Organic Pineapple Working Group

[Organic Pineapple Working Group <opwg AT lists.ibiblio.org>]

A review of the historical, philosophical, and legal background
relevant to your concern - materials / methods capable of inducing
florescence in pineapple outside it's natural reproductive cycle and
"acceptable" for that purpose by:

  1).- The Organic Movement <http://www.ifoam.org/>; and

  2).- The relevant Legislation;

may be in order. My focus here will be primarily on the USA, due to
the size of it's market, the influence that country wields over
World Trade and the limits of my own experience and sources of
knowledge:

The market for Organic Food arose in response to the negative
effects that legally approved yet toxic, synthetic agrochemicals
have on the environment and human health (on the one hand) and the
perceived quality enhancement provided by biologically active soil;
an activity that results from the addition of Organic Matter (hence
the name ORGANIC), on the other.

These distinctions separated the market for organic food from
conventional food market and led to the need or convenience of
drafting legislation in order to create consistent, nationwide
regulations governing materials and practices that could be
considered organic and advertised as such (materials and practices
that would be either permitted or not permitted).

Before Congress approved the Organic Food Production Act of 1990 in
the year 2002 (12 years after OFPA was drafted), except for the few
state laws (that had been passed at that level), only a general
consensus existed regarding what was and what wasn't "Organic".

However: OFPA created a National Organic program (NOP) and a
National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) and significantly, mandated
Organic Certification by USDA accredited third party Certification
Agencies who (some believed), would assure compliance with the
standards the NOSB and NOP approved.

In relation to Pineapple, we know that:

1.- Pineapple flowers naturally over a 1.5 -2 month period,
    providing naturally induced pineapples during 2-3 months
    of the year, in any single location.

2.- Since the market for pineapple is year round, the led to the
    use of substance that either induce or delay the flowering of
    pineapple plants in the conventional market, in order to harvest
    pineapple over a longer period of time.

3.- Both synthetic ethylene and acetylene (dervived from Calcium
    Carbide) accelerate flowering under certain conditions (a topic
    which I will not cover here now).

4.- Calcium Carbide is not a naturally occurring substance and would
    not normally be approved for use on organic crops.
    <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calcium_carbide>

5.- Persons with an economic interest in the use of Calcium Carbide
    claimed that no naturally occurring substance was available and
    that therefore, the use of Calcium Carbide to induce flowering
    in Pineapple was necessary for cultivating organic pineapple.

6.- The Regulations permitting the use of Calcium Carbide and Ethrel
    are temporary and the use of these products is contingent on the
    lack of availability of materials or methods more compatible
    with organic philosophy and standards.

In conclusion, the legality of the use of these substances for inducing
florescence in organic pineapple depends on the legislation in effect
in the growing and (above all) market countries.

A potential demand exists for substances and/or practices that
induce florescence in organic pineapple in a more manner more
compatible with the standards motivating consumers of organic foods
and governing the organic markets.

This is an interesting topic and I'm glad to see a little more
activity arising from it here on the Organic Pineapple Working Group
Discussion List. <opwg AT lists.ibiblio.org>

Lastly, I'd appreciate it if all those subscribing would submit a
short note (or a C.V.) identifying their experience and activities
related to Organic Pineapple to either the list or myself, if you
haven't done so already.

Thanks in advance,

Douglas Hinds
OPWG Chair
<douglas.hinds AT gmx.com>
<douglas.hinds AT gmail.com>

Coordinador
Alianza para la Responsabilidad Ecológico y Social en el Desarrollo
(Alliance for Ecological and Social Responsibility in Development)
<aresd AT gmx.com>
Mexico

-----------


> Dear Shanthi:
>
> For some reason I didn't get your original email asking about organic
> methods of forcing.  It would help if you could be more specific because
> what is acceptable to one organic group might not be acceptable to another.
>
> You may know that ethylene is acceptable in both the U.S. and Europe for
> forcing of pineapple destined for organic markets.  On techniques, Alain
> Soler wrote an article for Pineapple News No. 13, page 27 on methods for
> forcing with ethylene on small farms.  In issue No. 16, page 6,  Van de
> Poel, Ceusters and De Proft reported on a zeothene that would adsorb
> ethylene and showed that it could be used to force pineapple.  The 
> unanswered question is when the zeothene will be commercially available
> and whether it would be acceptable as an ethylene carrier for the 
> forcing of organic pineapple.  Lastly, there was some discussion several
> years ago about the use of cold water or ice for the forcing of 
> pineapple for the organic market.  Chin-Ho Lin and students have refined
> the technique and you can find his summary of the technique on page 31
> of Pineapple News No. 16.  Chin-Ho was working with a "sensitive" 
> cultivar of pineapple, i.e. one that was easy to force, so the technique
> should work similarly with 'Queen' but might pose a challenge with the
> more difficult to force 'Smooth Cayenne'.
>
> I assume you know that carbide in contact with water produces acetylene,
> not ethylene.  However, if there is a natural source of carbide, it 
> still might be acceptable as a forcing agent for pineapple.  I don't try
> to keep up with organic regulations but it is my impression that 
> acetylene sourced from manufactured carbide is not approved for use in
> forcing pineapple destined for the organic market.
>
> If the technique(s) for a small scale and friendly method of flower 
> induction with ethylene referred to below are considerably different
> from those in Alain Soler's report, I would welcome a note or article
> about the technique(s) for inclusion in the next issue of Pineapple News.
>
> With best regards,
> Duane
>
>
> Organic Pineapple Working Group wrote:
>
>> Dear Shanthi,
>
>> We have been working on that and are using a smallscale friendly 
>> method of ethylene flower induction with farmer groups.  My email is 
>> robmoss AT waffco.org <mailto:robmoss AT waffco.org>  i can put you in touch 
>> with out project coordinator who works on that issue.
>
>>  
>
>> *From:* opwg-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org 
>> [mailto:opwg-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] *On Behalf Of *Organic 
>> Pineapple Working Group
>> *Sent:* 14 August 2009 10:46
>> *To:* Organic Pineapple Working Group
>> *Subject:* Re: [OP] Pineapple News No. 16
>
>>  
>
>> Dear Duane,
>
>>  
>
>> I wonder if you would be able to help with information on organically 
>> acceptable methods for flower induction.
>
>>  
>
>> Best regards,
>
>>  
>
>> Shanthi