Still think 'eating organic' isn't worth it?
WickedGarden
Posts: 944 Member
A friend posted this on her FB, We've been chatting about eating organic and clean, love that she has so much info on it.
http://www.realfarmacy.com/monsanto-found-guilty-of-chemical-poisoning-in-landmark-case1/
A French farmer who can no longer perform his routine farming duties because of permanent pesticide injuries has had his day in court, literally, and the perpetrator of his injuries found guilty of chemical poisoning. The French court in Lyon ruled that Monsanto’s Lasso weedkiller formula, which contains the active ingredient alachlor, caused Paul Francois to develop lifelong neurological damage that manifests as persistent memory loss, headaches, and stuttering during speech.
Reports indicate that the 47-year-old farmer sued Monsanto back in 2004 after inhaling the Lasso product while cleaning his sprayer tank equipment. Not long after, Francois began experiencing lasting symptoms that prevented him from working, which he says were directly linked to exposure to the chemical. Since Lasso’s packaging did not bear adequate warnings about the dangers of exposure, Francois alleged at the time that Monsanto was essentially negligent in providing adequate protection for its customers.
To the surprise of many, the French court agreed with the claims and evidence presented before it, declaring earlier this year that “Monsanto is responsible for Paul Francois’ suffering after he inhaled the Lasso product … and must entirely compensate him.” The court is said to be seeking expert opinion on how to gauge Francois’ losses in order to determine precisely how much Monsanto will be required to compensate him in the case.
“It is a historic decision in so far as it is the first time that a (pesticide) maker is found guilty of such a poisoning,” said Francois Lafforgue, Paul Francois’ lawyer, to Reuters earlier in the year.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), exposure to alachlor can cause damage to the liver, kidneys, spleen, and eyes, and may lead to the development of anemia and even cancer. The EPA apparently views alachlor as so dangerous, in fact, that the agency has set the maximum contaminant level goals (MCLG) for alachlor to zero in order to “prevent potential health problems.” (http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/alachlor.cfm)
In 2007, France officially banned Lasso from use in the country in accordance with a European Union (EU) directive enacted in 2006 prohibiting the chemical from further use on crops in any member countries. But despite all the evidence proving that alachlor can disrupt hormonal balance, induce reproductive or developmental problems, and cause cancer, the chemical is still being used on conventional crops throughout the U.S. to this very day. (http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_ChemReg.jsp?Rec_Id=PC35160)
“I am alive today, but part of the farming population is going to be sacrificed and is going to die because of (alachlor),” added Francois to Reuters.
http://www.realfarmacy.com/monsanto-found-guilty-of-chemical-poisoning-in-landmark-case1/
A French farmer who can no longer perform his routine farming duties because of permanent pesticide injuries has had his day in court, literally, and the perpetrator of his injuries found guilty of chemical poisoning. The French court in Lyon ruled that Monsanto’s Lasso weedkiller formula, which contains the active ingredient alachlor, caused Paul Francois to develop lifelong neurological damage that manifests as persistent memory loss, headaches, and stuttering during speech.
Reports indicate that the 47-year-old farmer sued Monsanto back in 2004 after inhaling the Lasso product while cleaning his sprayer tank equipment. Not long after, Francois began experiencing lasting symptoms that prevented him from working, which he says were directly linked to exposure to the chemical. Since Lasso’s packaging did not bear adequate warnings about the dangers of exposure, Francois alleged at the time that Monsanto was essentially negligent in providing adequate protection for its customers.
To the surprise of many, the French court agreed with the claims and evidence presented before it, declaring earlier this year that “Monsanto is responsible for Paul Francois’ suffering after he inhaled the Lasso product … and must entirely compensate him.” The court is said to be seeking expert opinion on how to gauge Francois’ losses in order to determine precisely how much Monsanto will be required to compensate him in the case.
