Let’s Talk Organic

Well hello beautiful Picking Wild Flower readers! It has been a while but I am back and I have a interesting and fun topic for the blog tonight. Let’s talk organic! Who eats organic food? Who eats conventional? What is the difference between the two? Tell me do you eat foods with GMOs? What does GMO stand for? How about foods labeled as natural or contains no antibiotics? Food can be confusing and let me tell you… I am no expert. I just recently finished up a eight week fitness course at Next Level Extreme Fitness in North Liberty (which I highly recommend by the way) and I was encouraged to examine food labels. I soon realized that I consume a lot of salt and sugar. Two ingredients that were hiding in my daily foods. I am not sure how I will go lower two such prevalent ingredients but tonight I substituted rice for cauliflower rice- it is a start 🙂

I decided to write this post after mom and I had a very interesting conversation when I met her for lunch today. We passed the new organic co-op in Iowa City and both mom and I wanted to stop in and check it out but we decided that we didn’t have time and we would another day. I am a person who believes in all types of farming. I think we need diversity to create a sustainable environment that will produce enough food to feed 9 billion people by 2050. I also believe in supporting local. Local farmers help the community thrive. It also allows young and small farmers to have an avenue. But if you are going to shop at a food co-op or if you want to buy organic from your local grocery store, make sure you have thought about all of your reasons for doing so. Be sure to understand that the nutritional value of organic lettuce is the same as lettuce grown conventionally. Understand that GMOs are only in 10 food items: corn, soybeans, alfalfa, cotton, sugar beats, canola, squash, papaya, potato, and apple. If you buy green peppers that say non-GMO, it is a marketing scheme and they want you to pay more because green peppers don’t ever contain GMOs (currently… science is always adapting and it is possible in the future).

Buying meat that says never been treated with antibiotics just makes me plain angry. If a cow or calf is sick wouldn’t you do anything to make it feel better. Tyler and I took our proposal picture 2 weeks before our herd had an outbreak of pink eye. That same cow in the picture was treated with the two medicines shown and if we were to sell her for meat she would need to go through a withdrawal period. We are not selling her but even-so it has been already been a month since she was on medicine and just like humans it passes through the body.

What about GMOs (Genetically Modified Organism)? There are many benefits but to name a few: 1) the use of resources, some GMO corn crops can protect harvests in water-limited conditions better than conventionally produced crops. Other GMOs can also promote the use of no-till farming, which keeps more moisture in the soil. No-till also enables farmers to make fewer passes through the field using machinery, which means less fuel used and greenhouse gases emitted. 2) Fighting Pests and Disease,
Scientists are developing crops that look and taste the same as their non-GMO counterparts, but are resistant to insects and plant-specific diseases that can impact a farmer’s harvest. Plants with traits that protect roots from insect damage have an additional benefit of using water more efficiently. 3) Conserving Natural Habitats
GMO seeds can help farmers around the world meet the increasing demand for food by helping them make the most of their existing arable land, thus enabling them to preserve nearby habitats. (https://monsanto.com/innovations/biotech-gmos/).

Now lets dive into the label “Natural” for just a second and I mean a brief second… There is no standard definition for natural so what does it even mean?? I DON’T KNOW but it is supposed to be better for us… Humm…

I love discussing food so please ask me questions. I could talk about it all day!

Just remember that food is food and it is all about moderation. Don’t food shame!! It is not nice. ;P We need all types of farmers and I don’t have a problem with organic or conventional but I think we need to hear both sides and I believe we need both in our industry to make the agriculture world go round. Just be sure to read good quality articles and ask a farmer before you jump to believe every label you read.

Goodnight! Sleep Tight 🙂