Sir; As the founder of Whole Earth Foods (the original 1960s organic brown rice company and creator of Green & Black's organic chocolate) I have kept my counsel in the face of the endlessly recited mantra that accompanies the launch of every new organic offering: "Our range will shake off the brown rice and sandals/ lentils image and drag organics into the modern world." However, last week's Opinion Science, not soundbites, please' demands a response. For MPS to suggest that the future belongs to marketing' and to dismiss the roots of the organic market as messianism' is to miss the point of the organic boom and to dismiss the science, experience and insight that drive the core market. Consumers buy organic food because the science supporting conventional food has let them down. Witness the 400% increase in reported food poisoning incidents between 1989 and 1999. Organic food offers a safer haven for consumers who wish to avoid pesticide residues, hydrogenated fat, phosphoric acid, aspartame, GMOs, BSE or the 7,000 permitted artificial colourings, flavourings and preservatives. It was sound science' that promoted the feeding of animal remains to ruminants and the messianic' Soil Association that prohibited the practice in 1983. It was common sense, not religious fervour, that informed that decision. The marketing of organic food in the past decade has often been sophisticated and effective, hence the dynamic growth of the market. The successful marketeers of the future will take the trouble to understand and respect the principles that drive the organic movement or they could well go the way of Iceland's ill fated organic venture. Craig Sams President Whole Earth Foods London SE1 {{LETTERS }}

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