Is organic more nutritious?
Recently I did a little comparison. I bought two kinds of red bell peppers from my supermarket, a conventionally-grown one and an organic one. The organic one cost over twice as much, and was slightly smaller than the conventional pepper. Otherwise, they looked pretty similar.
I then performed a taste test, to see if I could tell the difference between the two. They were both juicy and delicious. The organic one seemed to have a little more flavor, but it’s possible that I imagined it because of my expectations. It also seemed to have less wax coating its skin, which I liked. But otherwise, they were pretty similar. Certainly not enough difference to justify the price disparity based on taste alone.
But what I couldn’t observe in my comparison of the two peppers was the nutritional (or chemical) content of each one. According to a recent study (as reported on in this article), “Organic food is more nutritious than ordinary produce, and contains higher quantities of antioxidants which help ward off heart disease and cancer.” This was found to be true for organic fruits, vegetables, and milk.
The scientists found that antioxidant levels in organic milk were up to 90 per cent higher than in conventional milk, as well as finding up to 40 per cent more antioxidants in organic vegetables.
And this despite the fact that “[h]undreds of tests over the past five years have failed to reveal improved nutritional value in organic produce.” “New” findings related to foods always make me wonder who funded the study and what they have to gain from certain results. In this case, the research was funded by “the EU and food companies”. I’ll be very interested to learn which “food companies” were involved. Still, the results do provide food for thought.
Do you believe organic food is more nutritious? Do you eat it for other reasons? Or do you see no benefit to organic foods?
I’m not sure if organic foods are more nutritious than conventional. I only buy organic fruits and vegetables because I don’t want me or my family ingesting pesticides or other nasty chemicals. To me the extra cost is worth it plus I’ve noticed that we don’t waste as much food as when I used to buy conventionally grown produce so actually we have saved money by buying organic because we eat everything we buy instead of letting it rot in the fridge.
My reason for buying organic is also because I don’t feel like eating all of the chemicals that conventional foods have. I’ve never noticed any real difference tho other then the fact that conventional fruits and veggies stay fresher longer, which actually grosses me out and makes me like them even less.
I read reports on that study with interest – they’re quite spectacular results. There have been other inklings that organic might be better.
I have generally found organic to be more tasty. Having extensively eaten both conventional and organic foods, in my opinion most (but not all) of the organic stuff is better. But, you have to get it fresh – which can sometimes be a problem.
Many of the antioxidants plants produce are part of their immune and protection system. Given this it doesn’t seem inconceivable organics may have more antioxidants in them. They haven’t been spread with pesticides and herbicides. Instead they’ve been exposed to more bugs and have had to build up a strong defence system. Hence more antioxidants.
The European trial is still underway. The reports this week are early results and they haven’t yet been published (or peer reviewed). But it’s an interesting story to follow.
I buy organic because it’s better for the environment. I can’t really detect a different taste though.
However, I do have a question for you, where are you buying organic at twice the price? I can usually find organic at market price or below if I go to a farmer’s market or the local produce store.
Gal
I don’t really buy organic for what’s in the produce, I buy it for what’s not in it. Sounds like you’re paying way too much if it’s costing you double… try a local farmers market for organically grown food that’s often less than the conventionally grown stuff in the supermarkets. Either way, I don’t mind paying more in order to get clean, poison free food.
Yes, unfortunately we pay a real premium for organic food here in Switzerland. It’s more expensive at the farmers markets, too. (I did this comparison with peppers from the same grocery store to make more of a direct comparison. At the market, I would have had to buy the conventional and organic peppers from different vendors.)
At least organic fruits and veggies are widely available here (if you’re willing to pay the price).