Is organic food a scam?

reply to post by Skyfloating


I have no argument on the merits of organic verses non organic but I feel better knowing no pesticides were used. Now I need to rant......Im so disgusted by all the wax on the fruit . I cant get it off my plums or apples so I have to peal them to eat them which Im sure I loose a certain amount of nutrients along with the wax. Who knows what that wax will do to you?

reply to post by adraves


Most defiantly,
There are major risks in doing so for example the introduction of the cane toad into Australia, it has decimated local animal life and is a major problem
In Australian states where the cane toad is common, some 'sports' have developed, such as cane toad golf and cane toad cricket, where cane toads are used as balls.

Originally posted by adraves
For the readers:
Most of the foreign insects (Foreign invasive species) that are introduced end up being major issues later. It is a major problem to think otherwise.

It is wrong to label "most" introduced biological pest control methods as a major problem as there are countless instances where this method has been successfully used rather than harmful pesticides
But than again careful planing and study must go into these sorts of undertakings unless you want them to backfire, as has clearly been proved in the past.

reply to post by Magantice


Mature plum fruit may have a dusty-white coating that gives them a glaucous appearance; this is easily rubbed off. This is an epicuticular wax coating and is known as "wax bloom".

After harvest, apples are washed and brushed to remove leaves and
field dirt before they are packed in cartons for transport to markets.
This cleaning process removes the fruit’s original wax coating, so to
protect the fruit, apple packers re-apply a commercial grade wax.

Waxes have been used on fruits and vegetables since the 1920s. They
are all made from natural ingredients, and are certified by Food and
Drug Administrations around the world to be safe to eat.
www.apal.org.au...
en.wikipedia.org...

I realize that this is subjective - but I personally am willing to pay more for organic produce because I think it tastes better.

I realize that much of the organic food on the market right now is grown on large commercial farms, but if there is an option to buy something that was grown at a small local farm, I'm also willing to pay more to both support the local economy, there is less wasted fuel, etc, from having to ship crates of vegetables thousands of miles, and again, it is fresher and tastes better

Of course, I consider this a luxury - but how much is the total out of pocket difference in spending buying organic vegetables vs. conventional over a month? Not huge, considering other expenses.

For products other than fresh produce, for example pasta and grains, I haven't noticed much of a difference. And considering the half life of pesticide residue, etc, I'm not sure anything is left that could hurt you by the time you are eating a processed food.

Even so - I prefer to buy organic. If nothing else, because I would rather give money to an environmentally conscious farm, than to be giving money to giant, evil chemical companies that manufacture pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

Here's a short 5 minute video clip that might be relevant to the topic.

Richard Mueller of Berkeley offers a couple reasons why you should eat natural foods because you like the taste, not because you think it's healthier for you.

Well, I beg to differ. Wikipedia is a one stop shop for the ignorant. Let's take all the information, revise it a hundred times, then bottleneck it into a popular website. The more people we get to find their information from one source, the easier it is to control. It is a good place to start or compliment your research though. The studies are out there...

Higher lycopene in organic tomatoes

Just an example, and also raises a good debate.

~Glu

I don't know about you but if you want organic, grow your own fruits and vegetables. Or go to your local farmer's market and get it from there. How can you tell whether something is organic or not?

reply to post by Skyfloating

I would say organic food is real, it's the soil first of all, how rich it is in minerals and other vital nutrients.
The term organic foods comes from the soil. I don't think it's related to the lack of pesticides, the asumption
of "there is no pesticide it's organic" is invalid , it has to do with what the soil contains, the nutrients. Second of all yes, if what we grow is free of pesticide then it;s better, but I would say the main factor for grown products is the soil, it is where the term organic food comes from.

Originally posted by Skyfloating
reply to post by camouflaged

 

Yes, the upside is that its produced without pesticides (critics say that the downside is that it takes up more space to produce organic foods, thus destroying ecosystems), but the majority of organic food eaters I know eat it with the assumption / idea that they are eating more healthy foods. Its pretty astonishing to me that evidence indicates otherwise...

Pesticide laden food, vs no pesticide food...

One is not more healthy than the other?!

Uh....

LOL

Hey now, you don't have to use pyrethrum or sabadilla or whatever.

