Protected Harvest
Encyclopedia
Protected Harvest is an American
non-profit organization heaquartered in Soquel, California
that certifies sustainbly grown crops. The goal of the organization is to provide a standard measurement of what constitutes a sustainable product
and use it to assure retailers and consumers that they are pucharsing sustainbly grown items. Protected Harvest was founded in 2001 as an independent non-profit organization
and merged into SureHarvest
in 2008. According to EcoLabeling.org, a non-profit monitoring certification programs, "Protected Harvest is an eco-label with the stated mission of helping farmers meet environmental standards that yield high quality products and preserve healthy land for future generations." Pest-management in particular is among the specialties of Protected Harvest, according to Consumer Reports
.
Upon certification through on-site verification, growers may use the Protected Harvest eco-label in marketing their certified foods. The first Protected Harvest certified crop to hit the shelves was Healthy Grown
potatoes from Wisconsin. Additionally, Protected Harvest certifies winegrapes from the Lodi Rules for Sustainable Winegrowing program of the Lodi Woodbridge Winegrape Commission in Lodi, California
, fresh and fresh-cut mushroom
s from the Modern Mushroom company, and stonefruit sold under the Zeal and Ripe 'N Ready brands.
Currently the Protected Harvest oversight board, charged with the task of developing the measurements for what constitutes sustainably grown product consists of the following:
caused by agricultural runoff of pesticides and fertilizer components such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Certain pesticides and fertilizers provide cheap insurance to farmers that they will have large yields. Third-party certification is designed to provide assurance to consumers that growers are in fact utilizing practices which reduce these problems.
Each Protected Harvest production standard is written to reflect the unique growing requirements and environmental considerations of the crop and the specific bioregion in which it is grown. A “typical” standard is divided into four major sections: whole farm management, soil and water management, and air quality management.
Depending on the crop, the region where it is grown, and the exact production system being addressed, the relative importance of the factors will change. When developing a standard for certification purposes, the point system is ultimately determined by a multidisciplinary Crop Advisory Committee that is assembled for the writing of each crop certification standard. A peer review of the standard is then conducted to evaluate the technical competency of the standard, followed by a review by the Protected Harvest Oversight Board.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
non-profit organization heaquartered in Soquel, California
Soquel, California
Soquel is a census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. The population was 9,644 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Soquel is located at ....
that certifies sustainbly grown crops. The goal of the organization is to provide a standard measurement of what constitutes a sustainable product
Sustainable agriculture
Sustainable agriculture is the practice of farming using principles of ecology, the study of relationships between organisms and their environment...
and use it to assure retailers and consumers that they are pucharsing sustainbly grown items. Protected Harvest was founded in 2001 as an independent non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
and merged into SureHarvest
SureHarvest
SureHarvest is an American agricultural firm providing professional consulting, information technology support and certification to farming enterprises. The company was founded in 1999 by entomologist Jeff Dlott, PhD, with the purpose of providing farmers with the knowledge and resources necessary...
in 2008. According to EcoLabeling.org, a non-profit monitoring certification programs, "Protected Harvest is an eco-label with the stated mission of helping farmers meet environmental standards that yield high quality products and preserve healthy land for future generations." Pest-management in particular is among the specialties of Protected Harvest, according to Consumer Reports
Consumer Reports
Consumer Reports is an American magazine published monthly by Consumers Union since 1936. It publishes reviews and comparisons of consumer products and services based on reporting and results from its in-house testing laboratory. It also publishes cleaning and general buying guides...
.
Activities
The Protected Harvest program provides technical support and collaborates with qualified organizations to develop region and crop–specific verifiable environmental performance standards, which are peer reviewed before being presented to its Oversight Board for adoption. The public availability of the standards and methodology is part of the Protected Harvest commitment to transparency.Upon certification through on-site verification, growers may use the Protected Harvest eco-label in marketing their certified foods. The first Protected Harvest certified crop to hit the shelves was Healthy Grown
Healthy Grown
Healthy Grown Potato is an eco-brand that provides high-quality, sustainably grown, packaged, and shipped potatoes to consumers by leveraging integrated pest management farming practices on large scale farms. A certification process is mandatory to market products as Healthy Grown...
potatoes from Wisconsin. Additionally, Protected Harvest certifies winegrapes from the Lodi Rules for Sustainable Winegrowing program of the Lodi Woodbridge Winegrape Commission in Lodi, California
Lodi, California
Lodi is a city located in , in the northern portion of California's Central Valley. The population was 62,134 at the 2010 census. The California Department of Finance's population estimate as of January 1, 2011 is 62,473....
, fresh and fresh-cut mushroom
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
s from the Modern Mushroom company, and stonefruit sold under the Zeal and Ripe 'N Ready brands.
Board of Directors
According to the Protected Harvest web-site:
The Protected Harvest Board of directors is a collaboration of representatives of prominent environmental organizations, agricultural specialists, scientists, and marketing experts. The Board’s responsibility is to review and approve all standards as grounded in environmental science and practical for on-farm implementation.
Currently the Protected Harvest oversight board, charged with the task of developing the measurements for what constitutes sustainably grown product consists of the following:
- Suzy Friedman, Center for Conservation Incentives, Environmental Defense Fund
- Will Horwath, PhD (Council President), ProfessorProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
, Land, Air and Water Resources, University of California, Davis
- Jonathan Kaplan, Director, Agriculture Project, Natural Resources Defense CouncilNatural Resources Defense CouncilThe Natural Resources Defense Council is a New York City-based, non-profit, non-partisan international environmental advocacy group, with offices in Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Beijing...
- Deana Knutson, PhD, Biointensive IPM Coordinator, WWF/WPVGA/UW Collaboration
- Charles Mellinger, PhD, Technical Director, Glades Crop Care, Inc.
- Cliff Ohmart, PhD, Vice President of Professional Services, SureHarvest
- Kai Robertson, Independent Sustainability Expert
- Ann Sorenson, Assistant Vice President of Research, American Farmland TrustAmerican Farmland TrustThe American Farmland Trust is an organization founded to preserve farmland and ranchland in the United States and to promote sustainable agricultural practices....
Advantages
The certification approach is said by Protected Harvest literature to have great environmental value in that it helps to solve a major intractable problem: nonpoint source pollutionNonpoint source pollution
Nonpoint source pollution refers to both water and air pollution from diffuse sources. Nonpoint source water pollution affects a water body from sources such as polluted runoff from agricultural areas draining into a river, or wind-borne debris blowing out to sea. Nonpoint source air pollution...
caused by agricultural runoff of pesticides and fertilizer components such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Certain pesticides and fertilizers provide cheap insurance to farmers that they will have large yields. Third-party certification is designed to provide assurance to consumers that growers are in fact utilizing practices which reduce these problems.
Each Protected Harvest production standard is written to reflect the unique growing requirements and environmental considerations of the crop and the specific bioregion in which it is grown. A “typical” standard is divided into four major sections: whole farm management, soil and water management, and air quality management.
Depending on the crop, the region where it is grown, and the exact production system being addressed, the relative importance of the factors will change. When developing a standard for certification purposes, the point system is ultimately determined by a multidisciplinary Crop Advisory Committee that is assembled for the writing of each crop certification standard. A peer review of the standard is then conducted to evaluate the technical competency of the standard, followed by a review by the Protected Harvest Oversight Board.