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Who doesn't eat organic food?


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Eternal Sunshine

Personally, I think that the whole organic food thing is a scam. If you read the actual research rather than news/consipiracy theory sites, there is no real proof of anything. Mostly the amount of preservatives you consume over a lifetime is far, far too small to have any harmful effect.

 

Just wish this fad would die already.

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I don't eat it on purpose. If it's there I don't mind.

 

A lot of local farmers around here grow organic but they never paid the $25,000 the USDA requires to certify something organic.

 

I'm not a big believer in chemicals of any kind so if I can avoid pesticides I will but I'm not fanatical about it.

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Organics are a pretty big industry where I live and I occasionally eat them, mainly stuff I get from organic farmers at open-air markets. I tend to buy for flavor and uniqueness, meaning a crop type which isn't generally produced in our area in non-organic volume.

 

It's pretty expensive to get licensed as organic around here, as well as the expenses of growing organic, so the produce/products are more expensive. In small quantities though, not exceedingly so.

 

Some organic farmers are also customers. I also do work for the GMO sector. I think all of these variations of traditional farming, and that traditional farming itself, are worth investigating and improving. Population grows daily and we're tasked to feed people in a safe and healthy manner.

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Also, even if not 'pure' organic, we're now using many technologies pioneered by organic farmers in the traditional farming arena and IMO my personal environment is a better place because of it. Many of my neighbors use biologics instead of chemical pesticides and plant nitrogen fixing cover crops instead of applying nitrate fertilizers. My house doesn't get sprayed with pesticides by air anymore, rather the farmers apply them at ground level using shielded sprayers and the pesticides may be natural in base, rather than synthesized.

 

One thing I notice about organics is their comparatively short shelf life. On the surface, that seems 'bad' but it's more a reminder on how much we altered products in the past with pesticides/herbicides and preservatives. I had come to take for granted the long shelf lives of produce and 'going organic' is a return to the old days of back yard farming.

 

FWIW, I did consume a fair amount of organic produce and biologically friendly meat and poultry products when visiting Australia and found their products, and agricultural practices, to greatly favor those locally in my region. Good stuff.

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I don't, but only because the cost is prohibitive for me. I think I might like to try organics for flavor. I've been told that produce at supermarkets is pitiful in taste compared to the "real thing". Then again, that could be caused by the amount of time it takes to ship food from A to B, as opposed to the method of production.

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sweetjasmine
Personally, I think that the whole organic food thing is a scam. If you read the actual research rather than news/consipiracy theory sites, there is no real proof of anything. Mostly the amount of preservatives you consume over a lifetime is far, far too small to have any harmful effect.

 

Just wish this fad would die already.

 

I don't mind the fad so much, especially since some of the techniques used in organic farming are better for the environment, but the lecturing and the status symbol crap associated with the "organic lifestyle" are both things that can't die down fast enough.

 

People are convinced that organic = natural = good = harmless = better for you, but few people realize that organic farmers can use natural pesticides like pyrethrins, nicotine sulfate, and rotenone. Some synthetic pesticides are allowed, too. Going by EPA exposure limits, the pyrethrins and rotenone are actually more toxic per weight than the common synthetic pesticides used in conventional farming, including RoundUp. And they require more applications since they break down faster. Synthetic pesticides have been specifically engineered to be more effective at lower doses.

 

The bottom line is that the risks from eating pesticide residue on conventional produce are negligible, and the risks from eating organic produce are pretty much the same.

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MuddyFootprints

Most supermarket produce will be hybrid varieties. Flavour has been sacrificed for more marketable qualities such as shelf life, appearance, yield, and disease resistance.

Edited by MuddyFootprints
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I'm with you ES, that this whole "organic food" is just a marketing scam. Food is food. Different pesticides are used - depends on the region and the farmer - and everything we eat contains a small amount of poison. People wonder where their cancer or illness or chronic conditions come from? From the pesticides and toxins left over on the produce you eat, the packaged food you eat.

 

Think of how much healthier we'd all be if everyone single person grew their own vegetable garden. You could concoct your own "organic" pesticide that won't harm you.

 

Food should be marketed based on levels of pesticide poison and toxic chemicals in it and the side effects that result. I no longer buy tea packaged in bags, but buy loose tea instead, b/c the loose tea has less toxins and pesticides than the processed, bagged, tea.

 

And even if you soak your produce in vinegar and water, you can't do that for all produce - like fruit with soft membrane like bananas, peaches or strawberries. I think vinegar soaks only work to remove the wax on apples, grapes, pears. Don't know how to remove the pesticide on strawberries. Anyone know? Just rinsing with cold water doesn't remove any pesticide unfortunately.

Edited by writergal
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I wouldn't mind eating a lot more of it - I bought a few organic veggies for Dora's broth and food, but she was tiny, and didn't eat as much as we do.

 

I'm growing vegetables in my garden, and haven't used pesticides on them. I like being able to go out there and pick kale for free (almost), paying $2 for a seed packet in the spring, and $8 for a liquid fertilizer that would last me all Summer. Much better than paying $4 per bunch of kale, at the health food store (Which I've never been able to do).

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MuddyFootprints

I have to straddle both worlds.

