Organic is the most used and least examined word on a menu. In this province it is also a regulated one, which is worth knowing before you buy catering on the strength of it.
Since September 2018, organic is a protected label in British Columbia. Agricultural products grown or processed in BC cannot be marketed as organic unless they are certified, either provincially through the BC Certified Organic Program or federally under the Canada Organic Regime. Operators using the label are expected to produce proof of current certification on request, and uncertified operators marketing products as organic can be fined.
Federally, the bar is specific. The Canada Organic logo may only appear on products with organic content of 95% or more, certified by a body accredited by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and certification requires an on-site inspection before it is granted. It is a paperwork-and-audit regime, not a description of how careful someone is being.
Where that leaves a kitchen is straightforward enough. Certification sits with the farm and the processor. A caterer can buy certified organic produce, and should be able to tell you which items those are, but buying it does not make the finished dish a certified organic product.
So ask the narrower question. Not whether the food is organic, but which ingredients are certified, which are local and seasonal without being certified, and which are neither because nothing good was available that week. A caterer who can answer that in specifics is telling you more than one who can only repeat the word.
We buy from British Columbia growers wherever the season allows, and we would rather name the farm than wave the adjective. If a particular ingredient matters to you, ask when you book and we will tell you exactly what we can get and what it is certified as.
