Organic Foods
Organic foods are more nutritious and flavorful. This type of food, be it meat, poultry, fruits, or vegtables is produced according to safer production standards. For crops, it means they were grown without the use of conventional pesticides, artificial fertilizers, human waste, or sewage sludge, and that they were processed without ionizing radiation or food additives. Organic meat means that the animals were reared without the routine use of antibiotics and without the use of growth hormones. Although, most don't realize that a large part of organic agriculture involves the health of the soil and the ecosystem in which crops and livestock are raised. Organic farmers recognize that healthy, vibrant, and live soils and ecosystems significantly benefit crops. Natural, undisturbed soil is alive with microbiotic organisms that exist in harmony with the native plant life and the inorganic minerals that provide the soil's substrate.
Non-organic fruits and vegtables are treated with synthetic chemicals (such as herbicides, pesticides, and/or fast acting inorganic fertilizers). These synthetic fertilizers are applied in or around crops and interrupt or destroy the microbiotic activity in the soil. Once the microbiotic activity in the soil has stopped, the soil becomes merely an anchor for plant material. In this conventional method of agriculture (in use for only the past 75 of 10,000 years of recorded agriculture) plants can receive only air, water, and sunlight from their environment -- everything else must be distributed to plants by farmers, often from inputs transported thousands of miles to reach the farm. Plants are commonly fed only the most basic elements of plant life and so are dependent on the farmer to fight nature's challenges, e.g. pests, disease, and drought.
By purchasing locally-grown, organic produce, the consumer supports sustainable methods of land use that result in far less pollution and top-soil loss than does conventional agriculture. Synthetic pesticides and herbices not only kill soil microbes and leave toxic residues on food, they also threaten the health of farmworkers and disrupt natural ecosystems around the farm. Chemical fertilizers pollute lakes, ponds, rivers, and groundwater. Also, researchers have shown that fruit and vegetables contain up to 40 per cent more nutrients if they are grown without chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
Prices for organic clothing can be slightly higher than non-organic clothing, but health conscious consumers feel it's worth the money. Organic clothing can also be more difficult to find, particularly in smaller metropolitan areas. Online retailers are becoming the best source for purchasing organic clothing and goods.
Organic food stores like Whole Foods Market is considered the fastest-growing grocery chain in the United States and has proven that people are concerned
about eating healthy organic foods. The growth rate for demand on organic food is expected to climb at a rate of 20 to 50% a year.
Consumers are gradually realizing that organically grown food is the best choice for their family, the environment, and for future generations.
