Myths

The truth can be hard to find through all of the advertisements and persuasions of the salesman. Be aware that the following information is not meant to offend or persuade you in one direction or another, but to inform you. The choices present in theses discussions is entirely yours to decide upon.

Organic Farms Don't Use Pesticides

Organic farms use 20 chemically based pesticides and fungicides that are approved by the US Organic Standards. The main issue is that the amount of these pesticides are not monitored or recorded by the government on Organic farms, as they would be on conventional farms. The top two organic fungicides, copper and sulfur, are used at a rate of 4 to 35 pounds per acre, while synthetic fungicides only require a rate of 1.6 pounds per acre. These pesticides, however, are different than the synthetic ones. They are derived from natural sources and processed lightly, or not at all, before use. In recent studies, though, the toxicity in these pesticides versus ones created are not that much different, and can still have serious health risks when consumed. According to some research, these organic pesticides may actually be worse than the ones used by the conventional agriculture industry. To truly get the best food, it’s a good idea to know the source of the item and do research into what pesticides are used and how frequently they are used.

Organic Foods are Healthier

An independent research project in the UK recently reviewed 162 articles published between 1958 and 2008 concerning organic based foods versus non-organic. They did not find evidence for any differences in content of over 15 different nutrients including vitamin C, carotene, and calcium. While the conventional crops had higher nitrogen levels, and organic ones had higher amounts of phosphorus and acidity, neither of these factors very much into nutritional quality. Regarding taste, in a blind taste test, it was found that people simply could not tell the difference between organic and non-organic.

Organic Farming is Better for the Environment

While Organic farms don’t use synthetic pesticides, which have been found to be ecologically damaging, they still use several chemicals on their farm that are damaging. Many organic farms refuse to use GMO crops (the benefits of which are discussed below), and instead continue to use chemicals such as Bacillus Thuringiensis (Bt) which can have negative effects on the soil. Mainly, though, the impact of the environment is based around the amount of chemicals versus the yield of crops. Organic farms produce 50 – 80% less crops than conventional ones, but use just as many pesticides, creating more environmental dangerous and health risks.

GMOs are Harmful and Dangerous

GMO stands for genetically modified organism. They are living organisms that have been modified in a lab, creating alternative versions of plants that can produce bacteria and viruses not generated naturally. Overall, GMOs possess the potential to up crop yields, increase nutritious value, and generally improve farming practices while reducing synthetic chemical use. There are sweet potatoes being engineered to be resistant to a virus currently plaguing the African harvest; this will help feed millions of people. Scientists have also created carrots high in calcium to fight osteoporosis, tomatoes high in antioxidants, potatoes with less concentrations of toxic glycoalkaloids, nuts with less protein which causes the allergic reaction in most people, and bananas with vaccines against hepatitis B. There are some modifications, however, such as the resistance of browning to apples, that have no real benefit to growing and increase the spread of some viruses. This is a topic that continues to be researched and the effects of consuming GMO products, in the long term, have not been evaluated. In general, it is best to do research into how and why the GMO was created and what effects may occur in the environment.