Source: USDA.gov

Organic food isn't only one of the hottest industries around - it's also an increasingly important part of our appetite. But there's a lot about organic that most folks don't know. Here are 13 important numbers that define the organic food movement.

Farmers can't switch to organic growing overnight. For three years before their first certified organic harvest, farmers can't use any forbidden substances on their land. That includes sewage sludge, most synthetic fertilizers, and most pesticides.

5.4% of all used farmland in the European Union is certified organic. By comparison, the United States' 2.2 million organic hectares amounts to just around 0.7% of total agricultural land. But not all European countries are created equally organic. The map below shows the regional share of organic farms as a percentage of total used farmland in Europe for 2010.

Source: European Commission

In the European Union, the most commonly grown organic crop is olives, comprising 31% of all organic production. Grapes snagged a sizable 17%, with nuts clocking in at 13%.

Alcohol can be organic, too. For your spirits to lay claim to a "Made with organic ____" stamp, the contents must be at least 70% organic.

In the Code of Federal Regulations, there are 81 distinct "parts" to Title 7, Subtitle B, Chapter I, Subchapter M, Part 205 (the "National Organic Program"). At a total print length of 70 pages for just the regulations themselves, parts cover topics as disparate as wild-crop harvesting, emergency disease treatments, and peer review panels.

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13 Organic Food Numbers You Need to Know