When compared side by side with their regular, non-organic counterparts, organic foods can be confusing. Why would you want to pay a couple of extra dollars for organic foods, such as carrots,
that look exactly the same as the regular carrots you’ve been eating your whole life? Well, there’s a reason some people swear by organic food, and once you know the difference, you might count yourself as a fellow chemical-free devotee.
Read our organic food primer to learn about the benefits of going organic and how easy it can be to incorporate it into your life.
What is organic food?
Many farmers rely on pesticides to kill crop-damaging bugs. The pesticides, however, can create a lingering residue on the food, even after it reaches grocery store shelves. So, when you pull your chair closer to the table to enjoy that tempting salad, you could be consuming small amounts of the same poison that was used to kill off insects. Are you still hungry?
Organic farmers, in addition to using fertilizers and maintaining a good growing environment, use natural methods to combat pests. Whether it’s a meat or a vegetable, organic food is, by definition, chemical- and additive-free.
For example, where a non-organic farmer might use a pesticide to kill off apple maggots in an orchard, an organic farmer will likely make the apples less appealing to the maggots by using garlic barriers, which will drive the maggots away, or by introducing other insects that won’t harm the apples but will eat the maggots. Where conventional farmers can plant high-yielding crops year after year in the same field (due to their “scientific” practices), organic farmers need to give the land a rest every few seasons in order to give the soil time to rebuild its nutrient supply.
Why eat organic food?
Die-hard organic food connoisseurs swear that organic food just tastes better. Ask them why, and they’ll start rattling off a number of different reasons, but the first one would probably be that instead of tasting any possible chemical residue, they taste the full flavor of the food. An organic apple might seem less appealing than a big, shiny, non-organic apple, but the conventional apple is often coated with artificial wax to make it look more tempting. When you don’t have to chew through this waxen barrier, you get to enjoy the pure taste of the apple.
Organic food tends to be higher in vitamin and nutrient content, and in the case of organic meat, the animals fated to end up on your plate are fed an organic diet and are never injected with antibiotics or growth hormones.
Organic food connoisseurs are also eating their way out of some cancer risks. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 60% of herbicides (weed killer), 90% of fungicides (mushroom and fungus killer) and 30% of insecticides (pest poison) contain carcinogenic chemicals, which are linked to cancer. Pesticide use has also been linked to birth defects and genetic mutations.
Why is organic food so expensive?
For a farmer, going organic isn’t just a matter of throwing a ”Save the Earth” sticker on the back of the truck and driving around town. There are strict rules that have to be followed in order to get the coveted ”organic” certification. The process is expensive, and can require multiple inspections of all the areas of the farm to make sure the entire operation is chemical-free. Also, organic food costs are higher because organic farmers are ineligible for some of the subsidies that their chemical-squirting colleagues can receive and meat farmers must give their animals organic feed, which can be as much as double the price of conventional feed.
Organic food proponents counter the claim that organic food is too expensive by pointing to the fact that the small price you pay upfront outweighs the cost of the potential ailments incurred by ingesting chemical-laden food. If the higher up-front cost means you can’t go full-bore organic, try implementing a few staples. Rice, peppers, corn, peaches, and potatoes are some of the foods notorious for carrying pesticides, which means you should consider their organic counterparts. Can’t afford organic meat? Try switching to organic milk; it’s free of the antibiotics and growth hormones that conventional cows are injected with to keep their milk flowing. Other pundits would add organic eggs and apples to this list.
organic nation
There’s a reason why some farmers refuse to go organic: through the use of chemicals, their crops (or their animals) get bigger faster, giving the farmers a bigger bang for their proverbial buck. And given that the success of a farming season can rely on uncontrollable variables, like what the weather decides to do, some farmers need the mental cushion that the chemicals give them. But the consumer has the final say, and as we can see with the growing organic section at our neighborhood grocery stores, organic food isn’t a passing fad. The next time you’re in the grocery store, take a look down the organic aisle, and you’ll see a wide variety of people perusing the shelves. Some of them probably haven’t even heard of Phish.
