Organic Labeling

Organic produce has higher nutritional content due to healthier soil. Organic also means it can not be Genetically Modified. That alone should convince anyone.

Yes a lot of difference if you choose organic veggies and 100% organic processed foods. Unknown to most, the organic food CANNOT have any genetically modified foods, in addition to the synthetic pesticides. IMO the GM food exclusion is the singlemost important reason to embrace the organic label. We have been trying to go almost all organic as much as possible. But sometimes its just not possible or available. I hope more people go organic to the point that the Government is forced to reconsider the stupid subsidies they have on the GM and inorganic stuff. Ever wonder why there is an epidemic of cancer and neurological disorders? Go organic and stay safe!

Um the guy you were talking to has no clue what he's talking about. Maybe 10 years ago "organic" didn't mean much, but today it's huge. They just did a study that pesticides in food is being attributed to ADHD in kids.. a solid study at that. That a certain pesticide that is still legal is known to cause childhood leukemia and colony collapse disorder (what's killing off all the honeybees).. A lot of the organic farms use organic pesticides (stuff from nature) so yeah, they're pesticides but they aren't synthetic chemicals. No offense but this guys been watching WAY too much Fox news. Just saying. The CDC took part in the study I mentioned above and they even said that if you intend to get pregnant they advise you start eating organic 6 months prior then only feed your kid organic until they are like 5 or 6 (maybe even older, I forget..). So good for you on the organics and it confuses me why someone has to have an opinion about the things you feed to YOUR kid. Why on earth would they even care?

The Oregon Tilth standard have been adopted all across the nation. I decided to eat organic when I was raising my family. I NEVER paid more than $60. in a year for the doctor and we had no health insurance. I paid for 3 sets of braces but between them the kids had only 3 cavities. I live in Oregon so I always had Oregon Tilth standards. Other people's kids got sick all winter. I did not vaccinate and other than German Measles and Chicken Pox there were no communicable diseases at our house.
NO SUGAR. All organic and your genetic diseases stay at bay. I am looking at my siblings now that we are all older. I can't believe with all the things that happened to me in life I wound up the healthiest.
So to your organic doubter let her be on statins, diabetes medication, high blood pressure meds, get a stent for her heart or a pacemaker while you eat organically and wind up a healthy person with healthy adult children.

If it has the USDA seal on it, that's you're best bet. It is VERY hard and expensive to become certified organic. The farmes get checked on much more frequently then non-organic.To be certified organic, they can't use harmful pestisides. They may use organic items to keep bugs away, etc...but they can't be dangerous chemicals.This may anwser a bit of your question, it's straight from the USDA website.

"Are some foods with an "organic" label more organic than others? Yes, among processed foods with multiple ingredients, those displaying the USDA organic seal -- and/or called "organic" on the front label -- have the most organic content: at least 95 percent. Those labeled "made with organic ingredients" on the front may be as little as 70 percent organic. (The latter cannot display the USDA's organic seal, but may display the logo of the certifying agent.)"

There are quality standards. I am going to throw out one thing a lot of people don't think about is that they go hardcore organic with fruits and veggies and then eat "regularly" processed meats.

My medical doctor told me that if you only have money for one or the other to by "natural", "cage free", "organic" or "kosher" MEATS...before you spend on organic fruits and veggies.

That these highly tainted with antibiotics, growth hormones, etc etc etc meats are worse for your body than plain old fruits and veggies.

If you can do both, do both THAT is the best...but watch what meats you are eating as well.

Certified organic foods have to meet some very high standards. You can't even use normal wood to use as stakes for organic tomatoes -- they have to be untreated wood, which is really hard to find!

That doesn't mean that all organic food is good for the environment, though. A lot o mass-produced organic produce is flown out of season from Chile, for instance, producing a lot of carbon. It's not all (not even mostly, anymore) the idyllic picture of a local farmer raising produce using sustainable methods. However, even the mass-produced stuff is held to the same pesticide standards, which, in my opinion, is healthier.

I prefer locally-grown foods and especially locally-grown organic foods. Those are the best, the freshest and the best for the environment. They're also the most likely to be hand-picked, picked when ripe and so forth. If you cannot afford to go all organic, it's best to make sure you buy the "dirty dozen" organic -- the produce with the highest amounts of pesticides (apples, celery, spinach, potatoes, etc.). If you just replaced those with lower pesticide foods and even if none of it were organic, you'd cut your pesticide intake by 92%!

Plenty of things want you to think they're organic when they're not -- they're "natural" or "no hormones added" or "free range". If it doesn't say USDA certified organic, however, it's difficult to say exactly what that means, and it's probably just marketing speak.

the only way to really know how the food is grown is to get it from a local grower or grow your own. But there were studies done that say that organic isn't really more nutritious than those that aren't. Also some plants have natural toxins in them that are repressed or eliminated by chemicals used on them. read the attached articles.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=...
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/organic-food-b...

Great articles, Beth! Especially the WebMD one. Nutritional choices are more complicated than organic vs. non-organic.

"Researchers looked at data from more than 94,000 food samples and 20 different crops. They found that organically grown crops consistently had about one-third as many pesticide residues as the conventionally grown versions." So, organic foods do have pesticides on them. The great news is, pesticides wash off with water. "Whether the issue is bad bacteria [manure]or pesticide residues, experts agree that the best way to safeguard yourself is to thoroughly rinse all fruits and vegetables under running water."

No, not true...there are very stringent requirements farmers must follow in order to be labelled as USDA certified organic....so stringent in fact that many farmers that actually don't use pesticides and synthetic fertizilers are still unable to receive their certification....they can only put on their labels "no pesticides used or pesticide free" but not organic...maybe this is what your friend is refering too....because in the cases of "pesticide free" farms there are no watchdogs.....

A little off the mark but in the right area. "Organic" means nothing without a seal, verification from a third party that organic indeed applies. But MANY products still throw the word around and all sorts of variations (natural, no preservatives, etc) that are highly misleading. My favorite: "Made from organic ingredients" smells like BS to me.

Well I've known a person who has been working on getting their farm to be organic for over 5 years now. It takes forever to get the soil to meet the standards of the USDA organic label. There are a ton of regulations and standards. Also, organic farms can be inspected at any time without the farmer knowing that the inspector is coming, regular farms get a scheduled inspection.