Dave Rosenberger wrote: >>>> Unfortunately, American and European consumers demand food that is 100% free of pests, blemishes, and contaminants <<<<
I think this is the key point! If there were no perfect fruit available on the market, people would eat fruit that is not perfect. A spot of scab on an apple really does not depreciate the nutritional value of the apple - this is only cosmetic... For my part, the apples I grow are used for cider making, and a scabby apple has exactly the same value as a perfect apple for this purpose. Interestingly, when people come in my orchard, they happily eat the non-perfect apples that I grow and find them very flavorful, and are very happy to take a bag when they leave. However, when in the store or market, these same people would not be ready to pay for a bag of imperfect apples. Why??? Maybe, consumers demand perfect food only because the ag industry has educated the consumers to demand for it! Would it be possible to go backwards? And educate consumers to accept slight cosmetic imperfections in the fruits and vegetable? If a slight scab lesion (or some other minor defect) would not depreciate a fruit to near zero value on the market, probably that the fruit industry could divide the pesticide use by a factor of 2. Just some thinking from my part after reading these recent posts. "Scusez-la" as we say in French... Claude Jolicoeur cidermaker in Quebec. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 'Apple-Crop' LISTSERV is sponsored by the Virtual Orchard <http://www.virtualorchard.net> and managed by Win Cowgill and Jon Clements <webmas...@virtualorchard.net>. Apple-Crop is not moderated. Therefore, the statements do not represent "official" opinions and the Virtual Orchard takes no responsibility for the content.
