Is Organic Food the Better Choice? Many people are suddenly having an increase in interest in living healthy lifestyles and eating high quality food. This has caused organic food sales to increase and stores like Wal-Mart and Winn Dixie to start selling organic foods. Additionally, there has been an increase in stores opening like Whole Foods, who devote their entire store to selling not only organic foods, but other organic options such as: vitamins, soaps, and clothing. The growth of sales for organic food has increased because organic food is produced under certain farming conditions that follow the guidelines set by the EC Regulation. This means produce are grown without using pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or anything that could potentially be harmful to the consumer’s body, which makes people think the food has higher quality. The term organic can be misleading because not all organic food sold on the market is certified organic; meaning consumers think they are buying organic food, but possibly are paying more and getting a product that is not approved to be organic. Many people believe that eating organic food is better for your overall health and by eating organic you will receive more vitamins and nutrients. When I asking a lady in her mid thirty’s at Whole Foods why she shops organically, her response was “I read in a magazine that organic food will help me lose weight so I figured I would give it a try.” Unfortunately,
It has been argued that organic are worthwhile because of nutrition. In paragraph 21, David Lazarus, stated, “What you’re paying for, presumably, is a more healthful diet. That means produce that hasn’t been drenched in pesticides, chicken and beef that hasn’t been pumped full of antibiotics, milk with even more nutritional value.” However, organic food is not worthwhile because of nutrition. “A 2012 study found no real difference between organic and conventional food in terms of nutrition. Its findings appeared in the Annals of Internal Medicine”(Cernansky 6). This quote shows that there is no difference between organic and conventional food. If there is no difference between the food then why change the
Is organic food better than regular food? This is a topic that is debated, mainly focusing on if organic is better for the environment, the economy, and for people's health. There is research that has been done and arguments made for both for and against organic food. While there are some benefits to eating organically, I would choose regular food over organic food.
Organic foods are no longer only found in health food stores; they have become a mainstay in our supermarkets. Today’s consumers are faced with the decision of whether or not it is worth the cost to buy organic. To determine the answer to this question one will need to determine if it has been scientifically determined that consumption organic food products are more beneficial to one’s health.
Traits of organic food can also be misconstrued in the sense of the ingredients and how it is different from the way processed food is produced. “In reality, certified organics have lower levels of chemical residue, Roethal argues, which is positive for consumers, farm workers and the land itself, but organic growing practices have no impact on how many nutrients, calories or grams of fat are in anyone's favorite foods”(SFGate). As mentioned previously in the quote, often times organic food can benefits one’s health because of the little amount in which chemicals and calories are in the substance. The concern about organic food is that it is substantially more expensive than non-organic food. However,“Organic food sales are increasing by double digits annually, and more than 80 percent of parents reported buying organic food for their families last year”, according to Batch. With the high-price of organic food, this could also be a reason on why people tend to lean more towards the less healthier items, all because of the low cost. Even though there are different and confusing standards on what organic really is, the ideal description would typically be foods that do not have the same producing process as non-organic food.
Over the last few years, awareness of organic food has risen. Due to this, the demand for organic food is a factor which is influencing the farmers to switch to use this technique, and it is being sold in specialty stores and conventional supermarkets. Organic products contain numerous marketing claims that it is healthier, it offers more value, and the farming is more environmentally friendly than traditional foods, so, how does one determine if organic is the way to go? Some argue that there is evidence that supports and demonstrates why organic foods and farming are better overall, while others insist that conventional foods and agriculture can offer the same benefits as going organic. There is no right or wrong answer. Within this
Organic consumers are not going to feel comfortable buying their premium organic foods from the same place they could buy cheap home appliances, children’s toys, or unfashionable clothing.