Resources: www.askmen.com
Read our organic food primer to learn about the benefits of going organic and how easy it can be to incorporate it into your life.
What is organic food?
Many farmers rely on pesticides to kill crop-damaging bugs. The pesticides, however, can create a lingering residue on the food, even after it reaches grocery store shelves. So, when you pull your chair closer to the table to enjoy that tempting salad, you could be consuming small amounts of the same poison that was used to kill off insects. Are you still hungry?
Organic farmers, in addition to using fertilizers and maintaining a good growing environment, use natural methods to combat pests. Whether it’s a meat or a vegetable, organic food is, by definition, chemical- and additive-free.
For example, where a non-organic farmer might use a pesticide to kill off apple maggots in an orchard, an organic farmer will likely make the apples less appealing to the maggots by using garlic barriers, which will drive the maggots away, or by introducing other insects that won’t harm the apples but will eat the maggots. Where conventional farmers can plant high-yielding crops year after year in the same field (due to their “scientific” practices), organic farmers need to give the land a rest every few seasons in order to give the soil time to rebuild its nutrient supply.
Why eat organic food?
Die-hard organic food connoisseurs swear that organic food just tastes better. Ask them why, and they’ll start rattling off a number of different reasons, but the first one would probably be that instead of tasting any possible chemical residue, they taste the full flavor of the food. An organic apple might seem less appealing than a big, shiny, non-organic apple, but the conventional apple is often coated with artificial wax to make it look more tempting. When you don’t have to chew through this waxen barrier, you get to enjoy the pure taste of the apple.
Organic food tends to be higher in vitamin and nutrient content, and in the case of organic meat, the animals fated to end up on your plate are fed an organic diet and are never injected with antibiotics or growth hormones.
Organic food connoisseurs are also eating their way out of some cancer risks. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 60% of herbicides (weed killer), 90% of fungicides (mushroom and fungus killer) and 30% of insecticides (pest poison) contain carcinogenic chemicals, which are linked to cancer. Pesticide use has also been linked to birth defects and genetic mutations.
Why is organic food so expensive?
For a farmer, going organic isn’t just a matter of throwing a ”Save the Earth” sticker on the back of the truck and driving around town. There are strict rules that have to be followed in order to get the coveted ”organic” certification. The process is expensive, and can require multiple inspections of all the areas of the farm to make sure the entire operation is chemical-free. Also, organic food costs are higher because organic farmers are ineligible for some of the subsidies that their chemical-squirting colleagues can receive and meat farmers must give their animals organic feed, which can be as much as double the price of conventional feed.
Organic food proponents counter the claim that organic food is too expensive by pointing to the fact that the small price you pay upfront outweighs the cost of the potential ailments incurred by ingesting chemical-laden food. If the higher up-front cost means you can’t go full-bore organic, try implementing a few staples. Rice, peppers, corn, peaches, and potatoes are some of the foods notorious for carrying pesticides, which means you should consider their organic counterparts. Can’t afford organic meat? Try switching to organic milk; it’s free of the antibiotics and growth hormones that conventional cows are injected with to keep their milk flowing. Other pundits would add organic eggs and apples to this list.
organic nation
There’s a reason why some farmers refuse to go organic: through the use of chemicals, their crops (or their animals) get bigger faster, giving the farmers a bigger bang for their proverbial buck. And given that the success of a farming season can rely on uncontrollable variables, like what the weather decides to do, some farmers need the mental cushion that the chemicals give them. But the consumer has the final say, and as we can see with the growing organic section at our neighborhood grocery stores, organic food isn’t a passing fad. The next time you’re in the grocery store, take a look down the organic aisle, and you’ll see a wide variety of people perusing the shelves. Some of them probably haven’t even heard of Phish.
Resources: www.askmen.com