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Organic Foods Article - The Health - Halo Effect

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Posted 4/3/2013 1:38 PM (GMT 0)
Organic Foods Article - The Health - Halo Effect
http://news.yahoo.com/consumers-overestimate-benefits-organic-foods-210758789.html
Posted 4/3/2013 5:55 PM (GMT 0)
It's a good article, and there is truth to it.

But there has to be trust somewhere that organic isn't a scam. Organic can also have the other issues such as salmonella, e coli, etc.

Buyer be aware.

q
Posted 4/4/2013 12:26 AM (GMT 0)
I buy organic for certain foods but not all.
I like kosher or sushi restaurants for similar reasons, a higher standard of "clean".

I've been to Ithaca NY several times, lovely town. It's as California as you can get on the east coast. Vegetarian restaurants on all 4 corners. Moosewood Cafe one of them. I wonder if results would be different if they did this survey in West Virginia or Wyoming.
Posted 4/4/2013 3:01 AM (GMT 0)
That study made no sense to me. Who cares if consumers thought that the 'organic' food tastes better even though it was identical to the 'non-organic'. A more relevant study would be to have pairs of real organic/non-organic food in a BLIND taste test and have consumers decide which tastes better, organic or non-organic. I bet it would be the organic especially fruit and vegetables.

But that is not the point. I buy organic whenever I can, and wild-caught fish and grass-fed beef when it is available. For one thing if a food is labelled organic then for sure it is not made from GMOs. Currently, up to 85 percent of U.S. corn is genetically engineered as are 91 percent of soybeans and 88 percent of cotton, cottonseed oil is often used in food products.

Since GMO foods are not labelled there is no way to determine if you are avoiding them unless you buy organic. And at least I know that organic milk does not contain bovine growth hormone (BHG).

I admit that the government insists that GMO foods are perfectly safe. But here is a French study that shows yet another reason why GMO foods are banned in Europe.
www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2205509/Cancer-row-GM-foods-French-study-claims-did-THIS-rats--cause-organ-damage-early-death-humans.html
Posted 4/4/2013 3:10 AM (GMT 0)
As long as the food isn't genetically modified, whether it was grown in pesticide or not shouldn't be that much of an issue even though pesticide is bad.

Why pay for organic when you can grow your own? If you buy fruits of vegetables, keep the seeds and plant them in cut plastic bottles, etc. You can grow multiples at once and it's still organic as long as it's not genetically modified.

(On conventionally-grown, non-organic fruit, the sticker has only 4 numbers. Organically grown fruit has a five-numeral code, which begins with the number 9. However, the store does not have to
reveal which fruits and vegetables are genetically-modified-but you can find out by looking at their stickers, which will begin with the number 8.)
Posted 4/4/2013 3:53 AM (GMT 0)
the only way you can know for sure is if you are responsible for every step of the process -

how do you know for sure if the seeds you are planting are non-gmo ?

how do you know that the livestock you are buying have not been given antibiotics or growth hormones ?

how do you know that the ground you're planting those seeds in has not been contaminated ?

you could test everything - but how practical or realistic is that ?

the point is, at some level you have to trust - the question is, how much trust do you have ?

Posted 4/4/2013 4:40 AM (GMT 0)
Why pay for organic when you can grow your own? If you buy fruits of vegetables, keep the seeds and plant them in cut plastic bottles, etc. You can grow multiples at once and it's still organic as long as it's not genetically modified.

This is not possible for many people. And even though I've been growing veggies and fruit organically for many years I cannot grow enough variety to provide for the two of us. It would be more than a full-time job and cost much more than buying organic at the grocery.

Most people don't know that you will not be able to grow the same plant if you plant seeds from it. Almost all commercial vegetables and fruits are hybrids. That means seeds will not resemble the mother plant.

Heirloom seed will grow true to the mother plant and I grow several wonderful heirloom green beans. I used to grow heirloom tomatoes but the pests were too fierce so I've given them up for now.

Fruit takes many years to grow a large enough tree or bush to get a good yield and takes a lot of effort to get good fruit without pests ruining it. That's why apples are so heavily pesticided (along with others).

There was an amusing book a few years ago called "The $40 Tomato" or something similar describing how much a backyard gardener spent to produce their veggies. I garden for pleasure, not to save money. Until you've tried to grow your own food you have no idea how challenging it is.
Posted 4/4/2013 12:56 PM (GMT 0)
I think part of the story implied that people are naive enough to believe that just because it is a whole foods store or labeled organic that they take that as face value and just believe that that is the total and complete truth. The main part of the story talks about something being labeled as organic, which may be true, but that technically it is not really very healthy for you just because it is organic. They stress reading the labels, just as you would in a regular grocery store. Everything labeled as "organic" not only may be severely exaggerated but even if it is 100% organic doesn't just automatically mean it is healthy. Some people are nothing but fish who swallow the worm whole before realizing there is a hook inside, not to mention they are paying a whole lot more for that worm. Now I'm not saying that organic is worthless but you can't just assume because a store or particular item is labeled as organic that it is healthier or better for you just merely because it is thought to be "organic".
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