To learn something new, take the path that you took yesterday. ~John Burroughs
So, here I am, in quest of learning more about how I can translate knowledge into action and reap its positive benefits.
Is there a larger, better truth than just the facts?
Professor Lee Silver, author of Challenging Nature: The clash of biotechnology and spirituality (2006), put it in a succinct style this way:
"... organic food is defined not by any material substance in the food itself, but instead by the "holistic" methods used on organic farms. Furthermore, the physical attributes of the product and any effects it might have on environment or health are explicitly excluded from U.S., European, and international definitions.
The implicit, unproven assumption is that organic agriculture is -- by its very nature -- better for the environment than so-called conventional farming."
Now, adding to the woes (Oh! How guilt struck I am right now, to have to describe my pursuit for Organic as “WOES”, but as a matter of fact is truly a normal man’s dilemma), are the untrustworthy rules put forward by FDA , as a favor, to the monopolized food industry which finances and buys off the corrupt Republican and Democratic politicians in America. The FDA is slowly eroding the quality and consumer confidence.
Again, another question arises, this time about the Myth of being Natural (and mind you, these quests keep popping up again and again endlessly…).
As per OCA (Organic Consumers Association - http://www.organicconsumers.org ) consumers are confused about the difference between conventional products marketed as "natural," and those nutritionally and environmentally superior products that are "certified organic." A troubling trend in organics today is the calculated shift on the part of certain large companies from certified organic ingredients and products to so-called "natural" products. With the exception of the "natural" meat sector, where there are limited voluntary guidelines, there is no definition of "natural." In the majority of cases, "natural" products are greenwashed conventional products, with "natural" label claims neither policed nor monitored.
Whole Foods and UNFI are maximizing their profits by selling quasi-natural products at premium organic prices. Organic consumers are increasingly left without certified organic choices while organic farmers continue to lose market share to "natural" imposters. It's no wonder that less than 1% of American farmland is certified organic.
Another quest: Organic and Local Food?
Though Whole Foods talks a lot about supporting local food and producers, the fact is that the vast majority of their products are not local, and much of what they sell is sourced from a small number of industrial organic operations in California, often owned by the same conventional food conglomerates responsible for destroying the world's food system.
Refer to http://www.organicconsumers.org/whole_foods_unfi.cfm for this track down of Whole Foods and UNFi by OCA.
But for a simple housewife, a mom, the most essential part of anything pertaining to this issue, is to feel guilt free when arranging food on the table. Just a peace of mind, an assurance somehow, a solemn word from someone reliable, that in the end it’s not her, who is destroying her own self, her very own pieces of existence.
The pursuit of an Ecological Organic Paradigm lingers on.
Some links for useful resources pertaining to Organic life:
• Farmers Market and Local Food Marketing:
http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateA&navID=WholesaleandFarmersMarkets&leftNav=Wholesale
andFarmersMarkets&page
=WholesaleAndFarmersMarkets&acct=AMSPW
• List of organic food stores in California:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/ocaorganics.cfm
• Organic Dairy Report/Ratings
http://cornucopia.org/dairysurvey/index.html
• Organic Consumers Association
http://www.organicconsumers.org
• Environmental Working Group (EWG) home page
http://www.ewg.org/farming
A study recently conducted by EWG suggests the following list of vegetables and fruits that can be bought non-organic due to the least pesticides used in their farming:
1. Asparagus
2. Avocado
3. Broccoli
4. Cabbage
5. Eggplant
6. Kiwi
7. Mango
8. Onions
9. Papaya
10. Pineapple
11. Sweet corn (frozen)
12. Sweet peas (frozen)
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Tomatoes
15. Watermelon
EWG also identified 12 fruits and vegetables that are most likely to have higher trace amounts of pesticides.:
1. Apples
2. Carrots
3. Celery
4. Cherries
5. Grapes (imported)
6. Kale
7. Lettuce
8. Nectarines
9. Peaches
10. Pears
11. Sweet bell peppers
12. Strawberries
So, here I am, in quest of learning more about how I can translate knowledge into action and reap its positive benefits.
