Demand for Organic Soybeans Growing

"Before harvest, New Hampton organic farmer Tom Frantzen will cultivate and till his organic soybean acres at least four times to prevent weeds because he can't use chemicals to keep his rows clean.

His work spills onto the kitchen table and computer den, where he keeps three-ring binders of receipts, spreadsheets and an online journal of farm work - all required under U.S. Department of Agriculture organic rules.

The payoff for that effort is substantially bigger profits, said Frantzen and other Iowa organic soybean farmers.

Few farmers are switching over, however. With demand for organic soybeans rising fast, a shortage of beans in the United States and Canada has forced food companies and livestock producers to import organic soybeans from China and elsewhere."

Read the article