“It is a historic decision in so far as it is the first time that a (pesticide) maker is found guilty of such a poisoning,” said Francois Lafforgue, Paul Francois’ lawyer, to Reuters earlier in the year.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), exposure to alachlor can cause damage to the liver, kidneys, spleen, and eyes, and may lead to the development of anemia and even cancer. The EPA apparently views alachlor as so dangerous, in fact, that the agency has set the maximum contaminant level goals (MCLG) for alachlor to zero in order to “prevent potential health problems.” (http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/alachlor.cfm)
In 2007, France officially banned Lasso from use in the country in accordance with a European Union (EU) directive enacted in 2006 prohibiting the chemical from further use on crops in any member countries. But despite all the evidence proving that alachlor can disrupt hormonal balance, induce reproductive or developmental problems, and cause cancer, the chemical is still being used on conventional crops throughout the U.S. to this very day. (http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_ChemReg.jsp?Rec_Id=PC35160)
“I am alive today, but part of the farming population is going to be sacrificed and is going to die because of (alachlor),” added Francois to Reuters.
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Replies
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are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.0
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Bump!0
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Sharing this link on my FB page right now! Thanks!0
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TL; DR.0
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very interesting... and just when I've been trying to buy more organic every week0
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woah... thats like, woah.0
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thanks for sharing0
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are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.0
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I'm not really an organic guy, but this is pretty nuts.0
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are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.
Check your local farmer's markets, also, see what you can grow at home. Sometimes just a few little things help in the big picture. The one good thing is that organic foods are starting to really come down in price. A lot of times fruits and veggies are less than 50 cents more per kg/lb0 -
are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.
Check your local farmer's markets, also, see what you can grow at home. Sometimes just a few little things help in the big picture. The one good thing is that organic foods are starting to really come down in price. A lot of times fruits and veggies are less than 50 cents more per kg/lb
I do but i live in Ca and the price for organic is kind of crazy sometimes. I wish it was only 50 cents more but its not. Also the farmers market isnt cheaper than going to the reg grocery store for me it's actually a good chunk more expensive. i've been thinking of starting my own veg garden though.0 -
I'll keep my pesticides because I don't like poodles in my bananas.0
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Sad story, and it sadly doesn't surprise me. I forgo purchasing produce often if I can't find/afford organic. Potatoes are the hardest to find here, and I believe they're one of the worst for pesticides.0
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I'll keep my pesticides because I don't like poodles in my bananas.
Quoting cause...yeah.
I respect the right of others to eat organic, but it isn't for me.0 -
Monsanto should be outlawed in EVERY country. Sadly, they are big money contributors to the powers that be in Washington just like big pharma. Follow the money!0
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are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.
Check your local farmer's markets, also, see what you can grow at home. Sometimes just a few little things help in the big picture. The one good thing is that organic foods are starting to really come down in price. A lot of times fruits and veggies are less than 50 cents more per kg/lb
Yes, I buy as much organic as I can get. At my age, I don't really worry too much about myself--but I want to keep the organic growers in business so that my grandchildren can one day buy organic foods. If things get any worse in the conventional food growing industry, they may HAVE to. Monsanto is the most evil corporation ever, but they are closely followed by Archer Daniels Midland, Cargill, Tyson Foods, etc . They absolutely DO NOT care if they poison us. Does anyone have the power to stop this criminal enterprise? Well, our legislators could, but they don't have the guts to do it. Monsanto swings an extremely large financial bat--as do all the rest. They have bought everyone that they can.
Here is what they are working on now with their "food safety" bills. It will essentially eliminate farmer's markets and roadside stands. They already have a lot of monopoly power over our food supply--the last thing they want is for everyone to be using farmer's markets, roadside stands and their own back yard gardens. They helped to write the new legislation on "food safety". Read about it and weep: http://www.matador94.nl/science-health/goodbye-farmers-markets-csas-and-roadside-stands
By the way, it totally would not surprise me that they were behind a rash of "infected produce" that made its way to market and made some people sick. Hate to sound like a conspiracy nut but when people clamor for "greater food safety", it plays right into the hands of the megalomaniacs that run these corporations and are seeking monopoly power. They already have it vertically. They should have been taken to court for that years ago. But when farmer's cooperatives try to challenge the monopoly power of these giants, they find, to their dismay, that the giants own the machinery of justice too.0 -
Organic food is well worth the extra cost. I have been eating organic food for a little over a year and I actually feel healthier. People can say that there is no difference with the nutritional value of organic and non-organic, but what I know is this, since I have been eating organic foods, I don't feel like I am starving anymore. I firmly believe that there is no longer any nutritional value in non-organic food. Not to mention that I am no longer eating the pesticides that get absorbed into crops.
