The price of organic food is sometimes double that of their conventionally grown neighbor. It is challenging, especially in today's economy to spend almost double on our weekly produce just because we are choosing organic. It is important to remember that voting with your dollars is not only essential to change, but essential to your health. Choosing organic foods is choosing change.
Let's start with the basics:
You plant a seed and watch it grow. What are the 'living' conditions of that seed? Soil is a living, fragile and complex ecosystem that is the connection between the air we breath, our land and our water. As you read in my previous post, current day farming practices ie: using pesticides, hybrids, soil enhancers and other chemicals are dangerous and have huge repurcussions.
These practices make it easier, faster and arguably more productive than using good old fashioned farming methods such as general crop rotations (which help to enrich nitrogen in the soil and avoid pathogen build-up) and the use of mulch and manure to eliminate weeds. I don't blame anyone for trying to get more bang out of their buck, I will simply pass on the chemicals in my food, thanks.
So one may say..."What's wrong with a little insecticide, herbicide or fungicide?"
Aside from the direct affect on our food chain (more on that in a different post), there is a chain affect on our environment - and potentially our immediate health.
Since man-made pesticides are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. One may assume they would safely control the amount of poison that can be applied on our food crops (is that an oxymoron?) This belief takes the assumption that investment by big business, consumption by consumers, government spending, subsidy farming, capitalism, economy, GDP...all step aside so that the USDA's can protect your individual health. Um....maybe.
Keep it basic and do your best to support the farms that believe in the integrity of the crops they produce, sans chemicals, and over-production for intentions other than pure cropping. These are the people looking out for you and our world.
Eat with your head:
Does wax on your apple feel good in your mouth? I mean, you know that can not wash that off...Does a huge watermelon without one single seed seem even a little odd? Or a perfectly round, bright, larger than a softball orange? Doesn't it just seem a little wierd? I think our society has been drowned with competitive choices and our internal guidance has been muted. Time to wake up!
Choosing fruit with nothing on it or in it but the natural compounds it is made from, makes sense. Eating (even a lil wee- bit) of man made chemicals does not. When it comes down to conventional vs. organic, we are paying less (for the conventional option) because the end product is less laborious, less nutritious.
It is all choice. Eat with your head, and vote with your dollar.
Happy Eating
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