Is organic a rip off? (Read 1227 times)

I loved the explanations of how the laws regarding meatpacking in the book Fast Food Nation were skirted around by the companies. I can't help but believe that many "organic" products are doing the same in order to get that label to gain consumer trust. If you ask a room full of people if organic food is better for them the majority think yes because of perception. That's a valuable tool for the companies, and greed being what it is makes it profitable to do what it takes to get that "organic" label. I wonder how many people there are that go around and make sure all the large organic farms are really following all the protocol set forth by the certification process.

Buy local. Visit the farm. Meet your growers. Talk to them. "Organic" is a label with an industry and gubment behind it, but it does not mean the food is better or its production more sustainable. Eat food.

I'm eating Girl Scout cookies right now. Thin mints. They're excellent. Plus, I bought them from a girl right up the street. So she's like, local. So I'm feeling pretty smug about it. They're so darn healthy, I may just eat the whole box. Just doing my part. Carry on.

I'm eating Girl Scouts right now ... a girl right up the street. So she's like, local. So I'm feeling pretty smug about it. They're so darn healthy, I may just eat the whole box. Just doing my part. Carry on.

I just love living in Tennessee Wait. Is she organic?

I think I have decided local is better. Here's why: First, I live in Spain. When I go to the commissary at the Navy base I look at the fruit and veggie selection. It's awful. DECA flies in some produce and the apples are soft, the bananas green but turn brown in days (no real yellow period), the lettuces have no flavor and the romaine in particular is barely green. More yellowish really. I go to the local Mercadona. The selection is small but seasonal. Everything looks fresh. Tastes pretty good too. Sure there are some items flown in from other places but much of the selection is fairly local. The fish is flavorful (not a grouper to be seen; lots of shrimp). Second, Disney World showed me the benefit of local. And organic (possibly). Mixed together. We ate at a seafood restaurant at Epcot in January. I ordered a Caesar salad before my dinner. OMG, I am still thinking (dreaming) about the wonderful taste released with every bit of crispy green roamine lettuce. So fresh. Clean! Delicious. I have already made plans to go back for more when we are back for the 15K. Anyway, the restaurant only had to go to the Epcot agriculture area to get the lettuce. They grow their own veggies, some fruits. It is local. Nutrients are sprayed onto the plants so I am not sure if it counts as organic or not. But the freshenss could only have happened because it was LOCAL. Same with my food at the local store in Spain. I think I will stick with local first whenever possible, organic a secondary consideration. But mostly I will try to avoid things in a box (except my favorite Multi Grain Cheerios )

Yes. But I suspect that most of the local seasonal Macedonian food you see in the markets is organic. Not because it is following some gov'ment guideline or standard, but because the farmers simply don't (need to?) use nonorganic materials. Or perhaps they fertilize once per year so it would not get an organic certification, but it nonetheless biodynamic and overall sustainable.

Were you refering to the food at the Mercadona? Not Macedonian? I suppose I could check for Macedonian food but the Mercadona, like a local Publix or Safeway, is just a grocery store. Grocery stores here aren't the huge SuperWalmart thngs like at home. Do the Macedonians have special types of food?? I live in an agricultural area of southern Spain (near Seville). We have lots of wheat, olives (for whole use and oil), sunflowers (for oil) and grapes (grapes closer to the coast). I am sure there's more but those are the immediate local area specialties. I have seen some farms spraying crops. Don't know if it's just fertilizers or pesticides as well. Crops are rotated seasonally and everything is burned at the end of the harvest. Hard to run those days. I think it is harder to tell organic here because there is no gov't requirement for labeling. It could be organic because that's how things are done here, or it could be not organic because that's how things are done here. No way for me to tell and no one seems to know. Apparently the Americans are the only ones who care. So I think I will stick to local just because I know it's most likely fresher. And fresh tastes good.