Buy organic from local farmers or grow your own. I grow my own now instead of buying organic, and it's just that much more beneficial to me and my family because I KNOW how it was grown and what was used for fertilizer (my own compost), and I KNOW for sure no pesticides were used, not even the tobacco spray that is sometimes used on organic crops.
I must also add, if you buy meat, buy grassfed (beef, pork, lamb, etc) or free range (chicken and eggs). 90%, if not more, of the corn grown in the US is genetically modified and that is what is fed to livestock and poultry. If you eat meat and eggs that isn't grassfed or free range, then you are ingesting the GMO that is fed to them.
If you buy dairy, believe it or not, raw milk from grassfed cows or goats is the best and has the most nutrients. You can purchase it from local dairy farmers. If you can't buy raw milk, please buy organic milk.
I know organic food is worth it.0 -
bump! This will motivate me to buy a few more organic things at the grocery store today.0
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are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.
Check your local farmer's markets, also, see what you can grow at home. Sometimes just a few little things help in the big picture. The one good thing is that organic foods are starting to really come down in price. A lot of times fruits and veggies are less than 50 cents more per kg/lb
Be careful in assuming that the produce at the local farmers market is better than the grocery store. I know that many of the vendors at ours are getting their products from the very same farms in the US and Mexico that the big box stores do. When buying from the farmers market, make sure to ask where their farm is and if it is possible for you to drive by and see it. If they can't answer - walk away and find someone who can.0 -
Monsanto should be outlawed in EVERY country. Sadly, they are big money contributors to the powers that be in Washington just like big pharma. Follow the money!
^^^^^^I second that!!!! All you need to do is Google Monsanto and GMO....this will get you thinking! I am making small changes...have planted a large garden and getting away from processed foods.
And for all those unhealthy foods I eat..whether by choice, or by ignorance, let me just say a prayer to God before I eat. He will bless my food and let it nourish me.
In the end, all you can do is your very best, and let the rest go.:flowerforyou:0 -
The farmers market here has gotten so big that a large grocery store has opened up in it and they sell their regular imported stuff at lower prices so people who just see the price don't pay attention to the big name boxes piling up behind this booth and just buy from there. I really wish the market wouldn't let them vend there.
Some fruit tastes so much better organic. I cannot buy non-organic apples or grapes anymore.0 -
are you going to pay for my groceries? i buy organic when i can, but sometimes it just too expensive.
Check your local farmer's markets, also, see what you can grow at home. Sometimes just a few little things help in the big picture. The one good thing is that organic foods are starting to really come down in price. A lot of times fruits and veggies are less than 50 cents more per kg/lb
Be careful in assuming that the produce at the local farmers market is better than the grocery store. I know that many of the vendors at ours are getting their products from the very same farms in the US and Mexico that the big box stores do. When buying from the farmers market, make sure to ask where their farm is and if it is possible for you to drive by and see it. If they can't answer - walk away and find someone who can.
I agree. We had a farmer's market that didn't buy local. Notice I said "had". People wouldn't buy from them since they could get the same stuff at the grocery store. They recently closed.0 -
Bump0
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I respect the right of others to eat organic, but it isn't for me.
i don't understand how anyone could say that eating stuff grown from the earth in the way it's been done for thousands of years "isn't for them" in comparison to supporting mega-corps like Monsanto using genetically modified organisms, pesticides, and invasive gene therapy. 1 hour of research into the disgusting business practices of Monsanto should scare anyone.
the only reason organic is more expensive is because corps like Monsanto have a stranglehold on big farm.
we shouldn't be calling naturally grown food 'organic'. It's 'normal'. Everything else should get stuck with a name.
