Do you eat organic?
I do, when I can. I prefer my local Whole Foods Market to our conventional supermarket chains. And, often, I prefer smaller, local organic markets even to WFM. I do it for my own health, of course, but "sustainability" -- economic, environmental -- is certainly a good enough reason to seek out and support the organic-food movement.
But is there a dark side to buying organic? Slate tackles that question here. Don't let some admittedly valid points stop you from buying and eating organic, but, clearly, there's more to "sustainability" than meets the righteous conscience.
But is there a dark side to buying organic? Slate tackles that question here. Don't let some admittedly valid points stop you from buying and eating organic, but, clearly, there's more to "sustainability" than meets the righteous conscience.
posted by Michael J.W. Stickings at
12:53 AM
4 Comments:
This is really interesting, especially the section about WF's apparent lack of support of small, local farms. Here in the city that spawned WF, you won't find anyone complaining about anything other than the high prices.
Several years ago, Barbara Kingsolver touched on the produce-transportation impact issue in an essay called "Lilly's Chickens."
Not to shamelessly self-promote, but based on that essay, local and homegrown produce has become a pet issue and frequent blog topic of mine. I have a "victory garden" not only for cheap,healthy food but also to reduce the use of truck-fuel. A small effort,but a tasty one.
By
KCB, at 8:08 AM
I not only buy and eat organic, I grow it!
But, really, there is little reason for anyone in any US city who cares about the quality of produce to accept Chilean organic over local conventional. (I am not picking--so to speak--on Chile; any other producer far from the place of purchase would do.) A peice of fruit picked before its prime to be shipped thousands of miles is going to taste like something that was, well, picked before its prime and shipped thousand of miles. It does not matter how "sustainably" it was grown.
I always maintain that it is more important to buy locally than to buy organic. But usually it is possible to do both. (OK, that's easy for me to say; I'm not in the cold north.)
The farmers market movement is arguably far more important than the organic movement. The more the "organic" label becomes of value to mega-producers, the less meaningful it becomes for sustatainabilty (other than economic and political sustainability, which are important in their own rights).
But I always say, know where your fruits and vegetables were grown, by whom, as well as how. If you can't grow your own, ask questions of those who sell it to you!
By
Anonymous, at 6:58 PM
I complain about the high prices up here in Toronto, too, KCB. The problem is that most people can't afford to shop at WFM, which is why the class-based argument about the organic-foods movement is so compelling. I wonder what impact Wal-Mart will have.
I agree with you, Matthew. And I buy conventional if and when the organic alternatives seem, well, unappetizing. I'd rather support local Ontario farmers than foreign producers (most of whom are likely quite large), but of course that isn't always possible this time of year. If only you could ship some of your home-grown organics up to Toronto!
In the end, it is about making informed decisions based on a number of factors. Organic sounds good, but it isn't always the most responsible option.
By
Michael J.W. Stickings, at 4:48 PM
"If only you could ship some of your home-grown organics up to Toronto!"
Always looking for new markets...
By
Anonymous, at 6:48 PM
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