Is there a larger, better truth than just the facts?
Professor Lee Silver, author of Challenging Nature: The clash of biotechnology and spirituality (2006), put it in a succinct style this way:
"... organic food is defined not by any material substance in the food itself, but instead by the "holistic" methods used on organic farms. Furthermore, the physical attributes of the product and any effects it might have on environment or health are explicitly excluded from U.S., European, and international definitions.
The implicit, unproven assumption is that organic agriculture is -- by its very nature -- better for the environment than so-called conventional farming."
Now, adding to the woes (Oh! How guilt struck I am right now, to have to describe my pursuit for Organic as “WOES”, but as a matter of fact is truly a normal man’s dilemma), are the untrustworthy rules put forward by FDA , as a favor, to the monopolized food industry which finances and buys off the corrupt Republican and Democratic politicians in America. The FDA is slowly eroding the quality and consumer confidence.
Again, another question arises, this time about the Myth of being Natural (and mind you, these quests keep popping up again and again endlessly…).
As per OCA (Organic Consumers Association - http://www.organicconsumers.org ) consumers are confused about the difference between conventional products marketed as "natural," and those nutritionally and environmentally superior products that are "certified organic." A troubling trend in organics today is the calculated shift on the part of certain large companies from certified organic ingredients and products to so-called "natural" products. With the exception of the "natural" meat sector, where there are limited voluntary guidelines, there is no definition of "natural." In the majority of cases, "natural" products are greenwashed conventional products, with "natural" label claims neither policed nor monitored.
Whole Foods and UNFI are maximizing their profits by selling quasi-natural products at premium organic prices. Organic consumers are increasingly left without certified organic choices while organic farmers continue to lose market share to "natural" imposters. It's no wonder that less than 1% of American farmland is certified organic.
Another quest: Organic and Local Food?
Though Whole Foods talks a lot about supporting local food and producers, the fact is that the vast majority of their products are not local, and much of what they sell is sourced from a small number of industrial organic operations in California, often owned by the same conventional food conglomerates responsible for destroying the world's food system.
Refer to http://www.organicconsumers.org/whole_foods_unfi.cfm for this track down of Whole Foods and UNFi by OCA.
But for a simple housewife, a mom, the most essential part of anything pertaining to this issue, is to feel guilt free when arranging food on the table. Just a peace of mind, an assurance somehow, a solemn word from someone reliable, that in the end it’s not her, who is destroying her own self, her very own pieces of existence.
The pursuit of an Ecological Organic Paradigm lingers on.
Some links for useful resources pertaining to Organic life:
• Farmers Market and Local Food Marketing:
http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateA&navID=WholesaleandFarmersMarkets&leftNav=Wholesale
andFarmersMarkets&page
=WholesaleAndFarmersMarkets&acct=AMSPW
• List of organic food stores in California:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/ocaorganics.cfm
• Organic Dairy Report/Ratings
http://cornucopia.org/dairysurvey/index.html
• Organic Consumers Association
http://www.organicconsumers.org
• Environmental Working Group (EWG) home page
http://www.ewg.org/farming
A study recently conducted by EWG suggests the following list of vegetables and fruits that can be bought non-organic due to the least pesticides used in their farming:
1. Asparagus
2. Avocado
3. Broccoli
4. Cabbage
5. Eggplant
6. Kiwi
7. Mango
8. Onions
9. Papaya
10. Pineapple
11. Sweet corn (frozen)
12. Sweet peas (frozen)
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Tomatoes
15. Watermelon
EWG also identified 12 fruits and vegetables that are most likely to have higher trace amounts of pesticides.:
1. Apples
2. Carrots
3. Celery
4. Cherries
5. Grapes (imported)
6. Kale
7. Lettuce
8. Nectarines
9. Peaches
10. Pears
11. Sweet bell peppers
12. Strawberries