Soil Association

Description

The Soil Association is a British charity working on food, farming and forestry, and it certifies organic products.

Its team develops practical, evidence based solutions to change how people eat, farm and care for nature. It partners with farmers, cooks, schools, caterers, businesses and communities across the food system. It set the world’s first organic standards, and its certification arm is the leading organic and sustainability certifier in the United Kingdom, covering food, farming and forestry. Related programmes serve sustainable meals in schools and communities, run farmer led research trials, and help farms build resilient, profitable systems.

The charity was founded in 1946 by Lady Eve Balfour, following the Haughley experiment that compared organic and chemical farming methods. It grew out of concerns about intensive agriculture and the use of herbicides, and it was one of the founding bodies of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements in 1972. It has campaigned on pesticide use, gene editing deregulation, megafarming, agroecology, farm animal welfare, ultra processed foods and healthy school meals. It operates from offices in Bristol, England and Edinburgh, Scotland, and relies on membership and donations from individuals, businesses and institutions.