>  Having also gone through [USDA organic] certification... 
> "angry and disillusioned" is a relatively common
> part of the process.
	
The certification program is clearly defined for crops one grows, or animals
one raises, it is only bees that are judged by the stewardship of the land
they MIGHT visit.  Everything else is judged by factors that are clearly
under the direct control of the producer.

While such a comparison may seem humorous to some, I was Demeter Certified
(biodyanmics, "the Dianetics of agriculture") for my honey production, and I
was even able to take splits from hives built up for apples, and have them
produce Demeter-certified honey in the same season.  Yes, they were picky.
When you want the ultimate in picky, go with Germans in white lab coats,
this is the industry standard.  But all of the points of certification were
posed as being based upon a concern about the bees, and while we strict
rationalists may take issue with the shaky grasp of the facts evinced by
such practices, one can at least say that the intentions were to put the
welfare of the bees above all else.

I was then, and remain a strict rationalist, and this included being happy
to sell Demeter-certified honey to enthusiastic customers for at least
double what I could sell my non-Demeter honey from my hives that pollinated
apples before they made a crop.

So I see all certification programs as being equally silly, including the
various levels of certification offered by technology companies, such as
Cisco the router company.  You get specialized testing to make sure that you
are a good little apologist for the fact that a simple router has so many
quirks and gotchas, and the tactic agreement that you will also profit from
the scheme, as you are now "certified" in that brand of technology.  

Remember "produced using organic methods" is a heck of lot more possible
than "Certified Organic", and it is only a matter of time before the
widespread fraud of imported food being classified as "organic" is exposed.
Country or origin matters, as does region, as does "local".  "Local"
outsells "organic"  every time, even when "local" is not at all "organic".
Retailers know this, and so should you.

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