You can use ladybugs, mantis, and warrior snails to protect your plants from pest snails, aphids, etc.

There is a great organic insect spray, consisting of water, garlic, and cayenne pepper.
Heat it up on the stove like you are cooking a tea. Let it "steep" as long as you want, then strain out the big stuff and put the liquid in a spray bottle.

Reapply after each rain.

Use heirloom seeds! Don't buy GM seeds to grow organically, kind of defeats the purpose.

If you can't grow your own, go to a local farmers market. If you don't have one, organize one.

Stop standing on the sidelines and be the change.

reply to post by unityemissions


Yeah, I also found that really funny: "organic foods are free of chemical toxins but they aren't any healthier than non-organic"

reply to post by Skyfloating


It's true. Organic food is mostly a scam with no demonstated health or taste benefits at all.

reply to post by Skyfloating


I think organic fruit and veggies were grown without the help of any chemicals or pesticides, but other than that there is no difference. By definition, all fruit and veggies are "organic". Personally I think that it is one giant scam that preys on those who consider themselves more intellectual than the rest of us.

You people are out your mind if you think there's no more health benefits from organic.

Seriously, you're RETARDED.

More intellectual mom chom, pffff...

How about, not brain dead ?

I don't have to be smart to realize that organics are more healthy.

The only scam is that it costs much more for organic.

It should be the norm.

Purchase locally. Often it's much cheaper than superstore organic.

Some studies say it's got more nutrients, some don't.

Hmm...I wonder why?! Manufactured obfuscation of the truth by industry funded studies, mostly.

reply to post by Skyfloating

Because I was under the assumption that most people bought organic food not to "protect the environment from pesticides" but rather to display a healthy lifestyle...?

You are correct, the pesticide community are the ones claiming people buy organic to get "better food". Now, as someone who actually does purchase a lot of organic food (right from the farm) I can tell you there is plenty of benefits.

First, very little if any chemicals have come in contact with your food. It was grown naturally when and how nature designed. This is why you might notice "ugly" tomatoes, but let me tell you, they are fantastic as they are actually ripe.

Produce that gets shipped costs fuel and creates pollution, if it's coming from south america, there are next to no environmental standards to follow as well. Beyond that, the produce is picked early as "gassed" on it's way to your market to make it appear ripe.

Buy an organic tomato from a farm and one from your grocery store, you can easily spot the difference.

There is no nutritional benefit other than the produce is fully ripe and ready, and very little chemical byproducts are there for you to ingest.

It's about eating smarter, not healthier, though when you talk about organic natural meet like the beef and chicken we buy, there is a huge difference in what is NOT there.

reply to post by phishyblankwaters


Besides the obvious fact that the shipping and moving it around the country/world would take time, and in the process some nutrients would be lost, what about the fact that it's not fully mature (ripe) when picked? Don't you think there are less nutrients because of this?

reply to post by Skyfloating

I recall they did a test on organic apples here and it turned out they were sprayed with so much pesticides that it was pulled from stores.
It contained levels way above the limit set for non organic food.

Here...just some more wood for the fire. You naysayers need to look at this from a few different angles before throwing organic foods under the bus.

In 2004, Donald Davis, PhD, a former researcher with the Biochemical Institute at the University of Texas, Austin, led a team that analyzed 43 fruits and vegetables from 1950 to 1999 and reported reductions in vitamins, minerals, and protein. Using USDA data, he found that broccoli, for example, had 130 mg of calcium in 1950. Today, that number is only 48 mg. What's going on? Davis believes it's due to the farming industry's desire to grow bigger vegetables faster. The very things that speed growth — selective breeding and synthetic fertilizers — decrease produce's ability to synthesize nutrients or absorb them from the soil.

Nutritional value of fruits, veggies is dwindling

~Glu

Im honestly not too bothered about GM fruit and veg in the nutritional sense...the business practices associated with it are another thing, i think people should be more focused on where their meats come from, i only buy good quality meats when cooking which is more expensive and im poor, but simply using cuts of meat more efficiently and eating less helps with that problem though. And when it comes to fruit and veg i don't think people know is that while it may say organic, that simply means how it was grown...does not mean they are not using GM seeds, this is technically correct of course but i bet a large percentage of consumers assume differently.

This is an amazing read. I had no clue it would be this highly contested.