To know your food and ensure that you are eating the freshest, chemical free food possible is to grow your own, in your yard, on your balcony or in a community garden. The second best is to know your farmer. But we don't always have the option to visit the farms where our food is coming from. In this case, you want to look for the "certified organic" label. Some farms and producers claim to have "organic" produce or use "organic" methods, but if they are not "certified organic", who's to know if the farmer clearly understands and practices the claims they make. Currently in Ontario, there is no mandatory labeling of organic food unless it is intended to be sold out of province. This can leave the consumer with two options. One, visit the farm and see what they're doing or two, trust that the farmer is being honest and is following organic practices as claimed. 

Harbourside Organic Farmers Market takes the guessing out of the equassion for you. All of our vendors must meet strict criteria for selling at Harbourside. All farms must be "Certified Organic" by an authorized certifying body who has been approved by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). Any vendor who wishes to sell at Harbourside but is not certified organic, will be inspected by the Harbourside Vendor Processing Committee (VPC). The VPC is made up dedicated volunteers from the community, who have been trained by a licensed Organic Inspector to perform on-site inspections at the farms and kitchens for the purpose of ensuring that all claims being made regarding practices and inputs are true.

At times, when there is a demand for certain products that we can not provide by any local organic farms you may see some farms/products labeled IPM (integrated pest management). These farms agree to provide customers with full input records that indicate what and when the produce was treated with non-organic herbicides, fungicides and pesticides. This allows the customer to make an educated choice about what they are purchasing. 

 The following chart illustrates the vendor rating system that you will find at the market. Each approved vendor will display one or more of these symbols to help you make the best food choices for your needs.

= Primary Producer	Grows fruit & vegetables. Raises animals. Primary food in it's natural form and has not been processed into anything.
= Secondary Producer	Applies a process to make a new product from primary and other ingredients. Baked goods and preserved foods, are examples.
= Hand Crafted	Products made from earth based recycled, and found materials. Raw materials must be obtained from sustainable sources.
= Fairly Traded	Raw product purchased from a reputable source. Producers are paid a living wage and work in a safe & healthy environment.
Never under any circumstance are Genetically Modified Organisms, derivatives of GM crops or animals that have been fed GM feedstock allowed to be sold at this market. Prohibited foods include non-organic corn, canola, soy, sugar beet, cotton-seed oil, papaya,squash, Milk Products from US. 3 = Certified Organic This is the ultimate in ecologically sustainable food production and meets of exceeds the Canadian Organic Standard. 2 = Ecologically Sustainable Uses ecologically sound practices but is not certified organic. Not all farms wish to certify so they have been inspected by OSFP's Vendor Processing Committee. 1 = Integrated Pest Management Uses ecologically sound practices as much as possible, using synthetic inputs only when absolutely necessary. These producers are required to disclose a complete list of synthetic pesticides used and dates of application for all customers to see. 3 = Certified Organic This processors' products contain a minimum of 95% Certified Organic ingredients as outlined in the Canadian Organic Standard. 2 = Contains some Organic Ingredients This processors' products contain some non-certified organic ingredients because of lack of adequate supply at this time. This will change as market demand for certified organic produce increases and more farmers start producing these harder to find products. GMOs and GMO derivatives are strictly prohibited.