I am bent! What's up with this??

[GlimR]

I bought a bag of organic lemons and one of organic oranges tonight....two different growers but both say Certified Organic by GOCA.

My mistake but I did not read the entire label...on the back of each one it says.....

Coated with food-grade vegetable, beeswax, carnauba or wood resin wax to maintain freshness.

Beeswax fine.....but the rest??? Wood resin??? Am I overconcerned!!!!????

[rawpriestess]

Well, I would think you have a valid concern.

[karenisraw]

From what I understand, I thought organic was basically pick it off the plant and ship it.

I think something's fishy withy that one.

k

[Sheryl]

There are allowable products that can be used on organic food. The USA has reduced standards quite a bit in the last year. If they are certified that and printing it on labels my guess is it's within guidelines. Acceptable to you or not. You could try calling the company to voice your conceerns.

Cheers,
Sheryl

[Colin]

I bought a bag of organic lemons and one of organic oranges tonight....two different growers but both say Certified Organic by GOCA.

My mistake but I did not read the entire label...on the back of each one it says.....

Coated with food-grade vegetable, beeswax, carnauba or wood resin wax to maintain freshness.

Beeswax fine.....but the rest??? Wood resin??? Am I overconcerned!!!!????
For example, oranges waxed with carnuba, shellac, wood resin, non-organic ethyl alcohol and ammonium soap could be labeled as 'organically grown oranges coated with wax' but could not be labeled as 'organic oranges.' Under the current NOSB recommendation, fruit coated with carnuba wax, organic beeswax, organic ethyl alcohol and wood resin could be labeled as 'organic oranges--coated with organic wax' under the current NOSB recommendations provided the weight of the carnuba wax and wood resin does not exceed 5% of the total weight of the fruit plus other organic ingredients.
http://www.omri.org/Waxes_processing.html

(see last paragraph before references at bottom of article)

[GlimR]

I am pretty upset about this! Yes, their use is within USDA and FDA guidelines.......who I trust about as far as I can spit! :(
Colin, thanks for that very informative article....I suggest everyone here reads it! The paragraph you quoted Colin was a suggestion by one of the reviewers of that information, not policy. A suggestion of how they "could" do things.

I am sickened by this. I have worked very hard over the last 5 years to refine my diet. I have eliminated so much that is not healthy and now that I have switched to raw organic which I felt I could safely eat, could trust that it was my best choice for health, this comes to my attention.....they are apparently using these waxed, resins and ammonia soaps on many ORGANIC things, cukes, apples, tomatoes!!!Agggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!

So.....what to do now?? Any ideas?

[ella]

This is tough... Could you try to get to know your local organic farmers? Do you live near an independent organic market? At least then, you can be closer to the source and talk with people. You can form a group that is equally against this and open a co-op. Another option is you could grow your own food... easier if you live in a warmer climate... something I've been thinking about for a long time now.

[Shivananda]

So.....what to do now?? Any ideas?Yes. Simply wash your produce, or peel it before eating, which you should be doing anyway.

The various coatings mentioned have been used for years, are used in very small amounts, wash off easily, and are even edible in case you didn't wash or peel at all. They are used as a moisture barrier to keep the food from drying out on its way to you. Without them the food would cost more because spoilage is higher.

I use a grapefruit seed extract veggie wash and a tawashi brush. It takes everythiing off. Mild soap does the same.

[GlimR]

Hi ella~
Thanks for the suggestions...I do belong to an organic buyers group and get a large portion of my produce from them.....but other stuff I buy locally.....I am not in an area where there is any direct contact with the growers though. I live in florida, moved here from Upstate NY........I grew a ton of stuff there...unfortunatly here I live at the beach and no matter how you ammend the soil it reverts to sand and ants!

Shivananda~
Thanks for the post. I too use a veggie wash and brush. I know that the waxes replace the fruits natural barrier that is washed off when it is prepared for packing and shipping. But...after reading the above article I am not so sure that I am ready to assume that washing removes all of the wax and chemical residue or that none permeates the fruit. As for washing off easily...I have used beeswax (which I have no problem with, being a natural substance and least offensive) for years in botanical skin care use, ie..herbal salve making...if you have ever tried to remove beeswax from ANYTHING you might reconsider that statment~ *s*The fruit does not feel any different or less waxy after I wash and scrub it. My veggie wash says it removes waxes, pesticides, etc...my gut says I just don't believe it's true.

