Organic or is it

I have been trying to be good and eat organic... lets say the kids with fur have been eating way better than me for a while

One thing I noted ... many organic produce items come from NOT the next state but South America and CHINA .... the south america bothers me slightly cause of the pay off s for shipping things... China with it obvious control and quality issues really bugs me...

and thing folks can slap organic on a pachage by paying 5000.00$ for a tm with organic in the name .... so be careful


anyone have other comments ??

I would not trust it from there. It may me slapped on it. I buy my Organic fruit from here. The Farms are not far from me so I know its real.

If it makes you feel any better all food is organic I love to be a brat!

Do you have a local co-op sort of store? We have two in Iowa City and they sell food only from the US and most of it is from Iowa only. Most of the fresh produce is seasonal and if it's not seasonal it's super expensive when it's out of season.

I used to drive a truck for a health food company, and I've been in the back room of some really big "organic" co-ops, etc., and I've seen them taking apples out of the "Washington Apples" box and putting the organic sticker on them and putting them in the "organic apples" box.

Made me skeptical about health foods, in general.

I don't worry as much about organic, but I try to buy local as much as possible. I go to farmers markets for produce. You can actually ask the grower where it's grown and how, which is always nice. Plus, it's way less expensive than a grocery store! You kind of have to learn to eat seasonally, but I freeze tons of stuff. We have a half-size chest freezer and I really load up on fruit and veg in the summer months. I'm still using up the last of stuff from what I froze last summer. For meat, I go to a butcher that uses local sources (a lot from the Amish where we live). It's nice to support your local economy, and small farmers as opposed to large corporations and the government IMO. Beyond that, I just read ingredients. If there's things in it that don't sound like food, I don't buy it. It's much easier, and cheaper than worry about "organic" because, let's face it, you have no guarantee.

Originally Posted by whiteforest

I don't worry as much about organic, but I try to buy local as much as possible. I go to farmers markets for produce. You can actually ask the grower where it's grown and how, which is always nice. Plus, it's way less expensive than a grocery store! You kind of have to learn to eat seasonally, but I freeze tons of stuff. We have a half-size chest freezer and I really load up on fruit and veg in the summer months. I'm still using up the last of stuff from what I froze last summer. For meat, I go to a butcher that uses local sources (a lot from the Amish where we live). It's nice to support your local economy, and small farmers as opposed to large corporations and the government IMO. Beyond that, I just read ingredients. If there's things in it that don't sound like food, I don't buy it. It's much easier, and cheaper than worry about "organic" because, let's face it, you have no guarantee.

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I'm with you on this! I love the local farmers' markets in the summer and fall... that's the best b/c it was picked the day before and is tree or vine ripe... not shipped across the country and in the grocery store cooler and probably 5-7 days removed from the earth.

go local and organic. whole foods and trader joes are good too.

I recently worked for a large produce distributor out of Philly (think: they distribute to the entire eastern seaboard and beyond some)... most of their crop is grown in South America... they still have control over it and oversee everything, but the climate is better and the labor is cheaper... at least with that company I know things that are marked "organic" are definitely organic... the owner and his son were constantly taking trips down to South America to keep up on the land and crops down there... so basically, I guess it depends on what distributor supplies the produce to the store where you shop... in order to come into the US and be sold here, it needs to meet FDA standards - I mean I'm sure things slip through (just like this whole lead crisis in toys), but I try not to stress over it... I eat A LOT of organic (mostly my dairy - it's helped clear my skin over eating "regular" dairy)... I personally feel better when I stick mostly to organic, but it does get a little pricey (I'm back to regular eggs, because I don't eat them often enough to spend the extra - more get eaten by the rest of the family who aren't as concerned)

I eat local, and organic so I feel your pain. It can take a short trip to the grocery store and bring it into a massive expedition. My tip is to learn who your local farmers are. If possible build a relationship with them, because 9 times out of 10 they may not BE organic (have the USDA label on their package), but their food is just as good.

For what it's worth, if the whole world switched to eating organic, 25% of the population would starve to death in the next couple of years.

"Organic" is often, unfortunately, a luxury.

By the way, I've delivered a few times to Target grocery stores, and they are EXTREMELY fussy with their organic stuff. They won't even let an organic box touch a non-organic box in the truck. Have to be separated.

As a gardener who has rearched the "organic gardening" culture don't think organic means growing without herbicides/pesticides/insecticides. There are many of these products that organic growers use and they are not necessarily less toxic that the synthetic versions.

For instance I presumed if I lay down a plastic mulch say the red one for growing tomatoes its organic as I am not using "chemicals". Wrong!! Plastic is not organic!!

Also the term USDA organic, well unless one have $5000 of revenue you do not have to be certifield. You can be organic grower just not USDA organic.

So I follow the USDA organic guidelines as best as I can as I could start the USDA certification process but its way to costly at this time.

My recommendations is to buy local within 100 miles of your location!!

I'm not sure I trust the "organic" foods. IMO they are overpriced. Our rule is moderation. A little of this, little of that for a balanced meal.

Unless you grow your own food, its too expensive in the long run to be buying organic at the stores.

The rule I heard for eating organic on a budget, is to buy eggs, dairy and meat organic, and regular for fruits/veggies. I try to buy organic, but to be honest with being in school I have to watch the budget. I got really turned off to organic when I read last year they were starting to allow some pesticides on organic foods (strawberries were one big loophole) and that quite a bit was coming from China and elsewhere--not the U.S.

I'm hoping to check out the local Farmer's Market here, in May. I'm also going to try my hand at some container gardening this year.

Originally Posted by littleraven7726

The rule I heard for eating organic on a budget, is to buy eggs, dairy and meat organic, and regular for fruits/veggies.

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That's true that they are more important because the synthetic hormones, the steroids, the antibiotics do not cook out, which means you're eating them.



My issue with "organic" is that it's a recent sort of fad diet so it costs more money, but that's just the what food is supposed to be. People have eaten "organic" for thousands of years! That's the biggest reason that I would rather eat local, healthy and natural over trying to buy all organic. Not to mention that, according to my BIL who is a chef and food expert, a lot of food labeled organic is not really organic or, as most of us know, it's coming from South America or China anyway so a) who knows if it's really organic, b) who's regulating, checking and inspecting, and c) if you're eating organic even partially because it's better for the earth well...not anymore because it's just been shipped thousands of miles around the world.