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Organic vs. Conventional Produce by: Joseph Michelini

The definition of “eating healthy” seems to be in a constant state of flux. Fad diets, superfood trends, and changes in the process of food production have come and gone. The general public, myself included, is probably more misinformed than we think about what we should be consuming on a day-to-day basis. Our eating habits here in the U.S. are even the basis for many stereotypes (“McDonald’s for every meal,” etc.). However, there is one seemingly-contentious issue that transcends the healthy food timeline. Organic vs. conventional: which should you buy?

Personally, I’ve never seen the point of buying anything conventional, with the exception of meat. My parents, on the other hand, practically only buy organic. I’ve seen a lot of common arguments for their position and for mine, and I decided to delve a bit deeper into this topic. I focused mainly on farmed produce, but I’d certainly be interested in knowing if an organic processed chicken nugget is better for you than a conventional one. There isn’t necessarily a clear answer, but let’s examine the fruits of my research nonetheless.

Argument 1: Organic food is better for you.

This is what some people immediately respond with when I ask them which flavor of produce they tend to buy. While it’s not entirely false, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it “true.” Some people seem to think of organic food as the cure-all for their health problems, but this is probably not the case. According to an analysis of multiple studies on the health impact of organic food, there is not significant enough difference that it is justifiably recommendable as a replacement for conventional food. However, our understanding of the subject isn’t developed enough for a scientifically significant conclusion to be reached, and organic was shown to be slightly more healthy. Medicinal? No, but even small differences might have a large effect. Additionally, there may be one way in which organic food is actually significantly better:

Argument 2: Organic food is free of dangerous pesticides.

It’s true that organic produce contains less (or no) traces of pesticides compared to its conventional counterpart. Contrary to what some people believe, however, organic pesticides do exist and definitely have the capability to be harmful. An article by the University of Illinois states that just because something is more “natural” (i.e. it wasn’t synthesized in a lab) doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s harmless, and that so-called “organic pesticides” can even be more dangerous. It’s likely more important to focus on the fact that less pesticide residue is found on organic produce. I think it’s safe to say that no one is going to die from eating too many pesticide-sprayed fruits or veggies any time soon, though. Pesticides in the U.S. are highly regulated with the goal of cutting down on the toxicity of their usage.

Argument 3: Organic food is more environmentally-friendly.

In the same way that organic is just a bit better for you, conventional farming is actually a touch better for the environment. While it creates more toxic results due to its more frequent use of pesticides and uses more energy, organic farming requires more land and fertilizer. In general, these seem to be the minutiae of one compared to the other and not something worth losing sleep over. I personally feel that there are more important factors at play here, and I’m not going to spend too much time on this one.

Argument 4: Organic food is more expensive.

This is… well, pretty objectively true. Here’s a table of prices, taken from the online listings at my local Kroger, for produce my family commonly buys.

As you can see, organic ranges from slightly to significantly more expensive (to one cent less per pound, apparently). In some cases, buying organic doesn’t really affect the cost by too much unless you’re getting pounds and pounds of food. I can see how it could add up, especially if someone is shopping for a large family, but I would likely decide based on price and other situational factors if I were buying for just me. Another issue to take into consideration is one of size, with organic produce often being on the smaller side. Speaking of making decisions about what to splurge on...

The “Dirty Dozen”

If you happen to be a scholar of The Grand Organic vs. Conventional Debate, you’re probably currently thinking of the “Dirty Dozen” -- twelve foods that you should always purchase organic. These are, according to the Food Network:

Peaches, Apples, Bell Peppers, Celery, Nectarines, Strawberries, Cherries, Kale, Lettuce, Imported Grapes, Carrots, Pears.

These items allegedly contain the most pesticide residue, and should thus be avoided if you’re buying conventional in order to reduce your intake. Try as I might, I wasn’t able to find a more credible source for this information. Most of the sources I checked seemed pretty consistent with what the “Dirty Dozen” actually is; I picked Food Network for this because it’s at least an established source of cooking-related information and not someone’s Southern Mom blog website. So, should one buy organic if the food is on this list? I’m probably going to. It seems reasonable to not view this in a black-and-white manner. For example, considering that one of my favorite snacks is a fresh apple (sometimes I tear through two or three a day when they’re in season), paying the extra money for a documented advantage seems worth it.

Conclusion

Again, it’s prudent to look at this debate with more nuance than “organic good” or “organic bad.” I’m not going to come to a true conclusion here, because I don’t believe that there is an objective answer. However, it seems safe to say that there aren’t too many significant differences between the two. The real enemy here appears to be the industry convincing us that these two types of produce are so separate from one another. In reality, organic farming is more of a subset of conventional farming; it uses mostly similar methods, but excludes some parts of the process. Buying what you can afford should take top priority, but shelling out for organic produce might not be as bad an idea as I initially thought after all.

Sources cited:

https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/organic-food-and-health-a-systematic-review-2161-0711-1000532.php?aid=90187

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24968103/

https://aces.illinois.edu/news/going-organic-are-organic-pesticides-safer-their-synthetic-counterparts

https://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/CAT11121165/PDF

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2016/07/25/organic-vs-conventional-farming-lower-environmental-impact/

https://www.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats/healthy-tips/2010/04/organic-produce-the-dirty-dozen-and-clean-fifteen

Image:

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/S/assets.wholefoodsmarket.com/content/15/e7/47c9886840b299bd24b6e48fca6e/7.Certified-Organic-Grocery-Store_2280x1282.jpg

Created By
Joseph Michelini
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