The reason that I am not buying organic food had always been the fact that organic food is much more expensive than non-organic ones. However, after reading the blog post “About Ethical Marketing for Organic Food” by Miranda Wen, my understanding of organic food has been enriched.

In her blog post, Miranda questioned the “ethics of various marketing strategies of organic food” because food labelled as organic is not necessarily safe, whereas, the advertisements about organic food all convey and reinforce the message that organic food is safer and healthier.

The marketing ethics of organic food is similar to the food labelled as “natural” as discussed in my previous blog post “Natural Misconception”. Whether it is for organic or natural food, the marketers play around with consumers’ misconception on the two words. By harnessing the ambiguity in these words, marketers give the public the false impression that natural or organic food is immune to bacteria and harmful byproducts produced as a result of the cooking process.

Despite the fact that labeling can lead to unethical marketing behaviour, labels are important with regard to characteristics that can’t be seen with the naked eye. “You can’t tell by looking at an apple, for instance, whether it’s been sprayed with pesticides—unless, of course, you see the ‘Certified Organic’ label on it.”As consumers, we rely heavily on labels to get what we are looking for, but it is the reliance that makes us vulnerable to unethical marketing.