>   My question: can anyone give a definitive answer as to whether formic acid
>can be  considered an "organic" treatment for varroa because it is a
>naturally occuring substance?


I don't wish to get deeply into this as it was done to death a long time
ago in a debate that became increasingly acrimonious.

However.

Formic acid does occur in nature but most of that sold is a synthetic
copy. Chemically the same, but synthetic nonetheless. You could consider
it the equivalent of organic, but it is not actually organic.

Flumethrin and fluvalinate are synthetic pyrethroids. Synthetic copies
(or slight adaptations) of chemicals found in the foliage of members of
the chrysanthemum family as part of their natural pest control system.
If synthetic Formic is to be organic why not synthetic pyrethroids?
Their original source is just as organic. (plus they do not rot your box
and frame nails)

The truth is that 'organic' means different things to different people,
and organic in relation to agriculture (including beekeeping) has
entirely different connotations from organic in chemistry for example.


The organic movement is a lifestyle movement. The people who want to eat
organic food (including honey) are part of a market trend whereby they
will pay extra for food produced under a certain regime, which THEY (or
their nominees) dictate. In the UK this is regulated by the Soil
Association, but there are equivalent bodies in almost all countries
where this movement, or agriculture trying to exploit it, is found.

It is NOT a measure of purity or freedom from pollutants or chemicals.
It IS a measure of how the crop was produced and harvested, and that the
standards under which it was done comply with the lifestyle requirements
of the consumer purchasing the product, thus (to their mind) reducing
the risk that it may be contaminated.

--
Murray McGregor