I recently talked to some family farmers...farmettes with only a few acres in production. They are farming because they like living in the country and having control over what they eat. Most of them expanded from merely grownign for themselves to growing for neighbors and friends, etc.
Of the ones I visited, none of them had the “Certified Organic” designation. They all told me that they did not seek the “organic” designation due to the paperwork and cost.
For the small farm, it takes a few growing seasons to obtain that certification and there is annual paperwork, etc. to keep it.
They did use varying degrees of organic farming methods and are selling to stores and restaurants as well as local customers.
They told me the designation “natural” on food packaging means absolutely nothing.
Seeing what they were doing impressed me. They have found ways to combat bugs, etc. with a variety of non-chemical techniques such as companion planting.
If you cannot grow your own produce, I recommend going to farmer markets for fresh produce during the summer months—excellent quality, and since it is local, you have some idea of how it was grown. Some of these family farms have options for U-Picks and CSA’s (shares purchased that guarantee a certain amount of harvest).
BEWARE of resellers at farmer's markets...they are a real problem. We have quite a few of them at east TN markets...'fresh, locally-grown tomatoes' being sold in early May??? How stupid are you? You have others selling mangoes and papayas...both well-known Tennessee crops. OMG.