Why go Organic?

Today was the first day I got to pickup the produce from the organic co-op I signed up for this year. Here's what I got in my basket:

White Beets

Red Cabbage

Carrots

Chard

Young Fava Beans

Green Garlic

Red Russian Kale

Lettuce

Fresh young Onions

Rutabagas

Radishes (Lakeside)

Meyer Lemons (Marsalisi Farm)

I'm so excited this year about this wonderful produce. Last year was the first year my husband and I tried this and it was well worth the money. I got a chance to try many new vegetables that I wouldn't normally pick up in the grocery store. Usually, I just throw everything in a salad and we eat it raw. I know some of you out there are feeling queasy, but I'm telling you, this stuff is delicious and I've never felt better in my life.

So what are the benefits of eating organic vegetables and fruits?

Protect your family’s health

Conventional farmers rely heavily on pesticides that may cause cancer and detrimental reproductive effects. Of the 28 most commonly used pesticides, at least 23 are carcinogenic. Pesticide residues in food cause 20,000 cancer deaths and thousands more new cancers per year, according to the National Academy of Sciences. Eating organic veggies and fruits helps to maintain good health and can help people to lose weight.

Prevent soil erosion

We are facing the worst topsoil erosion in history due to our current conventional agricultural practices of chemical-intensive, mono-crop farming. The Soil Conservation Service estimates more than 3 billion tons of topsoil are eroded from U.S. croplands each year. Organic production practices inherently build long-term soil health and stability.

Protect water quality

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that pesticides contaminate the groundwater in 38 states, polluting the primary source of drinking water for more than half the country’s population. Conventional agriculture is considered the largest non-point source of water pollution in the U.S.

Support small farmers

For the most part, organic farms are small, independently owned family farms of fewer than 100 acres. It’s estimated that the U.S. has lost more than 650,000 family farms in the past decade. Organic farming could be one of the few survival tactics left for family farms.

Support a true economy

Although organic foods might seem more expensive than conventional foods, conventional food prices don’t reflect the hidden costs borne by taxpayers, including billions of dollars in federal agricultural subsidies. If you add in the environmental and social costs of irrigation to a head of lettuce, for example, its price would range between $2 and $3.

Taste better flavor

There’s a good reason why many chefs use organic foods in their recipes -- they taste better! Because organic foods are not treated with fungicides, they must be sent to market as close to harvest as possible. Produce is ripe and may have suffered less nutritional loss by the time you eat it.

I hope you'll consider switching to organic too. I believe it glorifies God when we take care of our bodies. Afterall, they are the temple of His Holy Spirit.