Why pay extra for organic food?
I feel it is my obligation as a human being to post this link:
Prevention Magazine’s article and list of “The Dirty Dozen”.
Last September, I picked up a different magazine in the local health food store with an article about organic foods, which basically listed the worst fruit & veggies for pesticide retention, and saying that if a person can’t afford to buy organic groceries, they should at least buy the organic versions of “The Dirty Dozen”. Most lists include only fruits and vegetables. But Prevention’s list lists meat, poultry and milk first. And they suggest that if one doesn’t buy the organic versions of “The Dirty Dozen” on their list, a person is better off not eating it at all. As a veg’n, I appreciate that, even though the items at the top of their list are items I would not buy anyway.
What concerned me when I read about “The Dirty Dozen” wasn’t so much the pesticide levels in our food, which I’ve eaten all my life, but when I read the word “neuro-toxins”. That just sounds like something our government should not allow in our food! Why do they think that’s acceptable?
Here are some random thoughts about buying organic food:
For meat eaters who are (more-or-less*) environmentally friendly, or who take the Prevention article to heart for their own health, eating meat from organically raised animals necessitates the raising of lots of organic feed. Since it takes about 15 times more grain to feed livestock, than it takes to feed a vegan, meat-eaters who opt for organic meat can actually force agriculture to clean up their act. (Nevertheless, humanitarians should take note of that, when they are supporting things like the MDG’s — that huge amounts of grain is wasted on livestock, that could be used to feed the world. And of course, environmentalists* should acknowledge that raising livestock contributes more to Climate Change than our total use of fossil fuels — as does the clearing of the rainforests for grazing land. And they should speak out about that, like they do about changing our lightbulbs, driving less, etc. Methane and deforestation are two things related to raising livestock that do more to contribute to Global Warming than we do when we drive our gas-guzzling cars. Does anyone other than the animal people care about that?)
Although it is no consolation to the animals who are ultimately slaughtered for their flesh, at least, I can assume they might be raised in better conditions, if they don’t need to be fed a constant diet of antibiotics, and aren’t fed growth hormones, etc. And if all meat-eaters decided to eat only organic meat, it would 1) shut down the factory farm operations very quickly, and 2) everyone would have to reduce their consumption, because there isn’t enough organic meat to meet current demand as it is. So if people are not willing to give up eating meat, it’s a (somewhat) better choice for their health, the environment, and minimally for the animals, if they will at least to choose organic. Otherwise, they are eating the highest pesticide-retaining foods, along with growth hormones and antibiotics, and may eventually pay the price in some other way.
My recent interest in organic fruits & veggies was stirred up when I read the article about “The Dirty Dozen”. But it isn’t just the pesticides and chemical fertilizers I’d like to avoid. I also want to avoid genetically-modified food. And organic food is the only safe bet, since genetically-modified ingredients don’t need to be listed on the food packages. In other words, we don’t know how much of the food we buy could be genetically-modified. We don’t even know if the seeds we buy for our veggie gardens are genetically-modified, unless we get organic or heritage or heirloom seeds.
So, why pay more for organic food? Because “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” (whether or not one has decent and affordable healthcare insurance).
Straying off topic, thinking about preventable diseases and our society’s dependence on the medical industry, I was just reminded of the following quote:
“Isn’t man an amazing animal? He kills wildlife - birds, kangaroos, deer, all kinds of cats, coyotes, beavers, groundhogs, mice, foxes, and dingoes - by the millions in order to protect his domestic animals and their feed. Then he kills domestic animals by the billions and eats them. This in turn kills man by the million, because eating all those animals leads to degenerative - and fatal - health conditions like heart disease, kidney disease, and cancer. So then man tortures and kills millions more animals to look for cures for these diseases. Elsewhere, millions of other human beings are being killed by hunger and malnutrition because food they could eat is being used to fatten domestic animals. Meanwhile, some people are dying of sad laughter at the absurdity of man, who kills so easily and so violently, and once a year sends out a card praying for ‘Peace on Earth’.”
– from the preface to Old MacDonald`s Factory Farm, by C. David Coats
(Why does organic food cost more than conventionally-raised food? That’s another whole topic. But one reason has to do with government subsidies, or lack thereof.)
Tags: Lent