I have a mixed reaction to this article. This article almost reads as if it says "the world isn't black and white, so forget organics". That seems rather short sighted. The truth is that organic fruits and veggies are not only better for your health, but they're also better for the environment. The organic pesticides have a much shorter half-life.
The truth is also that generally, organic fruits and vegetables have better flavor. Walk into a safeway and try it out on the apples, it never fails. But things aren't so easy at farmers markets and roadside fruit stands. It's also true that there are small scale non-organic farmers that really grow outstanding fruits, and me, personally, even though I am a die-hard organic fruit buyer, I do lower my standards to accommodate them. I will not walk away from delicious moorpark apricots if they're not certified organic, We have many local growers that are not certified, but make an extra effort to use as little pesticide as possible, and they should not be punished by the consumer. My orchard also has the "sandy nutrient poor soil" that the article uses as an example, and yes, even though I try to be organic on the pesticides, I complement organic manure and fish emulsion with ammonium nitrate and potassium nitrate whenever a tree shows major nitrogen deficiencies. I don't sell my produce, but if I did, I'd probably give up the chemical fertilizer because organic fruit commends a higher price. With that being said, I will walk away from the tasteless non-organic fruits and vegetables at the grocery store. They're disgusting, might as well sell cardboard. But when I go to a health food store that sells organic produce, the difference is striking: the organic produce is so much better it's not even in the same league. So yes, there it is definitely true that organic tastes way better! So just because the world isn't black and white, let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater. it's not an "either/or" situation, organic is in fact better, but it's also about making exceptions. Rules about what to do or not to do don't serve anyone well. Humans are given brains for a reason: to use them and not be on automatic pilot operating by some rules like a computer program: consumers need to open their eyes, and make decisions case by case, especially at the farmer's market, because every vendor, every person, and every day is unique. Here in the West, organic farming isn't really so hard. But on the East coast, there are so many bugs that it makes it almost impractical to be organic lest the consumer is willing to eat ugly looking fruit. In my opinion, therein lies the problem: we are turning into a plastic society, everything has to be antiseptic and perfect looking. And that's the main reason I probably will never sell any of my fruit from my 200 tree orchard. I know people who threw in the towel because they got so fed up to see people walk away from incredibly good tasting but not perfect looking fruit to buy the bland fruits just because they're big and pretty. To me, an oddly shaped, heavily ribbed, russeted apple is a delight to the eyes, and I can't wait to sink my teeth into it. Another great example: lately, I've been eating a nice crop of Espagne pears, a French Summer pear that "blets" like a medlar, a.k.a. turns brown and mushy when ripe, but the brown mush is an incredible delight to the senses, like pie filling, like a nectar of the Gods, a cross in between a medjool date and a pear. Do you think I can easily find an American out there who'd be willing to eat that? Nope, they prefer their tasteless cardboardy bartlett pears, except maybe the chefs are upscale restaurants, who serve a more open minded clientele. So let the people who are on automatic pilot go and buy their produce at safeway, the rest of us can go and delight in our ugly, russeted, scabby but scromtuously delicious fruit, organic is prefferable, especially if you don't care what the fruit looks like, but go ahead and cheat a little. :) ________________________________ From: "Smith, Tim" <smit...@wsu.edu> To: Apple-Crop <apple-crop@virtualorchard.net> Sent: Tuesday, July 21, 2009 10:53:14 AM Subject: Apple-Crop: LA Times Re: organic This reporter has a fresh outlook. http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-calcook1-2009jul01,0,2885942.story Timothy J. Smith WSU Extension
