How much organic stuff in your life?

[Fruitbat]

What are ppl's thoughts on organic food? I have put a poll up to see how much ppl eat organic in the Polls/Surveys subforum (here).

I eat organic as much as possible and it were cheaper and more easily available I would eat nothing but organic. Organic processed foods tend to be better quality and tastier and more eco-vegan-friendly. Organic fresh produce is supposed to have a better nutrient content , none of the nasties and taste better.

[Fruitbat]

Right so how do vegans do with organic food?????

[Gorilla]

i've been trying to increase the amount of organic products i buy in all areas of my life, if i could i'd buy everything organic but as i'm sure a lot of people will agree the cost is a major problem.

i'd say about 50% of my diet is organic, aiming for more all the time. i also buy organic skin care, and cotton - cotton is one of the most (if not the most) heavily sprayed crops in the world. if i ever need new cotton it's always fair trade organic (including cotton wool!)

[Gorilla]

absolutely, organic fruit and veg tastes much better than the bland pesticide-ridden perfectly shaped stuff. i'd love to eat nothing but organic food but yeah it costs way too much. but that's the price we have to pay for "proper" food produced sensibly and not the intensively farmed rubbish. because the cost of living has gone down in the sense that more cheap food is available to a lot of people, income often reflects this, and those who want to buy decent food find it increasingly difficult to afford.

[ConsciousCuisine]

99% of what I buy for body and consumption is organic. It is my familys' biggest expense.

[Artichoke47]

I buy mostly organic, but if I want, say, a tropical fruit that the store doesn't have available in organic, I'll buy a fair trade one, anyway, because tropical fruits don't have as much insecticides. I don't think any of the poll answers fits my situation. I buy organic when available, regardless of cost.

[Fruitbat]

I buy mostly organic, but if I want, say, a tropical fruit that the store doesn't have available in organic, I'll buy a fair trade one, anyway, because tropical fruits don't have as much insecticides. I don't think any of the poll answers fits my situation. I buy organic when available, regardless of cost.

Sorry I didnt think of that option for the poll but if you tick "I eat organic food" then it is true as you only buy non-organic if you dont have the choice!!!!

[Artichoke47]

You're right, but I also buy organic skin care products when available.

[8 winks]

i work on an organic farm. it is great! i have tons of veggies available the same day they are picked and of course i get the farm hand discount so i'm really fortunate. as for organic in general, yeah tastes much better. kinda pricey for store items though.....

[cast_the_flames]

i think that organic is great! i use it as often as possible, in food and other products. since i'm vegan mostly for the environment, i definately think that stopping the use of terrible earth-destrying chemicals is the way to go. the price is a bit of an issue, though. still, i figure that since i'm not buying big expensive cuts of meat, i have a little bit of room.

[Mystic]

I buy things because I like them, not because they are organic/non-organic. I believe their is propaganda in both sides of the story, so I just buy/eat/use whatever I like. For example, I love a particular organic pasta sauce, these organic sourdough rolls and there is this organic hummus which is absolutely divine. I buy rice dream enriched, which I think is organic - or at least partially, but only because it is the only rice milk that is fortified with B12. But for other stuff, like fruit and veg, I just scrub them well. As for grains and beans, I just buy the conventional. Tastes the same to me. Same with dried fruit (except maybe dried mango - organic dried mango is D-VINE!!!!) I hate organic unsulphured dried apricots, but I love the bright orange conventional ones!

[ConsciousCuisine]

Banana, I PMed you quite some time ago saying I would send you a packet of DIVINE organic Turkish Apricots that are sooo good, just to show you some organic, unsulphured ones that are good...offer still holding...

[harpy]

We have an organic vegetable and fruit delivery once a fortnight and otherwise I do go for organic stuff for preference but it is all rather complicated if you're trying to buy local and fair-traded stuff too! If it's a choice between local and organic I now usually go for local, and if it's a choice between fair-traded and organic I go for fair-traded.

At least the organic stuff we have delivered is supposed to be predominantly UK grown.

[Fruitbat]

I would love to get a weekly seasonal organic local produce vegetable box delivery which my local organic shop does - but my food budget is horrendous enough as it is! I buy quite alot of organic anyway but there is room for improvement when I have mroe money - then I will ve 100% organic, fairtrade, local produce when possible vegan person!

[harpy]

Some of the organic delivery schemes are actually supposed to work out cheaper than buying organic stuff in supermarkets (which I can believe) though they are probably more expensive than buying from a market etc.

The main problem for us used to be wastage because if you have a weekly delivery and are out a few nights in the week you can't use all the stuff. However, my lot, Farmaround, are happy to do fortnightly deliveries and that works out about right for us.

