Take A Pass On Organics

[bigred1says]

Reasons you should buy regular goods
<!--subtitle--><!--byline-->By Jackie Avner
<!--date-->Article Last Updated: 07/27/2007 10:40:10 PM MDT

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I don't like to buy organic food products, and avoid them at all cost. It is a principled decision reached through careful consideration of effects of organic production practices on animal welfare and the environment. I buy regular food, rather than organic, for the benefit of my family.
I care deeply about food being plentiful, affordable and safe. I grew up on a dairy farm, where my chores included caring for the calves and scrubbing the milking facilities. As a teenager, I was active in Future Farmers of America, and after college I took a job in Washington, D.C., on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee staff.
But America no longer has an agrarian economy, and now it is rare for people to have firsthand experience with agricultural production and regulation. This makes the general public highly susceptible to rumors and myths about food, and vulnerable to misleading marketing tactics designed not to improve the safety of the food supply, but to increase retail profits. Companies marketing organic products, and your local grocery chain, want you to think organic food is safer and healthier, because their profit margins are vastly higher on organic foods. The USDA Organic label does not mean that there is any difference between organic and regular food products. Organic farms simply employ different methods of food production. For example, organic dairy farms are not permitted to administer antibiotics to their sick or injured cows, and do not give them milk-stimulating hormone supplements (also known as rbGH or rBST). The end product is exactly the same - all milk, regular and organic, is completely antibiotic-free, and all milk, regular and organic, has the same trace amounts of rbGH (since rbGH is a protein naturally present in all cows, including organic herds). Try as they may, proponents of organic foods have not been able to produce evidence that the food produced by conventional farms is anything but safe.


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http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_6474474

[Naturalized-Texan]

I would never purchase organic fruits and vegetables because they are grown in manure.

[Timberwolf]

That makes no sense whatsoever, Tex...whadyathink was used to grow crops before the invention of chemical fertilizers...magic?

CHEMICAL (i.e. - synthetic) fertilizers are FAR more harmful to the cropland, water supply and the human body than manure ever could be. They kill the cut worms which naturally aerate the soil (and minimally fertilize, too). Add to this that farmers are not fallowing their cropland, it NEVER rejuvenates.

The problem is, we've become the world's "supermarket" and if we don't produce the world's food supply, half the populace in 3rd world nations would starve to death...never mind that the chemicals are killing the cropland.

[Wolfcounsel]

I spent a year in the Philippine jungle eating nothing but naturally-grown food, cow, pig, and seafood, and I drank water from the mountain streams. My health never suffered. I got back to civilization and I have to watch every little thing I eat because of all the chemical crap that's put into food and drink here. I've also had to pump up my exercises.

[Rhino]

Sort of related.

Ending organic by air will hurt developing world, report

By Jess Halliday

05/10/2007 - Banning air freighting of organic fruit and veg would seriously compromise the livelihoods of farmers in the developing world, says a new report from the ITC.

The Soil Association, which is responsible for certification of 70 per cent of the UK's organic produce, has been considering the measure as one of several options to reduce carbon emissions caused by organic produce being flow into the UK - a rather embarrassing side effect of the organic cause, which is largely driven by green interests.

The warning from the International Trade Centre comes a week before the association is due to say whether it will recommend a ban on air freighted fruit and vegetable being labelled as organic, after discussing with registered organic producers in the UK and overseas, supermarkets and other stakeholders about proposals contained in a consultation document.

Researchers from the centre, which is a joint technical cooperation agency between the UN and the WTO, found that 21,500 people in the developing world would lose out on their share of the market if the ban were to be enforced....http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/news/ng.asp?n=80349-soil-association-organic-air-freight

[DoctorDoom]

One need only look at the "health food" fanatics to discern how good it is. Here's sound advice from the authorities.


Health Tips and News: The Straight Dope On Food, Health, & Exercise

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life. Is this true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable slop.

Q: Is beer or wine bad for me?
A: Look, it goes to the earlier point about fruits and vegetables. As we all know, scientists divide everything in the world into three categories: animal, mineral, and vegetable. We all know that beer and wine are not animal, and they are not on the periodic table of elements, so that only leaves one thing, right? My advice: Have a burger and a beer and enjoy your liquid vegetables.

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body, and you have body fat, your ratio is one to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

Q: At the gym, a guy asked me to "spot" for him while he did the bench press. What did he mean?
A: "Spotting" for someone means you stand over him while he blows air up your shorts. It's an accepted practice at health clubs; though if you find that it becomes the ONLY reason why you're going in, you probably ought to reevaluate your exercise program.

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain - Good.

Q: If I stop smoking, will I live longer?
A: Nope. Smoking is a sign of individual expression and peace of mind. If you stop, you'll probably stress yourself to death in record time.

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: You're not listening. Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

Q: What's the secret to healthy eating?
A: Thicker gravy.

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

[Naturalized-Texan]

That makes no sense whatsoever, Tex...whadyathink was used to grow crops before the invention of chemical fertilizers...magic?
It's been shown that organically-grown crops contain far more harmful bacteria - e.g., e-coli - than crops grown with chemical fertilizers.

[RayChuang]

Actually, here in the USA the over-application of fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides are a thing of the past.

There are two reasons for this:

1) Stricter EPA rules about agricultural chemical runoffs in waste water.

2) The use of satellite imaging and GPS technology to ensure extremely precise delivery of agricultural chemicals, so you actually end up using way less chemicals than in the past.