 

I was just saying yesterday that despite the fact that I apply no pesticides in my small market garden, I'm not considered organic simply because I'm using commercial fertilizer.

 

(I think the discussion ended up more along the lines of me being un-certifiable, but that's another story. :laugh:)

 

You don't need to have a garden to grow your own produce. You would be amazed by what you can grow in pots on your deck or patio.

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I don't care about organics. I do prefer local food over grocery store food, as it tends to be more fresh and it feels good to support a local business.

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I would buy most of my veggies and fruit organic if I could afford it. Mostly for the environmental impact, not sure if I've bought into a scam or not, but I guess it doesn't matter cause I'm too poor to buy all organic anyway :D I def refuse to buy GMOs and food w/ HFCS or partially hydrogenated anything if at all possible. I make my own condiments and everything now!

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One shop nearby was offering Organic Dry Cleaning for a while. For a nice premium of course. I felt good when they went out of business. Bad enough so many are buying into the food fad, at least we haven't fallen into that level of crazy.

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True...I grow my own tomatoes, strawberries, peas, varieties of lettuce and a few others. It's also fun! So satisfying. I have a large garden but prefer to grow the edibles in containers and pots. Harvests vary but this year my vine squashes are incredible growing up a trellis about 8 feet high.

 

I find that the swiss chard grown on my balcony tastes much better than what you get at the store.

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I usually buy my big bag of limes from Costco. It's pretty cheap, good quality and enough limes that I have to make up ways to use it all before it starts to spoil.

 

A while back, I ventured to "Whole Foods" and I saw their limes. They were huge. I mean, like orange size limes almost. So I got some. I was sure they'd taste weird or not be good juicers, but actually...they taste good and juice far better than the limes I usually get. Only problem is they're huge and the lime wedge I cut from them just look ridiculous in my rocks glass. Sure, I can cut them down, but they just are not as pleasing to behold.

 

My usual limes from Costco, I cut them and they aren't really dripping juice. Sure, if you squeeze them...juice comes out. I didn't really think about that till I got these huge ass limes from Whole Foods. I cut those bowling ball size limes and they are leaving a puddle of juice everywhere. It's crazy. There is totally a difference here.

 

Other than that...free range chicken. I am for it. I eat a lot of chicken breast and honestly I am not too happy with how these chickens are raised, treated and slaughtered. It's not really an "organics are healthier" thing, it's a I don't agree with cruelty thing. And I will pay more so that the chickens I eat can have some time on this earth running around doing normal chicken things, whatever that is.

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I'm trying to grow my own winter squash, but didn't get some into large enough pots, and the others haven't been as fertilized as I would like... the weather hasn't cooperated with the tomatoes, either. My cucumbers, zucchini and greens are growing really well, though.

 

One thing I've only had success with once, was bell peppers. I don't know why, and only one grew that time, but since then, they've either been too small, or they're eaten before I get to them. Those I have in pots fell off, for some reason.

 

I need to get more planted (cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, more chard, lettuce, etc), so I hope I'm not getting started too late. Two years ago, the weather got too hot for the cauliflower, but I left it where it was, and it started to grow again as the weather cooled - I had two beautiful plants in October.

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MuddyFootprints

I don't know where you are, but broccoli and cauliflower are probably too late. Spinach, lettuce, chard, peas, radishes, green onions, etc should still be productive for you.

 

Eta: if you are starting from seed.

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MuddyFootprints

Peppers don't need as much water as tomatoes do, and they don't tolerate shade well, they love heat. Your peppers need a full 8 hours of sun, while tomatoes will still produce with 6, so long as the heat units are there.

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Peppers don't need as much water as tomatoes do, and they don't tolerate shade well, they love heat. Your peppers need a full 8 hours of sun, while tomatoes will still produce with 6, so long as the heat units are there.

 

Thanks. The peppers have been in the sun, but it's rained a lot this Summer, so that might be the problem. They had seemed to do better in the pots, so I moved them from the beds, in order to replace them with the squash plants. they revived for a little while, and then did nothing more.

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I don't mind the fad so much, especially since some of the techniques used in organic farming are better for the environment, but the lecturing and the status symbol crap associated with the "organic lifestyle" are both things that can't die down fast enough.

 

People are convinced that organic = natural = good = harmless = better for you, but few people realize that organic farmers can use natural pesticides like pyrethrins, nicotine sulfate, and rotenone. Some synthetic pesticides are allowed, too. Going by EPA exposure limits, the pyrethrins and rotenone are actually more toxic per weight than the common synthetic pesticides used in conventional farming, including RoundUp. And they require more applications since they break down faster. Synthetic pesticides have been specifically engineered to be more effective at lower doses.

 

The bottom line is that the risks from eating pesticide residue on conventional produce are negligible, and the risks from eating organic produce are pretty much the same.

 

This, pretty much, for me.

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The food always tastes better if it says organic on the label. Organic french coffee is pretty much as good as you can buy brewed.

 

Not the bottle of ranch I bought. It was sour. Waste of $5.

 

When I use to visit Brasil, whenever I got something to eat, it hit my stomach funny. It didn't make me sick, but I got full and stayed full for most of the day after just eating a half a burger.

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