So, what is organic food anyway?

I’ve mentioned ‘organic’ a lot here before, and everywhere you look you can see it on labels in the shops. But what does it mean, and how important is it when you’re choosing what to eat?

Organic means food that have been grown without pesticides, herbicides or artificial fertilisers, and have been processed without food additives (if they need any processing at all). If the word is applied to meat or dairy products, it means that the animals involved have been fed organic food, and have not been given antibiotics or growth hormones. The Wikipedia entry on organic food is quite good.

There are many environmental benefits to growing crops and raising animals this way:

• it reduces pollution: organic farms don’t release pesticides and herbicides into our soil and waterways, where they can harm animals (including us!) or accumulate over the years.
• it creates healthier eco-systems, as organic farming methods allow a more diverse population of insects, small animals, and non-crop plants, when compared to the monoculture you get when you spray chemicals intended to kill any plants and animals except the crop.
• it’s a less energy-intensive method, with less need for processing and packaging for chemicals.
• it reduces our reliance on fossil-fuels by using natural fertilisers, since artificial fertilisers are petroleum-based.

The jury still seems to be out on whether there are any health benefits to eating organic food. It’s the kind of research that will take decades, as we wait to see long-term effects on people, but so far the results look good. A large study by the European Union showed that organic foods had larger quantities of anti-oxidants and other micro-nutrients. Personally, I prefer to reduce the amount of pesticides going into my body wherever possible, and eating organic food helps me do just that.

Do be careful though, when you’re buying organic. As far as I can tell, there’s no rule that says companies can’t put the word ‘organic’ on any product they like, or make up their own official-looking logos. Your best bet for avoiding greenwash here is to look for one of the “certified organic” marks listed in this Choice article, and then stick to brands that you know and trust. If you’re looking at a small business, who maybe can’t afford certification, why not try to contact the owner about what they do? If they’re making an effort to be environmentally-friendly, they should be happy to explain their methods to you.

Even if a product is certified organic, there’s no guarantee that it doesn’t cause other environmental problems: it might be over-packaged, from overseas, or out of season if it’s fresh food. I included ‘eat organic’ in my 6 ways to choose eco-friendly food post, but it’s not the only factor to consider. And as we all know, buyer beware!

Overall, though, the benefit to the environment makes it worth your while to find the organic products available at your shopping centre. If you’re on a limited budget, you might have to be choosier about which organic foods you buy – check out Umbra’s advice on prioritizing organic purchases at Grist.org. I keep finding new ones all the time, and in my opinion most of them are fantastically good stuff, often produced locally by small businesses. The choice of fresh organic vegies at my supermarket is growing, and some of our independent butchers are offering organic meats lately too.