[asil]

Lucky you, living at the beach! I too live in a lucky place with some unlucky soil/growing conditions. I live on a rocky bit of land overlooking a beautiful lake. I get to swim every day and enjoy lovely warm weather but any soil I have is really just some dust collecting between the rocks. :)

So, if you want to garden, have you tried raised beds? I manage to grow all the greens, herbs, and tomatoes my family can eat in a 5x5 raised bed. I also used raised beds where I used to live because the clay soil was so thick that we had no drainage.

Just a slightly off topic thought for you. :)

[levamssg]

Organic Tomatoes ... I went to purchase some from the "organic section" of a local supermarket yesterday .. and the label indicated there were shipped in from Mexico. That made me a little uncertain.

any thoughts on this?

[ShelShel]

You know, this has always been a concern of mine. Even at our local co-op they sell commercial grade produce right next to the organic stuff. :confused: Drives me nuts! This year I am putting in three new fruit trees on our side yard. I live in town...but have a rather nice yard and now I'm going to make good use of it. ;) Perhaps you could plant and grow some of your own foods and then you will totally know what is on it! ;)

[CorporalChicken]

UK supermarket Tescos were selling red apples coated in Shellac as 'Organic'.

When I wrote to them to complain (and also telling them what Shellac REALLY is before they try to defend it as natural), I got a reply that said that their apples WERE organic and that they were using shellac to merely wax the apples.

I have an apple tree in my garden. As far as I know, thousands of the Lac insect don't go kamikaze, fly over to Britain and spread their guts and inner juices over them to make them shiny before I eat them.

Supermarkets. <LOUD TUT> Pathetic.

[pdx kris]

Along the same lines, it should be noted that due to the USDA accomodating Monsanto and other huge agriculture corporations by lowering organic standards, irradiated food can now be labeld as organic.

[jaurequi]

Organic Tomatoes ... I went to purchase some from the "organic section" of a local supermarket yesterday .. and the label indicated there were shipped in from Mexico. That made me a little uncertain.

any thoughts on this?


What exactly makes you uncertain? And uncertain about what?


...I use a grapefruit seed extract veggie wash

Shivananda is that a product you buy or do you make it? I make my own and you've just reminded me that I should add some grapefruit seed extract I have to it. If you make it, how? Thanks!


Best,

[rawandama]

mmmm...wood. My favorite.

[karenisraw]

Here is what is really scary. I have chemical sensitivities and get depression within minutes of eating non-organic produce or food. If they start to relax on the guidelines and companies start to do these things, I could very well be forced to eat food that gives me depression.

k
:)

[levamssg]

Originally Posted by levamssg
Organic Tomatoes ... I went to purchase some from the "organic section" of a local supermarket yesterday .. and the label indicated there were shipped in from Mexico. That made me a little uncertain.

any thoughts on this?
[QUOTE=jaurequi]What exactly makes you uncertain? And uncertain about what?

I've always thought produce from Mexico would have more pesticides in it, not less. And with the relaxed organic labeling -- somehow seeing "organic" on a label that says "from mexico" ... it just didn't go together. So Iwas uncertain just how "organic" it really was.

The price seemed about right tho - $4.99 for each tomato.

[Shivananda]

The price seemed about right tho - $4.99 for each tomato.For $4.99 each, I'd expect them to be able to sing and tell jokes, at the very least.

Sorry, but I just accept the fact that some things are too expensive to buy when they are out of season locally and shipped in from the other end of the world. My life is not going to stop if I don't buy tomatoes this week.

On the other hand, shopping around sometimes pays dividends. I passed on the expensive slicing tomatoes at several places last week, then found those organic roma tomatoes I made my unDeviled unEggs with for Easter for maybe 50 cents apiece, and they were from Florida.