Organic foods

[Vanessa]

Do all of you specifically eat organic food or do you buy unorganic produce?

[Emily]

I eat unorganic produce frequently. As a teen of 17 still living at home with a mother who does groceries I'm lucky enough she's willing to buy TVP and soymilk. If I pushed for organic she would quit supporting me.

Emily

[Erin Pavlina]

I buy what looks best. I like it when I "discover" I've bought something organic, but I don't specifically look for it all the time. Occasionally, if I'm deciding between two items, I'll buy the organic one. Otherwise, I'm usually in too much of a hurry to care.

However, I noticed recently that a lot of the things we buy normally are organic. I didn't buy them because they were organic, just turned out that way.

My friend Allison admonishes me to buy organic whenever possible. She's got some great information and is very knowledgeable on the subject, but the importance of it just hasn't sunk into my brain yet.

[Robin]

When I pick out my groceries (my parents take me grocery shopping 2-3 times a month) I choose mostly organic products. However, I also eat produce that my family has purchased if I run out of fresh fruits and veggies before my next trip to the store, and that is generally NOT organic. I am well aware of the benefits of organic foods, but my parents can't see the difference (although I've tried to educate them!)

Also, by the way, could someone tell me a little more about GMOs?? I have heard it mentioned and have seen, for example, my soy milk and soy yogurt labelled "non-GMO" or "GMO free" but don't really know what it does. Thanks!

[Erin Pavlina]

Here's a site with a lot of great info about GMO's

http://www.truefoodnow.org/gmo_facts/resources.html

[Robin]

Wow, that's scary! Lots of good info. Sent an email to my representatives about mandatory labelling on GMOs.

[Erin Pavlina]

Excellent Robin! You go, girl.

Yeah, it's a lot of information. I like it when products say "Non GMO" on them so I don't have to wonder.

[karen]

I try to buy organic as much as possible, especially for those foods that ds eats every day like corn and grapes. My HFS sells grains, beans, and nuts (organic) in bulk and it isn;t that much more expensive to buy them this way. I like to consider it an investment in our health.

[sophie]

We eat about 90% organic, and get organic whenever possible. My partner grows and sells organic vegies, and is passionate about organics (he is a qualified organic grower). We buy organic peanut butter, beans and pulses, fruit, flour, juice and sugar, amongst other things. Items we get that are not organic include crackers, chips and olive oil. We always buy GM free, and boycott the companies who support Genetic engineering.

[VeggieGirl]

Some non-organic & some organic, prioritized.

E.G.

Strawberries
Peaches
Carrots
Tomatoes
Celery
Romaine Lettuce
Bell Peppers
Apples & Apple Products
Oranges
Soy

There ARE lists of the most contaminated plant foods -- and those I prioritize in shopping for a percentage organic on my gorcery list.

(And for those who eat any animal products, i.e. cheese & eggs, I would *never* buy any that are not organic. These are really, really unsafe.)

Other things I buy organic when I can . . .

like when the price of one organic brand of a prepared product (like bread) or a supplier (like of grain) is a bit more competitive with conventional, and definitely whenever organic is on sale -- so long as it's a healthful item, as organic matters little if it's junk food anyway!!! (In that case, I'd prefer the conventional whole, natural, least processed food to lesser organic.)

Some things I always buy conventional intentionally -- bananas & broccoli, for examples.

Bananas once peeled show (in research) virtually no traces of contamination of any kind. So, no, I don't spend for the organic.

And broccoli? Well, let's just say that I have experienced bugged organic broccoli -- and can never revisit that experience again. Just one of those things!! ;-) To each her own!

Oh, and orange juice! While I'd *love* to buy organic orange juice, the kind I choose to buy is full of pulp & calcium fortified . . . but not organic. So, it's a tradeoff healthwise.

VeggieGirl