Wow! I just finished reading an incredibly interesting interview in the May 2006 issue of Fast Company. This issue they focused on food (yes, I'm hungry now *sigh*) but the article I turned to first was "A Farming Fairy Tale". Charles Fishman's interview with Gene Kahn, founder of Cascadian Farm (and now VP of sustainable development for General Mills, the big boy who bought Cascadian Farm back in 2000), is a good look at the organic industry.
If you've been popping by SmallBizMentor for a while, you know I'm pretty into this whole journey of going green. It's not just because I like the PR ramifications (though green companies do get some great face-time when they mention their environmental efforts); frankly, I like the health benefits.
However, as an organic consumer, it's easy for me to fall into the dreamlike thinking that since buying organic products is simple for me, it's simple for others. It's all too easy to focus on ourselves and forget that industry-wide changes don't happen overnight, and that's one of the issues that is discussed in this interview with Mr. Kahn.
I love the way this portion of the piece summarizes it for the reader:
"...Organic is an infant industry. The commercialization of organic is a relatively recent phenomenon, so the support network...is just gearing up right now."
What a perfect point.
That said, if you are interested in greening your business or going organic, or you have an idea for a business start-up that would fit well in the "green" marketing niche, don't be shy and don't get discouraged. The market is growing by leaps and bounds. When companies like Wal-Mart and Safeway are introducing hundreds of new organic products at a time, you know the market is heating up. Stick with it!
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