Selectively Organic
Ages ago, my husband complained that the big-ass strawberries they grow these days just don't have the flavor of the ones he remembers from his childhood. I suggested that he should try the organic ones, since they were more likely to be like the strawberries of yore, given that today's are franken foods. True to his average Joe nature, my husband balked at that suggestion.
Now frankenstrawberrys have become more flavorfull, but my husband I have become more selectively organic. It hasn't always been at my suggestion, and when he's suggested it I've had the educational TV -- such as the Discovery channel -- to thank.
My introduction to organic food was Amy's Organic burritos. I still love the bean and veggie ones. Often I eat regular processed foods, I just think they are over done -- too salty, too sugary. So I started trying organics because they typically used less salt and sugar.
Then I heard about the way they raised chicken and started buying organic when it was convenient. My husband (then boyfried) was skeptical -- he was inclined to trust the FDA to protect us.
Until he saw something on the Discover channel (or some such thing) about how they raise chickens. we've been buying organic chicken most of the time since then, and more recently have gone organic on beef.
I'm not alone. I heard a peice on NPR about how stores are having trouble stocking enough organic milk. The demand had been going up and dairy farmers were reluctant to convert. Then, a coworker mentioned that she was only buying organic milk for her four year old daughter and that most of her mom friends were doing the same. The reason -- hormones given to dairy cows are thought to be responsible for girls getting their periods at earlier and earlier ages.
Now we all might be nuts and worried for no reason, but when it's just as easy to buy organic, why not do what you can to avoid having to explain tampon use to your eight year old?
Comments
I was just complaining to a friend a couple days ago that the strawberries I get today are of poorer quality than those I got when I was a kid. They don't taste as good, they don't ripen as evenly... Of course, I grew up just across the river from a small produce farm where you could go pick your own strawberries every summer. They probably weren't truly organic, but almost certainly had to be better than fruit from huge commercial operations that ship all over the country.
Similarly, a small meat farm near us provided locally-produced meat and cheese. The owners were very proud that they didn't use hormones or chemicals on their herds, and considering the quality of their products they had every right to be.
Living in a city is supposed to provide all kinds of benefits as far as food selection goes, but I have to say that rural areas have their points too.
I think one of the issues with produce in general is that we've gotten accustomed to eating it out of season -- so much so that most people don't actually know what a truly ripe apple/cherry/strawberry should taste like. One advantage to living in a rural area is that you can actually see (and smell) what is currently on the vines/trees/bushes and instinctively know what is best that day. It's not a question of organic v. non-organic, imo, just of what is ready to be picked.
And, really, the area I live in is only quasi-rural. We have a bi-weekly farmer's market that does an excellent job of both education and promotion of local goods. Which isn't to say that I haven't been known to plow through a bag of Lay's potato chips on occasion, just that I try to eat the freshest produce I can lay my hands on. It does make a difference.
Adrienne makes a great point. (Hi, A, glad you are reading!!) I've lived in highly populated areas for a while, and I just discovered last year how important in-season can be.
During my "sabbatical," I took it upon myself to learn how to make guacamole without a recipe. Let me tell you -- it's all about the avacados. Good avacados, good guac. Bad avacados, bad guac. The amount of other stuff in it -- really, really secondary. I'd call it tertiary (because I like the word tertiary), but then I wouldn't have a second thing. Anyway, even though all avacados in Ohio are grown in CA or Mexico, they definitely have a season. December avacados? Very bad guac.