"Organic foods are a waste of money" caused a bit of a stir — we were called "hypocrites" for not sticking to our guns recommending "healthy foods."

So I started thinking that I needed to clarify some points — I summarized a recent study that was published, basically showing there was no difference between organic and conventional foods.

But the question resurfaced — "I don’t care what the research says, what do YOU personally do?"

At the Mohr House, we belong to a CSA (community supported agriculture) and supplement with weekly trips to the Farmer’s Market. 

As I said, local is best in our opinion — and 99% of the time, these farmers are also organic, even though they may not be "certified" as such because of the associated costs.  You should ask the farmers how they grow their produce.

A CSA is simply where you buy a share of a farm — we paid $500 and get weekly, local crops, from May – December.  That’s well worth the price. Find one in YOUR area by visiting Local Harvest.org.  These are the greatest way to buy the best vegetables and fruit from YOUR area.  Our particular CSA guarantees nothing they carry will come from more than 50 miles away … and, as I said, local means tastier and much higher in nutrients.  If it’s organic too, it’s a great bonus.

Our goal is to buy everything as "close to the ground" as possible.  We also buy all of our meats from the farmer’s market — we’re fortunate to have one near us with farmers who have free range chicken & eggs (with pictures on the farm of their "happy, bug eating chickens" as they call them), 100% grass fed and finished red meat and pork.  We want to know where our food comes from … we know the farmers and they know us.

You know your hair dresser by name and you likely know your mechanic and your tailor.  Doesn’t it also make sense to know the person growing the food you’re eating and feeding to your family? 

We also grow some of our own veggies — we’re not making Martha Stewart nervous, but we have loads of tomatoes, some bell peppers, eggplant, zucchini and yellow squash, along with a boatload of fresh herbs.  What a blast!  There’s also data that shows families who grow their own vegetables have kids who eat more of them. 

So in a nutshell — 99% of our produce and all our meats are organically produced and are from local farms. 

And we do that by "following" these three "rules."

1. Grow them ourselves.

2. Buy them from a Farmer’s Market (or our CSA).
   
3. Join a CSA ( $500 over 6 months — you can’t beat the price for the quality!)
   

Speaking of knowing where our foods come from, has anyone seen the movie Food, Inc?  Anxious to learn a bit more about the food industry … I have a feeling it’s going to reinforce just how important "local" is!!!  Check out the trailer — Foodincmovie.com

Organic foods are hot – more and more consumers are looking for the term "organic."

But is organic "stuff" worth the extra money?  Sometimes organic produce costs at least double what "conventional" produce costs.

So why do people spend the extra money?
1. Less pesticides
2. More nutrients
3. More flavor

But are these valid reasons?

According to research published just the other day in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition …

… not a chance.  Organic foods didn’t turn out to be any "better" than conventionally grown foods.

Here’s the deal — the goal of the study was to measure the differences in nutrient content between organic vs. conventional food.

Very simply the researchers scoured the literature, studies published over a 50 year time span, and looked at the nutrient differences, if any.

Their conclusions?  "There is no evidence of a difference in nutrient quality between organic and conventional foods … "

So is this the be all and end all?  Should we boycott Whole Foods — turning our noses up at the organic food "industry?" foods?

Not quite.  Here’s how we feel about this.

First, more important than organic … simply eat more fruits and vegetables.  Produce is great for you — whether you’re trying to lose fat, improve health, decrease your risk of disease, etc.  With the average American eating just 2 servings total per day, eating organic isn’t my main concern…eating MORE fruits and vegetables is my concern.

We also believe local is actually more important than organic.  Local … meaning foods that are grown close to where you live, like those found at Farmer’s Markets.  An organic food flown 3000 miles to your grocery store is not even close to the same as a fresh vegetable picked that morning from a farm that’s just a short drive from your house.  It’s also a great way to support the local economy since you’re helping local farmers.

While I mentioned this very recent study that compared some nutrient differences in conventional and organic produce, there are also other "issues" with organic foods that are a concern for many

• Are they better for the environment?
• Are there less pesticides used in production, meaning we eat less pesticides?
• Are they safer with the recent disease outbreaks that have popped up lately (e coli, salmonella, etc)?
  There are still a lot of questions to be answered.  Remember that this study was just one of many … and all studies need others to support (or refute) the claims.

Here’s our take as of now:

• Eat more produce, organic or not
• Buy local

If you are thinking about buying organic produce, but cost is a factor, focus on those fruits and veggies where you eat the skin vs. those you don’t.  For example, you peel a banana, but eat the entire raspberry — the raspberry would therefore be more to ‘go organic’

What do you think?  Is organic worth it?  Why do you (or don’t you) buy organic foods?  Leave us a comment.