To Be or Not to Be Organic, that is the Question

In this century new diets and environmental trends seem to be surfacing every day. One that has been in the public eye for a while now is organic food. Is this new trend going to fade away or is it here to stay?

The Truth about organic food:

Let’s start from the beginning. Organic food refers to the way that the food is grown, cultivated and processed. Instead of using chemicals to help grow crops, farmers use other methods of farming that are good for the land and more natural such as crop rotation and manure fertilizer.

Many people claim that organic foods are better for you. Is that true? According to mayoclinic.com there is no evidence that organic foods have more nutrients then food grown with chemicals.

However, other Web sites claim organic food is higher in vitamins and minerals. Research is still being conducted comparing these two methods. Hopefully there will be a more solid answer in the future.

So why do people go out of their way to shop organic? There are various reasons consumers buy organic. One of the main ones is exposure to pesticides. One study done by organicfood.net revealed that a nonorganic fruit or vegetable can have up to 30 pesticides in it, even after being washed. Many people want to limit their exposure to these chemicals and choose organic. Although none of the foods containing pesticides exceed the USDA’s safety standards.

Another reason people may shop organic is to limit food additives they consume. Organic foods contain fewer dyes, waxes and processing and fortifying aids than regular food. Because it is more naturally cultivated, organic farmers leave out many hormones and other non-natural ingredients.

One last reason to go organic is for the environment. Organic foods promote soil and water conservation and less pollution then other foods.  They do not use chemicals and fertilizers that nonorganic foods use. Those chemicals and fertilizers get into groundwater and can pollute the local water including what we drink. Organic farming also uses less energy than other farming methods.

One downfall many consumers see with organic foods is the price. Farmers charge higher prices because they are not able to produce as many crops, they have to adhere to stricter government laws and quite honestly because they can.  This can discourage some consumers from buying organic.

So now that you know enough to make a decision on organic foods the next step is to identify the difference in the grocery store. Check for a “USDA certified organic” label on the food you are buying.

The USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) has set strict rules for farmers who produce food to make sure that their items are truly organic. So if you see the label then you can be positive what you are buying is organic.  

The decision is up to you. Are you going to start or continue shopping organic or are you going to keep with your nonorganic foods? The choice is yours.
 
Pictures:
USDA picture: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.skepdic.com/graphics
Organic foods: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://greenbabyguide.com
Organic with sign:http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i.treehugger.com