Where do you guys stand on this debate?

DeguelloTex wrote: »

I actively avoid food labeled as organic because it inevitably costs more for no benefit.

Same for me. There's nothing in it for me except to brag about how wonderful I am for buying organic. I'll stick with the evil pesticides and keep the spiders out of my bananas.


Edited because English r hurd.

beemerphile1 wrote: »

I try to follow the recommendations of the EWG (Environmental Working Group). They are an independent organization that does testing of health/food consumer products. Every year they publish the "Dirty Dozen".

ewg.org/

+1 me too.

kdiamond wrote: »

I think there are a lot of foods labeled as organic which really aren't organic.

Your best bet is to buy local produce.

I do buy grass-fed meats (when all possible) and organic and/or grass-fed dairy products (with the exception of cheese). Those make sense to me, because they don't feed hormones to the animals. I also do try to steer clear of GMOs as well. I don't need any Round Up in my foods.

The USDA grass fed label does not guarantee no hormones or antibiotics were used. It doesn't even guarantee that the cattle were allowed to always graze freely in a pasture. They may be confined to a stall for several months a year.

Organic food is a marketing scheme just like non GMO food, nothing we eat is how it was originally, all of the food you eat has been altered in some way and the labels just want to scare you to make more money.

Drewlssix wrote: »

KimberlyJayMoses wrote: »

There are a lot of reasons to buy organic. Conventionally raised food & Corporate Agriculture have negative effects on the environment: Farming practices that strip topsoil instead of build it, practices such as overusing chemical fertilizers to make up for the sterile conditions, monoculture of crops, huge amounts of pesticides & herbicides, high water use, modified crops to be able to hold-up to shipping - all of it affects flavor, nutrients & health as well.

But "organic" farms use "organic" pesticides and fertilizers that are more toxic and less effective than current generation equivalents.

You can't keep comparing them to products from thirty plus years ago.

The rest of your list is simply practices, and has nothing to do with an products standing as organic or not.

Oh, and you will never ever find a verifiable source that proves "organic" produce has better nutrition OR taste. Such proof dose not exist and every study points to there being no measurable difference. Stop spreading lies.

i don't really worry about it either way...I buy most of my groceries, including produce at costco...they have a lot of organic stuff that doesn't really cost much more so I usually will opt for that..but I don't go out of my way to buy organic...

I think certain things do taste better...I think organic cage free eggs taste better than not...and I like grass fed beef better...which is kind of pricey, but I don't eat that much beef.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

i don't really worry about it either way...I buy most of my groceries, including produce at costco...they have a lot of organic stuff that doesn't really cost much more so I usually will opt for that..but I don't go out of my way to buy organic...

I think certain things do taste better...I think organic cage free eggs taste better than not...and I like grass fed beef better...which is kind of pricey, but I don't eat that much beef.

This is the factory farm definition of that "Cage Free" label;



Seriously, it is perfectly legit and meets the definition of cage free.

beemerphile1 wrote: »

kdiamond wrote: »

I think there are a lot of foods labeled as organic which really aren't organic.

Your best bet is to buy local produce.

I do buy grass-fed meats (when all possible) and organic and/or grass-fed dairy products (with the exception of cheese). Those make sense to me, because they don't feed hormones to the animals. I also do try to steer clear of GMOs as well. I don't need any Round Up in my foods.

Hopefully you realize that grass fed doesn't mean much. It only means that at some time in the animal's life it ate grass. At least be certain that it is grass fed & finished. Many grass fed animals are on grain/feed for the last months to fatten them and add marbling to the meat.

No, this isn't true. USDA grass fed means that once weaned from mother's milk the animal is fed exclusively grass and forage.

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateN&rightNav1=GrassFedMarketingClaimStandards&topNav=&leftNav=GradingCertificationandVerfication&page=GrassFedMarketingClaims&resultType

Grass Fed Marketing Claim Standards

Claim and Standard:
Grass (Forage) Fed – Grass and forage shall be the feed source consumed for the lifetime of the ruminant animal, with the exception of milk consumed prior to weaning. The diet shall be derived solely from forage consisting of grass (annual and perennial), forbs (e.g., legumes, Brassica), browse, or cereal grain crops in the vegetative (pre-grain) state. Animals cannot be fed grain or grain byproducts and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season. Hay, haylage, baleage, silage, crop residue without grain, and other roughage sources may also be included as acceptable feed sources. Routine mineral and vitamin supplementation may also be included in the feeding regimen. If incidental supplementation occurs due to inadvertent exposure to non-forage feedstuffs or to ensure the animal’s well being at all times during adverse environmental or physical conditions, the producer must fully document (e.g., receipts, ingredients, and tear tags) the supplementation that occurs including the amount, the frequency, and the supplements provided.

beemerphile1 wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

i don't really worry about it either way...I buy most of my groceries, including produce at costco...they have a lot of organic stuff that doesn't really cost much more so I usually will opt for that..but I don't go out of my way to buy organic...

I think certain things do taste better...I think organic cage free eggs taste better than not...and I like grass fed beef better...which is kind of pricey, but I don't eat that much beef.

This is the factory farm definition of that "Cage Free" label;



Seriously, it is perfectly legit and meets the definition of cage free.

Not sure what definition you are using, but by the USDA definition, those birds in cages (or eggs from them) could not labeled cage free. Cage free means exactly and only what is says. The chickens cannot be in cages. They may be kept inside for their whole lives, but not in cages. They must be allowed to roam, even if inside a building.

yirara wrote: »

I remember a test of organic food a while ago for pesticides, and the finding was that the organic foods tested were only slightly lower in pesticides due to them being grown next to normal fields.

Actually organic foods are allowed to have an "acceptable" level of pesticides to be labeled as such, so considering the price difference, what's the point?

I husbanded a gaggle of rats at one point of my life, and I tell you, this 'free range' rage makes me cringe. At least if chickens are housed in individual cubicles/flocks, an infected flock can be easily isolated, preventing the spread (sometimes terrifyingly fast) of disease.

@headwind2015 , I'm betting you'll like this chef's story of a fish.

http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_barber_how_i_fell_in_love_with_a_fish?language=en

Organic is probably a bit better for you but not enough to justify the price difference.

nvsmomketo wrote: »

I think organic can be better for you, but there are a lot of other factors that go towards making food less healthy. For example, a cow that is fed orangic grains to fatten/finish it will have a different type of meat with a changed ratio of omega 6 to 3, than a cow who is grass fed it's entire life.

No. Just No. A cow that is fed GRAINS to finish will produce beef with a slightly different nutrient profile than a cow that is fed grass to finish, and a cow that is fed anything with Omega 3's in it will produce beef with more Omega 3's. Organic or otherwise has absolutely nothing to do with it.

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

sheermomentum wrote: »

nvsmomketo wrote: »

I think organic can be better for you, but there are a lot of other factors that go towards making food less healthy. For example, a cow that is fed orangic grains to fatten/finish it will have a different type of meat with a changed ratio of omega 6 to 3, than a cow who is grass fed it's entire life.

No. Just No. A cow that is fed GRAINS to finish will produce beef with a slightly different nutrient profile than a cow that is fed grass to finish, and a cow that is fed anything with Omega 3's in it will produce beef with more Omega 3's. Organic or otherwise has absolutely nothing to do with it.

But a cow raise organically will not be pumped full of hormones, steroids and antibiotics throughout it's life. Those things remain in the meat we eat.

So... the cow will probably get diseases, then? The antibiotics are for a reason. No thanks, I'll stick to non-organic. Plus, I'm on hormone and steroid medication anyway!