going green: organic food and you stephanie davis

Going Green: Organic Food Going Green: Organic Food and Youand You

Stephanie Davis

What is organic?What is organic?

Organic farming means a ban on synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides

The organic movement embraces other issues as well:

Animal welfare Social justice Energy efficiency Local production and consumption

OverviewOverview

Environmental BenefitsHealth BenefitsEconomic BenefitsDiscussion

Economic IssuesEconomic Issues

Yield Organic production is inherently inefficient 20% lower yield than conventional agriculture 20-40% higher in drought years

High demand Demand has increased 20% each year for the last 5

years Because of demand and high prices, worries about

cheating/fraud

Economic IssuesEconomic Issues

StandardsVary widely by country

Can’t replace conventional agriculture completely

Land needs to be taken out of use for crop rotation

Won’t produce enough for animals as well as people

Economic IssuesEconomic Issues

So it is better economically?Uphill battleDifferent focus than conventional agricultureEconomic worth depends on values of

consumers

Health IssuesHealth Issues

Food Quality Protection Act (1996)Health-based safety standards for food

pesticide residues“Reasonable certainty” of no harm (raw and

processed)10x safety factor for infants, childrenLifetime riskEndocrine disruptorsRegistration renewal

Health IssuesHealth Issues

Difficult to compare conventionally-grown food to organically-grown food

Lack of studiesVitamins and minerals

Soil Association study: More Vitamin C and Iron

People in developed countries tend to get enough of these anyway

No other definitive studies

Health IssuesHealth Issues

Other nutritional benefitsSecondary metabolites (anti-carcinogenic)Studies refute benefit

Fertilizers and Pesticides60% of known natural and synthetic

pesticides are carcinogenicUSDA tests random samples for illegal

pesticide use Too much present Illegal application

Health IssuesHealth Issues

Conventional Organic

Residues Present

73-79% 23-27%

Multiple Residues Present

46-62% 6-7%

Residue Levels

66% of the time lower than conventional

Health IssuesHealth Issues

Organic does not mean pesticide-free “Drift” Past use Fraud

Dose-Response: Effects of any given chemical depend on amount exposed to, frequency and length of exposure and toxicity of chemical. Age also plays a role.

Problem lies in finding the lowest level where harm actually occurs

Health IssuesHealth Issues

So is organic food better for health?Government has measures in place to protect

food supplyVitamin, mineral benefits not obviousOrganic does not mean pesticide-freeConsumers may be misled

Environmental IssuesEnvironmental Issues

Biodiversity is increased with organic farming

Legumes and/or cover crops Resists disease

Uses less energy on the farm Per unit area and per unit yield 7% more energy efficient Less waste from chemicals, feed Less fossil fuels consumed for fertilizer, also reduces

NOx emissions

Environmental IssuesEnvironmental Issues

Energy savings overall uncertain Demand in Europe, US Farms in Australia, Latin America and Asia Energy expended to ship product

Against ideology?

In the US, organic does not mean GM-free In Europe it does

Accumulating mineral deficits

Environmental IssuesEnvironmental Issues

Is organic food better for the environment?

Environmental advantages of organic food are more apparent than other advantages.

Problems with mineral deficits could become more important

Energy savings could become more important as energy prices increase

Should we go green?Should we go green?

Ultimately it’s up to the consumer and what they value.

Organic food won’t go away, judging by demand

But won’t take over either

Consumers need to be better informed Pesticides Nutritional Benefits

Questions?Questions?