Even the label 'organic' has been co-opted by big business thanks to the US gov't. I know many small farmers in my area that have always been organic... but can't afford the massive fees it can take to now 'prove' you're organic. Those fees and other obstacles were put in place by lobbyists working for Monsanto and other mega-corps.0 -
Another good reason not to eat vegetables!
MEAT FOEVAH!0 -
There is little or no health benefits from eating organic.
"After analyzing the data, the researchers found little significant difference in health benefits between organic and conventional foods. No consistent differences were seen in the vitamin content of organic products, and only one nutrient — phosphorus — was significantly higher in organic versus conventionally grown produce (and the researchers note that because few people have phosphorous deficiency, this has little clinical significance). There was also no difference in protein or fat content between organic and conventional milk, though evidence from a limited number of studies suggested that organic milk may contain significantly higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids."
"“Some believe that organic food is always healthier and more nutritious,” said Smith-Spangler, who is also an instructor of medicine at the School of Medicine. “We were a little surprised that we didn’t find that.”
http://med.stanford.edu/ism/2012/september/organic.html
however, the benefits to the environment I'm unsure of. In the example with the farmer who developed neurological problems, yes pesticides can do that. Eating organic though doesn't change that. The pesticides that can cause those issues have been banned and removed from the FDA, but they still may be in the soil and environment causing issues for people that live there.
http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/pesticides-and-parkinson-s-more-242364.aspx
What really needs to happen is for us to find more sustainable farming methods, completely removing all pesticides, genetic engineering and so on, probably isn't going to solve all the issues.0 -
I respect the right of others to eat organic, but it isn't for me.
i don't understand how anyone could say that eating stuff grown from the earth in the way it's been done for thousands of years "isn't for them" in comparison to supporting mega-corps like Monsanto using genetically modified organisms, pesticides, and invasive gene therapy. 1 hour of research into the disgusting business practices of Monsanto should scare anyone.
the only reason organic is more expensive is because corps like Monsanto have a stranglehold on big farm.
we shouldn't be calling naturally grown food 'organic'. It's 'normal'. Everything else should get stuck with a name.
Even the label 'organic' has been co-opted by big business thanks to the US gov't. I know many small farmers in my area that have always been organic... but can't afford the massive fees it can take to now 'prove' you're organic. Those fees and other obstacles were put in place by lobbyists working for Monsanto and other mega-corps.
THIS
Well said - I do a combination of buying certified organic where i can and growing from home and shopping at the grocery stores. Do what you can in your budget
Eating organic is NORMAL and should be for everyone!0 -
You're comparing someone who was working with and inhaling this stuff daily in what would appear to be large quantities with eating the odd bit of fruit and veg that isn't organic?
More scaremongering.
I'm sure you can do permanent damage inhaling solvents should I stop licking my envelopes to seal them?0 -
You're comparing someone who was working with and inhaling this stuff daily in what would appear to be large quantities with eating the odd bit of fruit and veg that isn't organic?
More scaremongering.
I'm sure you can do permanent damage inhaling solvents should I stop licking my envelopes to seal them?
I assume you did not read the article, and scaremongering? Please.
here:
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), exposure to alachlor can cause damage to the liver, kidneys, spleen, and eyes, and may lead to the development of anemia and even cancer. The EPA apparently views alachlor as so dangerous, in fact, that the agency has set the maximum contaminant level goals (MCLG) for alachlor to zero in order to “prevent potential health problems.” (http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/alachlor.cfm)
zero, ZERO contaminant levels. So it is not just 'inhaling' the chemicals, it also includes INGESTING the chemicals. Basic science will tell you that plants sprayed with the chemicals show up in the fruits/veggies that are produced.
Of course you can do damage inhaling solvents, that's why there are warnings on toxic chemicals telling you to not inhale them.
Oh, and I quit licking envelopes a long time ago, didn't you watch that one Seinfeld episode?0 -
March against Monsanto May 25, 2013 in a city, country near YOU.
Be the change you wish to see!!
http://www.march-against-monsanto.com/
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