Organic Everything??

I know it's tough to buy organic. I feel the tug in my wallet too. Is it really worth it? Do I have to by everything organic? The answer is yes it's worth it - economically, public healthwise and environmentally - and no you don't have to buy all organic. There are foods that I would highly recommend you purchase organic the "dirty dozen" so to speak. I prefer to think of it as the "Top 20" since items 15 - 20 on the list below compiled by the Environmental Working Group are foods we consume on a regular basis. The list is not all doom and gloom, the best news is that you also have the cleanest produce on the bottom of this list with my beloved onions, avocados, asparagus, eggplants and tomatoes among them.

Happy Shopping!

FoodNews: Shopper's Guide to Pesticides
The Full List: 47 Fruits & Veggies

RANK	FRUIT OR VEGGIE	SCORE
1 (worst)	Peach	100 (highest pesticide load)
2	Apple	93
3	Sweet Bell Pepper	83
4	Celery	82
5	Nectarine	81
6	Strawberries	80
7	Cherries	73
8	Kale	69
9	Lettuce	67
10	Grapes - Imported	66
11	Carrot	63
12	Pear	63
13	Collard Greens	60
14	Spinach	58
15	Potato	56
16	Green Beans	53
17	Summer Squash	53
18	Pepper	51
19	Cucumber	50
20	Raspberries	46
21	Grapes - Domestic	44
22	Plum	44
23	Orange	44
24	Cauliflower	39
25	Tangerine	37
26	Mushrooms	36
27	Banana	34
28	Winter Squash	34
29	Cantaloupe	33
30	Cranberries	33
31	Honeydew Melon	30
32	Grapefruit	29
33	Sweet Potato	29
34	Tomato	29
35	Broccoli	28
36	Watermelon	26
37	Papaya	20
38	Eggplant	20
39	Cabbage	17
40	Kiwi	13
41	Sweet Peas - Frozen	10
42	Asparagus	10
43	Mango	9
44	Pineapple	7
45	Sweet Corn - Frozen	2
46	Avocado	1
47 (best)	Onion	1 (lowest pesticide load)

Source: Environmental Working Group; http://www.foodnews.org/fulllist.php

FRESH the Movie - Go See It!!

We saw FRESH the Movie last night - thanks Allison!


It was along the vein of Food, Inc. Joel Saletin was also in it. It highlighted smaller farming enterprises, organic farmers and urban farmers. Here's a clip from their site.

I liked that sustainability was the main focus. The factory farming process this country relies on for the majority of its food is not sustainable. We use dead soil, treat it with chemicals and stronger and stronger pesticides due to the resistance of pests. The animals are treated in horrific ways that spread disease to both the animal and human population. Not to mention the run-off from animal farms contaminate nearby produce farms and wells.

The farm subsidy in this country needs to start getting away from corn and soy for animal production. Let the consumer pay the real price for the cows, pigs, chickens and processed foods they are eating, I bet you would see a lot less meat and junk food being eaten, it would also bring the costs of health care down. What I don't understand is how people don't realize that cheap food is not cheap in the long-run. Heart disease, cancer and diabetes are at the top of killers in this country. What percentage of those deaths do you think are preventable?? The most unfortunate aspect is that developing countries are beginning to follow this model. With that will come more obesity and livestock diseases.

Know where your food comes from, grow what you can. You can't do everything but you can do something.