People are moving to cleaner and healthy diets and regimes as they become more mindful of the ability of food to enhance or devastate our health. Nowadays, it seems that there is an organic substitute to whatever you need to get from the supermarket.
Organic vegetables, produced and processed without the use of additives, seem to be the most common food trend right now. Organic crops are cultivated with fertilizer or manure, and weeds and rodents are controlled naturally.
Antibiotics are not used on the animals, and they are served fresh, hormone-free, and GMO-free diets. Organic foods are far more costly than traditional foods, but they are much more nutritious.
Furthermore, organic diets are high in the heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. According to a 2016 report, they contain 50% more of these fatty acids than traditional products.
Furthermore, cultivating organic vegetables is an environmentally sustainable practice that does not lead to waste.
According to a 2014 report published in the British Journal of Nutrition, organically cultivated crops are less likely to have detectable pesticide levels and cadmium.
According to Rolf Halden, Professor and Director of the Bio design Center for Environmental Security at Arizona State University, they are also safer because they are made without antibiotics.
Still, before you make a final decision, keep in mind that the organic food you are purchasing might not be organic at all!
Specifically, many organic products brought into the United States from China have been found to be far from organic.
Miles McEvoy, the director of the Organic Program at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), stated:
“China is a big manufacturer of organic products, and there are ongoing concerns regarding the integrity of Chinese products.”
Here are some of the reasons why these ingredients are not considered organic:
- China’s atmosphere is severely contaminated, with soil and water containing high levels of heavy metals such as cadmium and lead. According to a Greenpeace study, “soil contamination with a variety of toxic metals, including cadmium and lead, is considered to be an existing issue in several areas of Hunan Province, China.” Dr. Xia Hanbing, manager of Shanghai Tianzai Fruits and Vegetables Specialized Co-op, added that growing organic crops is challenging for farmers because “‘organic’ calls for certain soil and water standards, and because vegetables are part of the food chain, they’re particularly vulnerable to diseases and pests” and “the existing eco-system is not conducive to organic farming.”
- Organic goods from China are poorly controlled because they are not grown according to strict guidelines or under the control of any officially recognised entity.
- Any manufacturers simply apply bogus “organic” labels to their goods in order to market them at a higher price.
- Because there aren’t enough USDA-accredited certifiers, the products can’t be trusted because they can be certified by third-party vendors. According to the Chinese Organic Food Classification Centre’s (COFCC) website, they are “a special organisation responsible for organic agriculture promotion and engaged in organic-food registration and management under the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture,” but they only check 30% of organic products.
It is also wise to avoid foods from China before stronger rules are implemented, even though they are branded “organic.”
Unfortunately, you cannot completely stop purchasing bogus organic goods, but there are certain items you should be aware of:
- If it is clearly labelled as having no GMOs, it is most likely organic.
- Check for a “organic stamp,” and if it is there, look up the corporation to see if it is legitimate. “Organic” products that are less expensive than regular products are more often fraudulent.
- If it appears to be “fortified” with synthetic vitamins, it is most likely not organic.
- Don’t let this stop you from making the switch to organic foods. It’s one of the better choices you can make to improve your fitness and wellness.
Sources:
www.foodde
achnews.org
foodrevolution.org