[Atlanta Newbie]

After reading John Robbins' "The Food Revolution", I became much more wary of GMOs. Buying organic, for me, is mostly a way to avoid those. I've read that corn and soybean are the two biggest crops affected by this, so I mainly try to buy organic varieties of foods containing these two things.

Of course, the "happy coincidence" thing comes into play a lot for me recently as well, so yay for that.

Just out of curiosity, are most of you more concerned with GMOs or pesticide/herbicide issues? Thanks!

[Artichoke47]

Yes, I am very concerned about GMOs. Nature didn't intend for our food to be "messed with," in my opinion. WTF?

[ConsciousCuisine]

I avoid GMO foods and pesticide-covered ones as well. I will *not* buy non organic citrus, berries, cherries, grapes, mushrooms, potatoes, corn, tropical fruits such as papaya, mango etc., kiwi, apples, salad greens and makings, sprouts, soy, rice, (all grains actually) cereals, sugars, nut butters, spices, onions, oils and more.

Basically, I have on occasion, rarely and because of seasonal unavailability, purchased garlic and avocadoes form local farms that were not certified organic and a few times nuts or seeds as well. That's about it. EVERYTHING else is always organic.

Living an organic lifestyle is what my family is dedicated to and it is a strong part of our belief/values system and also our biggest financial expense after our monthly rent.

[Fruitbat]

I admire you ConciousCuisine and aspire to be like you and your family when I have a paying job and the money to do so!


Meanwhile I abs insist on organic carrots and sprouted seeds but other items it varies. Reently I have taken to buying organic broccoli, watercress and nuts also. As most of my shopping for soy goods is done in an organic healthfoodshop, all my soy products and pulses, and most of my cereals and sauces are always organic.

I worry about both pesticides/herbicides AND GMO. Herbicides and pesticides because after all these are toxic chemicals so they are harmful to humans too jus as we are bigger than the organisms targeted, we arent killed - that doest mean its healthy though. Also I used to have allergic reactions to the treatments done on non-organic brassica vegetables and my Dad went to hospital with the same reaction form eating brussel sprouts once.

I worry abotu GMO because it isnt natural and there are so many ehtical and environmental concerns around it...

[gertvegan]

Is organically grown food really any better for you?

Food safety and nutrition scientists: Superiority is hard to prove

By MELISSA HEALY Los Angeles Times

September 19. 2004 10:31AM

These are good times for those who grow and sell organic foods. But there may be trouble in paradise.

Prompted by a quest for safer, healthier diets and a cleaner environment, more American consumers are buying the bountiful harvests of organic farmers. Last year, U.S. spending on organic foods reached close to $10.4 billion, making this the fastest-growing segment of the American food industry. Amid scares over mad cow disease, mercury in fish and produce tainted with harmful bacteria, new customers are joining existing ones in embracing organic foods as a sanctuary.

But as organic products - and their claims to superiority - have grown more common,, scientists, policy analysts and some consumers have begun to ask for proof. Where's the evidence, they ask, for the widespread belief that organic foods are safer and more nutritious than those raised by conventional farming methods?

The short answer, food safety and nutrition scientists say, is that such proof does not exist.

FULL ARTICLE

[Artichoke47]

Are they trying to say that insecticide-, poison-laden food is equal to pure, organic food? I don't believe it.

[wuggy]

It's the same old story really, isn't it? Non-organic food won't 'kill' you (probably not, anyway), so it must be ok!
When I last visited the USA, I saw them spraying crops from the air, which really scared me - can't remember, but I think it was fruit trees, and there we were, on the ground just below. Ugh!

[wuggy]

P.S - I suppose we could say that non-organic stuff isn't truly Vegan, as insects, and therefore probably birds, hedgehogs, etc were killed or harmed in the production of such items.

[eve]

I buy things because I like them, not because they are organic/non-organic. I believe there is propaganda in both sides of the story, so I just buy/eat/use whatever I like. For example, I love a particular organic pasta sauce, these organic sourdough rolls and there is this organic hummus which is absolutely divine. I buy rice dream enriched, which I think is organic - or at least partially, but only because it is the only rice milk that is fortified with B12. But for other stuff, like fruit and veg, I just scrub them well. As for grains and beans, I just buy the conventional. Tastes the same to me. Same with dried fruit (except maybe dried mango - organic dried mango is D-VINE!!!!) I hate organic unsulphured dried apricots, but I love the bright orange conventional ones!

I agree with Banana, and simply scrub the veggies or peel the fruit. To tell the truth, I actually avoid organic fruit and veggies as they are grown in masses of blood and bone, and manure. When I see these sacks of blood & bone, it confirms to me that organic is grown with the by-products of abattoirs. The biodynamic growers also use crushed horn. It is a choice between 2 evils really - either stuff grown with help from abattoirs, or stuff grown conventionally with help of chemicals (unless one has access to veganic garden foods). I have read that scientists show that chemical residue is absolutely minimal.

