some large companies are bending the rules in areas such as giving poultry and livestock outdoor access.

On Albers' small farm, for instance, chickens have "complete access to the outdoors ... fresh ground, fresh air," she said.

"That's hard to do and produce a million eggs," she said of industrial-size farms.

Henry Sawyer, co-owner of an organic market and farm on Johns Island, also wondered how big grocery chains could keep organic foods fresh after trucking the products cross country and storing them in warehouses.

Without preservatives, "true organic has a shorter shelf life," said Sawyer, who this year opened Cindy's Seafood & Country Market and the nearby Full Circle Farm, which recently earned its organic certification.

Looking local

Concerns about food origin and freshness are among the reasons more consumers are trying to buy products from local or regional suppliers, Albers and Sawyer said.

But organic industry advocates say big companies shouldn't be faulted for getting into the game.

Retailers such as Wal-Mart will make it easier for consumers "of all incomes" to buy organic products, noted Barbara Haumann, spokeswoman for the Organic Trade Association, which represents some 1,600 member companies.

And certified organic farms, big and small, are inspected to ensure they're following the rules, she said. The trade group also is working to make sure organic standards aren't weakened, she added.

If shoppers suspected organic food wasn't healthy and of a high quality, they wouldn't buy it, Haumann said. "Consumers are too smart," she said.

Other industry players said big grocers can help raise awareness of organic products.

"It legitimizes what we've been doing," said Troy DeGroff, marketing and sales director for the Asheville, N.C.-based Earth Fare chain, which has two stores in the Charleston area. "It makes us more of a normal supermarket."

Want to grow your organic knowledge?

The following Web sites offer information on organic foods and practices:

--National Organic Program, marketing program housed within the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service: www.ams.usda.gov/nop

--Organic Trade Association, national trade group representing more than 1,600 member companies: www.ota.com

--Organic Consumers Association, a grass-roots public interest group: www.organicconsumers.org

--Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, trade group aiming to expand local and organic agriculture in the Carolinas: www.carolinafarmstewards.org

Defining organic

Under standards set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation.

Organic meat, poultry, eggs and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.

Before a product can be labeled "organic," a government-approved certifier must inspect the farm where the food is grown to ensure it's following USDA rules.

Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to supermarkets or restaurants must be certified, too.

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