Book Review: The Truth About Organic Foods
By Sal Marinello
The organic food industry has become a multi-billion dollar industry and organic foods are the fastest growing segment of the food industry. The organic food movement is based – in part – on the concept that in the past when America was a more agrarian society the people were healthy and the food was more nutritious because our soils were better and filled with the nutrients necessary to produce great foods. As the story goes, this situated existed because food was produced without synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
The Truth About Organic Foods by Alex Avery (Volume 1, Series 1)
Alex Avery states quite clearly that this myth is demonstrably false and he does so with reams of data and peer-reviewed studies, but doesn’t rely on technical jargon to make his case. Avery is the director of research and education at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Global Food Issues (CGFI), and describes the CGFI as not being “anti-organic” but “pro-human,” and states that his group is “the world’s best informed non-believers in the organic religion.”
Avery isn’t trying to make the case that organic food is bad or that it should be banned. “The Truth About Organic Foods” points out the myths and misconceptions that exist regarding organic foods – many of which have been propagated by the organic industry. As Dr. Ruth Kava, the Director of Nutrition at the American Council on Science and Health write in the Foreword, Avery, “just may make you think twice before spending more to buy foods that are really no better than conventional ones.
Hook: Very simply, organic food is no better than conventional food and that organic equals healthier is a myth.
Gimmick: If disseminating peer-reviewed research and digging deep into details of these studies is a gimmick, than Avery is a Gimmick Maven.
Inconsistency: None that I can find. Avery promises to make a compelling, fact-based case for his position that organic a marketing tool and organic foods are no better than food that’s conventionally produced. He delivers on this his opinions do not infringe upon the data.
Glaring Omission: Can’t find one. After reading 231 pages you’ll get a complete picture of the organic versus conventional foods argument.
Annoying Feature: If you’re a pro-organic foodie (or is it, “fooder?”) this book is 231 pages of annoyingness.
Most Outrageous Claim: I hate to keep invoking the length of the book, but the case can be made that there’s an outrageous claim on almost every page in this book. And depending on your feelings on this issue, “outrageous” can be a good thing or a bad thing. I don’t like to give away a lot of information, but I will leave you a couple of Avery’s Most Outrageous Claims.
* Only 40% of today’s population could be fed via organic farming. Do the math…
* “Biodynamic” or “Demeter” farming and products are
* Lady Eve Balfour, a British pioneer in the organic movement, stated at a meeting of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM, the main international organic lobby), that after 30 years of research she found no nutritional differences between organic and non-organic foods.
* Organic proponents that claim nutritional content of food has declined due to the advent of synthetic fertilizers are engaged in, “revisionist history that is simply amazing in its audacity.”
* “The notion that organic food is more nutritious or healthful than ‘conventional’ foods is the oldest organic myth.
* Organic farming is not pesticide-free and organic farmers use organic pesticides that are just as toxic, if not more toxic, than synthetics.
* Conventional milk in the United States is 100% free of artificial hormones and 99.999% free of antibiotics and people are paying twice as much for organic milk that is identical to the conventional variety.
Say Something Nice: Buy this book. Read this book. Now!
Bottom Line: Anyone who is even remotely curious about whether or not organic food lives up to the hype and is worth the extra money must read this book. True-believers will never be swayed, and Avery is not trying to convert the choir. Don’t listen to me; I’ll leave you with the words of Norman Borlaug, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and Distinguished Professor of International Agriculture at Texas A&M University. Professor Borlaug says, “The book offers scientifically sound evidence that the more affordable conventional foods are healthy for families and also good stewardship of nature.”
4 Responses to “Book Review: The Truth About Organic Foods”
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Why do people think the healthiness of organic produce is the big factor, or even the dangers to the human body of pesticides?
There isn’t a lot of evidence that there are more nutrients in organic produce, except for antioxidants and polyphenols, which are 25% higher. Though, that is nice enough.
It’s debatable whether or not organic produce is safe, pesticide wise.
What is NOT debatable is the really important factor, that organic foods are hugely better for the environment. Pesticides and all the toxic chemicals in ‘conventional’ farming kill animal and plants, reduce biodiversity, and are highly destructive. Same with the artificial, petroleum based fertilizers that leach into the soil, rivers, and oceans.
Plus, organic food isn’t genetically modified, which rely on the toxic chemicals even MORE. They specifically make them resistant to levels of toxicity that would kill any other plant. And then those levels of chemicals are in the air and water and soil.
Conventional farming kills the environment, plain and simple. Especially meat production.
Book like this prove only one thing, that the opponents of organic farming are running scared.
There IS, repeat IS good scientific research that PROVES organic food is a) more nutritious and b) better for you.
In the UK Newcastle University proved that organic milk contains more omega 3 than conventional, chemically produced milk.
“The Nafferton Ecological Farming Group study found that grazing cows on organic farms in the UK produce milk which contains significantly higher beneficial fatty acids, antioxidants and vitamins than their conventional ‘high input’ counterparts.
During the summer months, one of the beneficial fats in particular – conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA9 – was found to be 60% higher.” 27th May 2008
Other research in the UK by government scientists McCance & Widdowson have clearly proved that the nutritional content of conventionally produced food has decreased by up to 70% over the last 60 years. There will be similar results in the US.
Also there are the effects of pesticides residues. The US led the way on this research with Cory-Slecta, professor of environmental medicine and dean for research at the University of Rochester School of medicine. The findings showed that two common pesticides, at residue levels, cause a Parkinson like illness in lab mice.
This book is following the current trend of knocking organic food. To me that says that some people are getting very worried. I wonder who they could be?
Avery’s book is excellent. As a farmer myself I have seen the massive waste of natural resources including land and energy used in organic farming. With lower yields and huge losses due to insect and disease, organic farming is a major negative for the environment and it is not even pesticide free.
Actually, organic farmers use pesticides and other chemicals on their crops that are toxic to the environment.
Oil and sulfer are the most used pesticides in terms of total pounds used. Their disproportional use is due to the fact that they have to be administed at high levels because of they are less effective. The low yields of organic farming illustrate the lack of efficacy of these treatments.
Copper and sulfer treatments used by organic farmers are arguably more toxic to humans and the environment than the synthetic options. Nicotine sulfate is 10 times more toxic to the environment and life than is the synthetic equivalent. These risks aren’t dire, as Avery points out, but are just as similar to the “horrors” of synthetics portrayed by the pro-organic lobby, with the main difference being the origin of said substances.
Avery also points out that despite having to submit detailed farm management plans to be certified as organic, there are not any publically available reports from the organic industry, or private or government sources that cover pesticide use by organic farmers. Where non-organic farmers need to track and report pesticide use, organic farmers do not despite the fact that organic farmers use some of the very same pesticides. There is also no procedure to test organic produce for organic pesticide residues.
And there’s the issue of with how organic farmers heavy use of improperly composted manure fertilizers increases the risk of e coli contamination of produce.
The claims that organic foods are safer and better for the environment are as factually hollow as the claims that these foods are nutritionally superior and taste better.