"organic" news and stories

Halloween is known for many things -- witches, zombies, tooth decay -- but environmentalism isn't among them. Just consider all the candy purchased, each tiny piece individually wrapped, of course. (Guilty.) And then a good portion of each haul is fated to be discreetly tossed out by concerned parents. (Still guilty.) And then there's all those plastic orange jack-o'lantern bags clogging up the landfills. (Sigh....guilty. Again.)

Some parents are trying to change all that -- and many businesses are happy to help by creating organic "green" treats. After all, if you're striving to eat mindfully and be environmentally aware throughout the rest of the year, why forsake those values on October 31?

"I just feel like candy is unnecessary," Jennifer Boyd-Mullineaux, mother of two children, ages 7 and 9, told MSNBC. "You see the incredible volumes of candy collected -- knowing that no one should eat that much -- and it just goes into the trash. It just doesn't seem responsible to us."

Things are not so sweet for the U.S. sugar beet market. A federal judge's ruling may prevent farmers from planting genetically modified sugar beets.

The controversy stems from a case in which the Center for Food Safety, Organic Seed Alliance, High Mowing Organic Seeds and the Sierra Club challenged the U.S. Department of Agriculture for allowing farmers to plant GM sugar beets before enough research had been conducted to determine their possible environmental impact. A judge ruled in favor of the environmental groups in August, but by September, the USDA had issued four "non-flowering" permits to growers in Oregon and Arizona -- where most sugar beet seedlings are grown. The action prompted environmentalists to challenge the government in court yet again.

On Friday, Judge Jeffrey White of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California will hear more arguments in the case. His ruling could have a significant impact on the industry. Nearly 95 percent of the U.S. sugar beet production is grown from GMO seeds -- a speedy and considerable change from 2005 when the GMO seeds were first approved. Over half of all U.S. sugar production comes from sugar beets; the rest is derived from sugar cane.

Stroll the aisles at your local natural foods store. Notice anything? Along with the sandalwood scent and fair-trade coffee comes higher prices, especially for organic produce. When you stop to think about it, it might seem kind of odd; after all, organic farmers don't use all those conventional chemicals and fertilizers, so there would seem to be a lower overhead. Right?

Turns out it's not that simple. Citing a University of Wisconsin study, The Seattle Times points out that there are many factors contributing to the higher price of organic produce -- including start-up costs (converting land from conventional farming to certified organic takes three full years), rotation farming (to maximize natural fertilization), and hands-on cultivation (as a means of pest control). It all results in more work for a lower yield, meaning lower profits for the farmer -- and higher prices in the natural foods aisle.

So why bother eating organic? The two biggest reasons: fewer pesticides and (potentially) more nutrients. A 2007 study funded by the European Union showed that organic fruits and vegetables can contain up to 40 percent more antioxidants than their conventionally grown brethren. (Even more astounding, organic milk had a whopping 60 percent more antioxidants and essential fatty acids than conventional milk.) In some cases organic foods don't show any extra nutritional benefit (as Time recently reported), but the environmental benefit still remains.

While organic food producers must follow certification standards, fraud is on the rise. After all, organic foods can cost up to two or three times more than conventionally grown products, meaning some unscrupulous producers are bound to be looking to line their pockets.

Now, the New York Times reports that scientists are investigating the feasibility of lab testing organic foods to keep companies honest.

German scientists have found that organic milk has higher levels of a certain fatty acid than regular milk, a result of different cattle feeding practices. Labs can reliably discern which milk is organic by testing for this fatty acid. And we've already seen that it's possible to test for the presence of non-organic, synthetic fertilizers in fruits and vegetables, but the high cost of testing means the practice is unlikely to be implemented on a large scale.

While this is all preliminary stuff, it will be interesting to see whether we eventually find more "organic markers" to test food, and whether buyers will find this worthwhile.

Source

In case you didn't already have enough to worry about, a recent article by the Journal of Horticultural Science and Biotechnology asserts that today's vegetables have fewer nutrients than the ones produced 50 years ago. While today's broccoli, tomatoes, and other produce tend to be larger and more beautiful than the puny specimens of the late 1950's, they allegedly contain between 5% and 40% fewer vitamins and minerals.

One reason for this drop is the so-called "dilution effect." Today's veggies, although bigger than in those of the 1950's, contain roughly the same amount of nutrients. Consequently, their vitamins and minerals are combined with a lot more cellulose and carbohydrates, leading to far fewer nutrients per serving. As larger vegetables are selectively bred to maximize size, this dilution effect grows more and more pronounced.

Another cause that some researchers cite is the industrialization of agriculture. Apparently, monoculture and accelerated growing cycles deplete soil nutrients and ensure that produce spends less time absorbing the nutrients that do exist. Ultimately, these practices further dilute the nutrients in produce.

While dilution is endemic to most forms of agriculture, the industrialization effect can be mitigated by organic and local farming. Organics spend more time in the ground and are exposed to more nutrient-rich soil. While this results in lower yields and higher prices, it also produces vegetables that are more nutritious. In other words, while you might not be able to feed your kids the same high-quality Brussels sprouts that grossed out poor Beaver Cleaver, organic produce might just offer a comparable experience!