[Trendygirl]

If I could afford organic I would buy it and I would also by fair-trade items whenever possible but I am a student. Some of the things I do buy are organic but that is only a coincidence because they are the only vegan option. I hope that once I get settled in a house that I stay in for longer than a year and doesn’t have a back garden that is covered in concrete, I will grow some of my own vegan organic food.

Do you think that products that are certified as not containing animal ingredients and that they are organic, use animal by products in the soil that they are grown in?

[eve]

Yes trendy girl, fruit, veges, and grain that are certified organic or biodynamic, certainly use animal products in the soil (unless they are veganically grown which is very rare).

[Korn]

http://www.veganorganic.net/
http://www.vegdot.org/story/2002/7/23/03244/5103

[eve]

Thank you for those urls Korn - I knew that there were veganorganic places somewhere in England, but that's all. I wonder how widespread is their influence.

[Kathers]

I knew that there were veganorganic places somewhere in England, but that's all. I wonder how widespread is their influence.[/QUOTE]

I would guess that unfortunate as it is their influence won't have spread far

[veganblue]

Hey Banana - it may be possible that there is an organic food co-op in a nearby area of Melbourne that *may* give you the organics you are after and not cost the earth. I know we have them here in Adelaide but we are pretty lucky on the whole food front and organic adherents. Not sure hwta it is like in your area - if I find anything I will post it.

[veganblue]

St.Kilda Organic Food Co-operative
Veg Out Community Gardens
Friend of the Earth : Melbourne
Organic Outlets listing

[animalsvoice]

I don't know cause I wonder if that's what we use to call ecological in Swedish... Does anyone know?

[Korn]

Yes, organic means ekologiskt.

[eve]

Banana, if your blood sugar is high, wouldn't you be wise to avoid wheat (organic or not)? And maple syrup won't do your blood sugar any favours! I like the unhulled tahini, and have a little every day. - Your health food store must have thought all her christmases came at once when you walked in!

[Mystic]

I have just started increasing my organic intake - mainly because my boyfriend is working in a quarry, which has a high amount of silica dust. In Australia, there are no laws for protection against this disease-causing substance so I have to make sure that he eats well, especially since I won't be able to cook much when I go back to uni in a couple of weeks.

It does taste better (especially the tomatoes and mangos). I just had an organic avocado and tomato toasted sandwich, and this morning I had organic oatmeal (nature's path) with an organic banana.

Sometimes I get carried away with all or nothing - My goal is to try to eat organic where possible, but don't beat myself up over it. I mean, there is life besides food right?

[Roxy]

That's exactly what I do Banana......try and eat organic wherever possible but it isn't always possible for me and I don't beat myself up about that.

BTW - sometimes when I'm not all that financial, I just can't afford to buy EVERYTHING organic, so conventional just has to do at times like that

[Mystic]

Well then I am going to use you as an example! So do you buy things that aren't organic just coz you like them, or do you avoid them completely?

[Roxy]

Well, it differs. For example, I won't buy soy milk unless it's organic. If I can't get organic soy milk I skip it all together.

But, around where I live, it's hard to get organic bread, unless I drive miles and miles (which I can't justify, just for a loaf of bread), so in that case, yes, I will by a conventional version.

Fruit and veg......I buy organic only.

Does that answer the question?

[Mystic]

I guess so - I buy (or have been buying) organic fruit and veg where possible, organic bread, grains, beans and convenience foods (oatmeal, canned stuff like baked beans and other convenience foods). I won't buy non-organic dried fruit coz I think I am allergic to sulphur.

What do you do when you go out? Do you feel bad for eating non-organic or do you not worry about it? Or do you only go to organic places? Sorry - I just don't want to get obsessed

[Roxy]

There aren't any organic restaurants around here, so unless I want to be completely anti-social I eat non-organic foods in those situations.

[chakra]

I strive to be as organic as I possibly can, but living and working, it isn't completely possible. I don't skimp to save money though.

[dreama]

If I can get it Organic I will but when that's not possible I eat non organic food.

My pets have organic meat as there is less cruelty involved.

[PinkFluffyCloud]

I buy Organic fruit and veg but it is often wrapped in plastic (which I HATE, and believe it suffocates the food and makes it sweat), and shipped in from Timbuktu. So sometimes I wonder quite how much good it does me, but when I eat non-Organic I keep thinking about all the residues sliding into my intestines.

[FR]

Most of the stuff I buy is organic (food and opersonaly hygeine). I do eat out once a week for lunch at a vegetarian Indian restaraunt and they do not serve organic food (I assume).

[littleTigercub]

We are part of a box scheme which is just great. Since last year, every fourtnight (once a week is too much and to expensive for the two of us) we get a heaped box of fruit and veg which is just great!

