Organic Produce 
1) Is grown using natural fertilizers such as compost and manure to nourish the soil and feed the plants. Chemical fertilizers and sewage are not applied.
2) Is NOT sprayed with conventional chemical pesticides. Instead, pests are controlled using natural methods.
3) Is NOT grown where weeds are sprayed with chemical herbicides. Instead, weeds are controlled by mulching, manual weeding and crop rotation.
4) Is NOT genetically modified or irradiated.
5) Is NOT combined with food additives.
6) Is NOT treated with hormones or antibiotics, in the case of livestock. Instead, the animals are given organic feed and allowed access to the outdoors. Their housing is kept clean to minimize the risk of infection.
Is Organic Produce Better?
1) Foods that have been sprayed have been found to contain pesticide residues that may be harmful to health. Such residues have even been found in baby food! There are over 850 pesticides registered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and many of these are used singly or in combination by conventional farmers to destroy agricultural pests, including insects. Many of these synthetic chemicals have been implicated in human and animal diseases. It is known that children eat more food relative to their body weight than adults do and so they will also be consuming more pesticide residues relative to their weight. Moreover, children’s detoxification systems are not completely developed so they are more vulnerable. Organically grown foods are free from potentially toxic pesticide residues.
2) There is growing evidence to show that organically grown fruits and vegetables have higher levels of health-protective compounds including antioxidants, flavonoids, phytochemicals and vitamins compared with conventionally grown produce.
3) Organic farming has been shown to produce the same yields of corn and soybeans as conventional farming but using less water, 30% less energy and of course no potentially harmful chemicals. Moreover, the soil quality is maintained, more water retained and there is less erosion. There is growing concern about the progressive loss of good quality topsoil in the world with conventional farming methods and the expansion of organic farming should help to reverse this trend.
Which Foods Should We Eat That Are Only Organically Produced?
The non-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG) based in Washington D.C. analyzed the results of nearly 96,000 tests for pesticides in produce collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) between 2000 and 2008. As a result of this analysis, the EWG developed a ranking of conventionally grown produce based upon pesticide content, see www.foodnews.org . The 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables are referred to as the “Dirty Dozen” and they are as follows, with the most contaminated first; Celery, Peaches, Strawberries, Apples, Blueberries, Nectarines, Bell Peppers, Spinach, Kale, Cherries, Potatoes and Imported Grapes. I do not buy any of these unless they are Certified Organic or are unsprayed.
The conventionally grown produce that showed the least amount of contamination from pesticide residues, the “Cleanest 15”, starting with the best are; Onions, Avocados, Sweet Corn, Pineapples, Mangoes, Asparagus, Sweet Peas, Kiwi, Cabbage, Eggplant, Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Grapefruit, Sweet Potato and Honeydew Melon.
According to the EWG, most of the data that were used to generate these lists were obtained from produce that had already been rinsed and, where appropriate, peeled before being tested.
© Christopher J. Jones, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Adventist Health Ministry,
Laguna Niguel, California, U.S.A.
{ 2 comments }
Some of the most dangerous chemicals and compounds in the world are “Organic”. Don’t let the word “Organic” give you a false sense of security. America is the safest place to eat food in the world. Today, in the U.S. there were over 650 million meals eaten, this past week times that times 7. I heard of no one complaining or getting sick. Farmers spend 10’s of thousands of dollars a month to ensure we have the safest, freshest, best tasting food in the world to eat. Today we spend 7% less our take home pay to eat than we did 20 years ago. The world pays U.S. Farmers premiums for our produce because of our reputation for clean safe food. You want organic, that is fine! Make sure it is for the right reasons. Just because an organization is “Non Profit” don’t think they don’t have agendas. Most “Non Profits” agenda is a need to keep a job. Create a need through “Fear”. I’ve worked in the cherry industry for years. You want a perfectly clean cherry, follow Europe and allow irradiation. That way you can do away with Chlorine which is used in the water to clean a cherry which is the “Chemical” that shows up in testing! Don’t tell me you don’t swim in a public pool without Chlorine do you? Conclusion: I would bet you if you sampled 20 fruits and veggies in your produce Isle (include the “Dirty Dozen”) and then sampled 20 public water samples in 20 government buildings in 20 different states and after looking at the results would welcome a cherry as your H2O needs. Americans are afraid of healthy produce when they are the fattest nation in the world eating unhealthy fast food, or food that is so processed it won’t even spoil.
Thank you for taking the time to write and express your views in such a detailed commentary.
The term organic chemistry was originally applied to the study of carbon compounds in living “vital” systems but since it was discovered how versatile the carbon molecule is, most organic compounds destined for commerce are now synthesized in the laboratory and you are right, some of them are extremely toxic. These would include the organochlorine pesticides DDT, banned for over 30 years now, and Endosulfan, which is banned in 50 countries but not yet in the U.S.A. The use of the term “organic” when applied to most carbon containing substances today has nothing to do with the term that is applied to the growth of produce. I would choose organic and pesticide-free produce over sprayed crops any day because I know that by doing so I will greatly reduce or possibly completely eliminate pesticide residues from my body. (https://www.healthyaddress.com/?p=401). We are swimming in a sea of toxins today, most of which have not been properly tested for safety (http://www.ewg.org/kid-safe-chemicals-act-blog/kid-safe-chemicals-act/) and anything we can do to reduce that load is very welcome to me and my family. Children are now suffering from conditions that were relatively rare over 30 years ago and babies are being born already polluted with heavy metals and industrial toxins including pesticides (https://www.healthyaddress.com/?p=444, https://www.healthyaddress.com/?p=435). This is an outrage and a disgrace.
As for the 650 million meals eaten every day, I agree that they are generally free from infectious agents but you can be sure that a significant percentage of these meals are processed, calorie rich and nutrient poor, essentially junk food whose effects are manifested in the appalling epidemic of obesity we are seeing in America today. There are some physicians that consider obesity to be an illness in itself and we know for sure that it is major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke, certain cancers and a range of other ailments (https://www.healthyaddress.com/?p=143). These illnesses are very costly not only not only in terms of the pain and suffering experienced but also emotionally and financially (https://www.healthyaddress.com/?p=203).
Organic produce is usually more expensive than sprayed produce and this is partly because sprayed crops are subsidized more than organic crops and fees are charged to organic producers (Health Reform should begin at the UDSA. Environmental Working Group. http://budurl.com/x3da). If the government is serious about health reform then this policy will have to change.
Comments on this entry are closed.