From the now popular recyclable cloth grocery bags, to the organic garden at the White House, food, and the food industry is changing. The popularity of organic and whole foods is on the rise. Processed foods are increasingly advertising that they are additive and preservative free, and all sorts of products now offer a “gluten-free” variety. The popularity of what is now being called the sustainable food movement, leads many to wonder why are some people willing to pay more, sometimes double, for organic produce, meat, eggs, and milk. Will this prove to be just another trendy American fad, or are there real health benefits from eating organic and whole foods? While the organic market only represents approximately 3% of the total food
The general public sees any type of organic food as being produced “straight out of a backyard garden” or “right off of the family farm”. But is it really freshly picked tomatoes right out of Grandma Mae’s garden or chicken breast from a local farm? If the food purchased is from Whole Foods or the organic section at Walmart, then that probably is not the case. Large organic farms are what usually supply Whole Foods and other larger chain stores that have organics. They are not what people initially think of when imagining the typical organic farm. They usually think of a small plot of land with an old farmhouse, chicken coops, a red barn, and a large pasture of grass. Even though there are still organic farms like that,
Organic farming began in the late 1940’s in the United States, and in recent years it has seen a dramatic increase in popularity (Rubin 1). The sales of organic food have been increasing by about 20 percent a year over the past decade (Marcus 1). That is over ten times the rate of their conventional counterparts (Harris 1). There are 10 million consumers of organic food in the United States, yet organic food represents only one percent of the nation’s food supply. This year organic food sales are expected to rise to six billion dollars (Rubin 1). So what is organic food? Organic food is that which are grown without hormones, pesticides, or synthetic fertilizers. Also, the soil in which organic food
When consumers say organic foods are the best for you because markets tell you that there are healthier for you, makes me wonder, do these people really formulate the process that goes into the organic food business. That is what Steven Shapin, author of “What Are You Buying When You Buy Organic?” debated in the book They Say, I Say. The purpose of his article is to inform people that are maybe interested in converting from non-organic foods to a healthier lifestyle, what the process is to acquire organic foods. Also he wanted to expose how much money it takes to keep foods legitimately fresh. He did this because he wants the readers to understand how much these organic companies emphasize to keeping through foods organic, which is not
Many people have heard about organic foods, however, not everyone understands the facts, benefits, or how it is grown. Organic food ingredients are grown without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, genetically modified organisms, or ionizing radiation. Animals that produce meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products do not take antibiotics or growth hormones. In “Organic Food: Healthier for You and the Planet” Collin Dunn discusses organic food using some statistics, pictures, and his personal opinion to better inform people who eat organic foods why it is better to eat and how it is better for the planet. However, Lawrence Robinson, Jeanne Sega, and Robert Segal discuss organic food in:
The history of organic foods is controversial. When consumers hear the term "organic", many expect foods that are treated with fewer or no "bad chemicals", foods that are more nutritious, or "natural", and those that are less processed or may entail closer care and attention to crops and livestock. However, this is a long list of expectations that are difficult to meet, so the question is actually whether or not the certification process and benefits are worth the hassle. When it comes to health, there is no difference between organic and conventional produce. Both offer the same nutrient benefits. While choosing to eat fresh produce is better for your health than processed food, choosing organic does not lead to any additional benefits. This
Once upon a time, organic food was available only at health food stores for people willing to pay the extra money for natural food. Today, organic foods are now a trending topic everyone must have; however, are organic foods really worth the cost? There not really any evidence that organic food is better than traditional foods. Food does not have to be organic to be safe and environmentally friendly. So, spending the extra money on organic food is not really worth the cost.
Many believe that the food grown may be good for the environment but obtaining the products counteracts the process and overall benefits of acquiring organic foods. This idea is because food is flown in from places all over the world on planes whose exhaust is polluting the environment just as much as the non organic farming. Another view made by a spokeswoman for the Agriculture Department said, “The government’s organic program is a market program that sets standards for what can be certified as organic. Neither the enabling legislation nor the regulations address food safety or nutrition” (Bittman 2). This statement may prove to be correct, but when taking polls of those who eat organic and those who do not, the ones who eat organically experience benefits that are much higher. Digesting organic food has proven to reduce risks of terminal illnesses, such as diabetes and even cancer. Beyond physical health, buyers mentally feel more positively towards themselves and their
With the mass production of food, companies like ConAgra Foods, the parent company of Healthy Choice, Tyson, or even Whole Foods, may cut corners to the growth, treatment, and processing of food. In recent years, there has been a hype in organic food, locally grown food and GMO free foods, but what do these words mean? Most of these words on stickers are aimed to sell customers overpriced food that is farmed conventionally. Organic food has been claimed to be healthier for people, although the organic food label is misleading consumers into purchasing overpriced foods, and forces farmers to use unreliable farming techniques.