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What is Organic All About?

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Organic foods used to be found only in health stores, but there is probably an organic section in the supermarket that you shop in. What is the real difference between organic and traditionally grown foods? In modern supermarkets, the product all looks firm, shiny, and healthy. Which should you choose?

What Does Organic Mean?

The word “organic” tells you something about the way a food producer raises and processes their products. Farmers who grow organic produce use different methods. They don’t use conventional methods to fertilize and control weeds. Organic farming is designed to reduce pesticides, and encourage soil and water conservation.

organic

Who Regulates Organic?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a rigorous and somewhat expensive certification program for organic food producers. The standards regulate how foods are grown, processed, and handled. Once certified, a food producer can put the USDA Organic label on what it sells. Chemical fertilizers, synthetic substances, irradiation, sewage sludge, and genetically modified organisms are prohibited. Organic meat must be from animals fed 100% organic feed. [Read more…]

Walmart For Groceries?

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I don’t think the average American will think of Walmart while writing down their grocery shopping list, do you? Maybe if one were to look for clothing, video games, and other electronics; but definitely NOT food.

Here’s something to surprise you and me, though – Walmart just might be what the United States needs to save the small farmers throughout the country. You may find it unbelievable, but it seems to be true. Corby Kummer of MSNBC has had a firsthand encounter with a Walmart branch that impressed him in terms of the produce choices. He shares his experience:

In the grocery section of the Raynham supercenter, 45 minutes south of Boston, I had trouble believing I was in a Walmart. The very reasonable-looking produce, most of it loose and nicely organized, was in black plastic bins (as in British supermarkets, where the look is common; the idea is to make the colors pop). The first thing I saw, McIntosh apples, came from the same local orchard whose apples I’d just seen in the same bags at Whole Foods. The bunched beets were from Muranaka Farm, whose beets I often buy at other markets — but these looked much fresher.

I don’t know if you will find the same conditions in all other Walmart branches – probably not – but if one branch can experience such a thing, then others are bound to follow, aren’t they? You may not be such a big fan of this corporate giant, but if they start doing things the “right way,” at least in terms of fresh produce, then they might just get more followers. What do you think?