Apart from the huge difference in taste (carrots! oranges!) there is also the variety. In supermarkets, we would always buy the same things and not bother with the stuff we did not know what to do with.

But if you get it delivered to your door you think about how to prepare things and it made us try and cook things we would not think of having before - for example, I developed a real faible for avocados which I previously avoided due to the high fat content, plus we prepared a variety of root veggies in a variety of ways which we probably never would have thought of "actively" buying!

We are really happy with the box scheme and the only reason why we reduced it from 1x weekly was that we could not use all the things! My husband is working shifts and when he is not in at night I tend to live on salads and sandwiches rather than cooking a proper meal for myself.

littleTigercub

[Mystic]

I buy things because I like them, not because they are organic/non-organic. I believe their is propaganda in both sides of the story, so I just buy/eat/use whatever I like. For example, I love a particular organic pasta sauce, these organic sourdough rolls and there is this organic hummus which is absolutely divine. I buy rice dream enriched, which I think is organic - or at least partially, but only because it is the only rice milk that is fortified with B12. But for other stuff, like fruit and veg, I just scrub them well. As for grains and beans, I just buy the conventional. Tastes the same to me. Same with dried fruit (except maybe dried mango - organic dried mango is D-VINE!!!!) I hate organic unsulphured dried apricots, but I love the bright orange conventional ones!

Wow - I wrote this in August last year and boy have I changed! Since my boyfriend has been working in a concrete quarry (January), we have been slowly increasing our organic intake and I would say that now, most of the time, close to 80 or even 90% of what we buy is organic! We spend a lot of money on it too - this does concern me, but then I think that we will be healthier for it, and especially since my bone density scan results, I am more inspired to eat well.

Another inspiring story is that my Uncle (well, I call him Uncle, but he is really just an old family friend), was diagnosed with incurable liver cancer over Christmas. A previous family of 'indulgers', enjoying traditional fatty Jewish cuisine (New York Style - very 'the Nanny'), they could all have afforded to drop some kilos, especially him - He had one of those pregnant bellies .
Anyway, no wonder he got sick! Since then, he has started exercising, dropped red meat (only eats organic fish and chicken ) - which is at least something, and has gone completely organic. I don't know if he has dairy or not and I think he has spelt instead of wheat.

Well his 'incurable' cancer is appearing to be curing itself!

I am now fascinated with the relationship between diet and cancer. Imagine if he scrapped ALL flesh!

My boyfriend, at first was skeptical about organics, but now he prefers it and respects it's nutritional superiority. It took me time as well.

What I want to know is why oncoligists tell cancer patients after they are diagnosed to completely boycott conventional food - why not tell everyone? That way less people would get cancer in the first place. The oncologist told my Mum to eat organic whole foods, but she thought it was a load of crap, as did I - perhaps she may be here still had she have listened?

I am not 100% organic and I doubt I ever will be. Being vegan is difficult socially, and being organic AND vegan is virtually impossible if you want any sort of a social life. So what I eat at home (and take to work) is almost all organic (if it is a reasonable price) and when I go out I don't fret. Life is too short. Take care of yourself but have fun too

[DianeVegan]

VEGNEWS magazine has many articles on organic food this May/June issue. The top 12 most pesticide-contaminated foods (try to eat these organic if possible) listed are:

Apples
Bell peppers
Celery
Cherries
Grapes
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Potatoes
Red raspberries
Spinach
Strawberries

This is a U.S. publication so the list may be slightly different in other countries. My understanding is that these fruits and vegetables actually absorb chemicals with water so scrubbing and peeling won't make a huge difference.

And the least contaminated (don't worry too much if you can't buy these organic) are:

Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Corn (sweet)
Kiwi
Mangos
Onions
Papaya
Pineapples
Peas (sweet)

[kriz]

I eat 95% organic. Fresh fruit and veggies that I buy are always organic. If not, I don't see any point of eating them at all, they're poisonous to me. Price wise I don't really notice much of a difference between organic and conventional items, at least not in health food chains such as Whole Foods and Wild Oats. Regular supermarkets tend to be VERY expensive. Trader Joe's is also affordable.

[DianeVegan]

I agree with you about Trader Joe's, Kriz. I don't know what is happening in California, but here in Connecticut my local TJ's is stocking organic frozen spinach and broccoli from.......CHINA. I questioned the manager about the reason for this (and had to explain that some customers are going organic for the environment, not just personal health) and he said demand for organics is so high that they are having a difficult time filling the need. I never occurred to him that it might take a whole lot of fossil fuels to transport frozen food half-way around the world.

I guess the good news is that more farmers will go organic to fill the demand.

[Seaside]

Posted by kriz:

Price wise I don't really notice much of a difference between organic and conventional items, at least not in health food chains such as Whole Foods and Wild Oats.

I agree. I love Whole Foods markets! They seem to buy locally for all kinds of products, not just produce.