Lately I have been asked by many people about whether buying organic is really worth it because of the recent report made by Stanford University scientists. To sum up their findings, in case you are not familiar, they stated that fruits and vegetables labeled organic were, on average, no more nutritious than their conventional counterparts. Nor were they any less likely to be contaminated by dangerous bacteria like E. coli. The researchers also found no obvious health advantages to organic meats. Conventional fruits and vegetables did have more pesticide residue, but the scientists claimed these levels were almost always under the allowed safety limits. There were however several differences that got overshadowed by these previous claims. These differences were that organic produce was much less likely to retain traces of pesticides and organic chicken and pork were less likely to be contaminated by antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The study also found that organic milk contained more omega-3 fatty acids, which are considered beneficial for the heart. This study was a meta-analysis that combined data from 237 studies, examining a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and meats. The one aspect of this study that I appreciate is that researchers did not use any outside financing for their research. The organic produce also contained more compounds known as phenols, believed to help prevent cancer, than conventional produce. Two points I found very interesting in this study were that they noted a couple of studies that showed that children who ate organic produce had fewer pesticide traces in their urine. The studies also identified pregnant women exposed to higher amounts of pesticides known as organophosphates had children that scored several points lower on an IQ test than their peers in elementary school. Even if organic foods have no greater health benefits, there are still environmental benefits. Organic farming practices are designed to benefit the environment by reducing pollution and conserving water and soil quality.


Bottom Line: If you can't afford organic food, I would much rather you buy conventionally grown fruits and vegetables then none at all and turning towards fast-food, but with the many generic brands now producing organic products, sometimes it is the same price or just a few cents more than its counterparts. I always have my freezer stocked with frozen organic fruits/vegetable because they are cheaper and you don't have to worry about them going bad. 


Dirty Dozen Plus (foods to try to buy organic-higher rates of pesticides): apples, celery, sweet bell peppers, peaches, strawberries, nectarines(imported), grapes. spinach, lettuce, cucumbers, blueberries(domestic), potatoes, kale, collards, leafy greens


Clean 15(foods that are less likely to have as many pesticides when conventionally grown): onions, sweet corn, pineapple, avocodos, cabbage, sweet peas, asparagus, mangoes, eggplant, kiwi, cantaloupe(domestic), sweet potatoes, grapefruit, watermelon, mushrooms

Proposition 37 is a November ballot measure that will help consumers make informed choices about the food they eat. We already have food labels showing nutrition, allergy information and other facts consumers want to know. This measure simply adds information telling us if food is produced using genetic engineering.

What Are Genetically Engineered Foods (GMOs)?  A genetically engineered food is a plant or meat product that has had its DNA artificially altered in a laboratory by genes from other plants, animals, viruses, or bacteria in order to produce foreign compounds in that food. This type of genetic alteration is not found in nature and is experimental.   Many of the foods we currently eat and feed our families (including certain baby formulas and a high percentage of corn, soy, cotton and sugar beets commonly used in processed foods sold in the U.S.),  but we don’t know which ones without labeling. GMOs have not been proven safe, and long-term health studies have not been conducted. Fifty countries around the world—representing more than 40% of the world’s population---already require GMO labeling, including all of Europe, Japan, India and China. 

If Proposition 37 is approved by voters, it will:

• Require labeling on raw or processed food offered for sale to consumers if the food is made from plants or animals with genetic material changed in specified ways.
• Prohibit labeling or advertising such food as "natural."
• Exempt from this requirement foods that are "certified organic; unintentionally produced with genetically engineered material; made from animals fed or injected with genetically engineered material but not genetically engineered themselves; processed with or containing only small amounts of genetically engineered ingredients; administered for treatment of medical conditions; sold for immediate consumption such as in a restaurant; or alcoholic beverages."

This link is helpful to show which companies are for/against the prop to help you make a more educated decision for which companies you spend your money on.
http://www.cornucopia.org/2012/08/prop37/


And don't forget, every time you go to the store you are voting with your pocketbook on which companies you support and how the food you and your family consume is processed!





http://ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments/initiatives/pdfs/i1044_11-0099_%28genetically_engineered_food_v2%29.pdf?

http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/California_Proposition_37

http://www.carighttoknow.org/facts