Organic: to be or not to be?

[TahoeCutiePie]

Hey all,

So I live about 35 min away from a Whole Foods - boo :( - and am not sure if I need to be only consuming organic raw foods....is the produce at your typical grocery store acceptable as well, since travel time and convenience is important in my life right now?

Thanks!

[DavidZaneMason]

The answer to your question is yes. I do not believe that eating healthy/raw and 'organic foods' are synonymous. If you are not at your raw food goal....I would be more concerned with hitting THAT consistently and comfortably first.....and worry about making sure you are buying expensive organic produce second. I'm sure you will experience great health just by hitting your goals with conventional produce. This is just my opinion.

-David Z. Mason

[salsababy]

I believe we can all benefit from organic consumption both from a nutritional standpoint as well as environmental.

However~ I realize that not everyone can afford to do so. I typically am anal about certain items being organic and I usually buy my other produce organic unless money prevents me from doing so (but I am also doing so because of environmental impact).

What I find important to be organic (and that I notice taste difference)- apples, lettuce, kale, cucumbers, raisins, and non-raw items that don't contain GMO products (if transitioning).

[RowanC]

To me, the answer is simple:

You either pay NOW and just eat less or you pay later when you have cancer or other disease.

I eat organic whenever possible.
Could you possibly grow any of your own vegetables or fruits?

[Stina]

I'm on a really tight budget and don't hesitate to do a great majority organic. Not only for spiritual, ethical and environmental reasons but obviously health as well. I once saw Kirlian photography of Raw versus chemical produce and I was sold. But I can feel the difference. There's a certain vitality to it that's sacred. So, I prioritze. I don't do fou-fou stuff like get my nails painted. I buy mostly second-hand clothes. I drive an old truck. You get the idea. I feel like I'm right with God eating organic. Well, you know, not just that, but I'm treating the temple of my spirit with regard not consuming produce sprayed with carcinogens.

[Pierre]

I used to live one long block (containing a gas station and a car dealer) from the Home Economist, the Harris Teeter (which closed while I was living there), and a clothe store. So every day I needed food, I usually went to the Home Economist and got something organic. Now I live over an hour (by bus) from the Home Economist (the other one - there are two in town, and one in Davidson), so I go there only on Sundays, unless a friend takes me or I missed going there on Sunday and need something. The rest of the time I go to one of the nearby stores.

There's another Harris Teeter which now has lots of organic produce.

[luckitri]

RowanC is correct IMO. However organic is out of reach for many of us. Over time you will notice sensitivies that you will not suffer when you eat organic. I haven't gotten there yet but I have read about it from people here who simply must eat organic or suffer.

[Lay-Lay]

You do your best to get the best quality food you can with the means you have. I cannot afford alot of organics so I raise a garden. It is awesome and alot of fun. Very rewarding!

[cinnamongirl]

I agree pay now or pay later. Produce that is sprayed with chemicals are extremely dangerous to consume especially if that is the majority of your diet as in a raw diet. 35 minutes is certainly worth the trip. We travel an hour to our local food co-op for our food just so it can be organic and we are on a very tight budget and feeding five. Do you live in an area where folks farm? If so you can buy bulk amounts of carrots, cabbage, beets, squash etc direct from the farmers much cheaper. Also if you just can't swing all organic buying local is much safer than buying grocery store produce that's traveled from who knows where. Also find out which produce are most heavily sprayed and avoid commercial varietys of them. Apples,bananas,grapes all are sprayed heavily. Try to buy them organic. Organic bananas are cheap. Get what you can afford organic, you may have less variety but I strongly believe you'll be healthier in the long run, especially if your feeding children whose little, growing bodies cannot process the toxic chemicals. I am an organic advocate that sacrifices many a luxury to feed my family 100%. No judgement but I think the safety of the food we eat is of the ultimate importance.

[asil]

For ten years I lived 5 minutes from lots of great shops. Then I moved to a rural area, at least an hour from any type of store at all, and 90 minutes to stores with a decent amount of organics. At first I gave up organics because of the distance. Then I realized I just needed to adjust the way I shop -- combining errands, going less often, making a fun day of it, carrying coolers in my car so I can keep groceries fresh while I stop and have a nice lunch with friends, etc.

I adjusted to the idea of a bit of a drive to get what I really want. Maybe you'll find ways to adjust too.:)

[TahoeCutiePie]

I am definitely concerned with what I put into my body, and I would definitely prefer eating organic. I live in Orlando, FL and work for Disney (i.e. averaging about 70 hrs of work per week!), so this transistion may take time. But you all have stressed the importance of eating organic for overall long-term benefits. I will just have to tell myself to make time, since my body is worth it!

Thanks to you all who wrote a reply! I really appreciate it. Being a newbie at this can be a little overwhelming. :)

[soulstar]

Welcome TahoeCutiePie!

I think it is soo good that you will try to prioritize organic raw foods in your diet, when you can. Your body will thank you!!!!:)

And when you can't make it or run out don't worry about it. It is just good for you to strive toward less chemical/pesticide/carcinogen consumption, ideally.

I live an hour away from large organic natural food stores and I make the trip once a week, or once every other week, and stock up. Carrying a cooler with you is a good idea in the warm weather, especially!


Do you have a Walmart nearby? Walmart has begun increasing their organic produce in some regions, so it is certainly worth looking into.
I can buy some organic items at the local walmart- celery/apples in a bag/ carrots(by far the cheapest organic carrots i've seen actually), as well as lettuce and tomatoes. Their organic tomatoes happen to bhe a great buy in my Northern Tundra Region, as well.;)
I save other purchase for my long distance produce shopping trip.

I don't eat everything organic, but I am probably at 90% at least.

I compromise for occasional tropical fruits. For example, when I want a mango, or a pineapple, I can't justify the amount of money right now for the organic versions, because I am on a tight budget at the moment.

Best of luck on your living on YOUR live foods journey!

Elena aka Soulstar

[Eva]

Hey hey Tahoe Cutie Pie,

Welcome on board!

I am living in a place where EVERYTHING (organic or not) is about twice the price that it should be because I'm on an island, so the organics are even more expensive than normal. And our budget is VERY tight right now.

That said, where the price is reasonably similar, we still get the organics if possible. For apples and other fruits that there is no peel, it is a much higher priority to buy organic. In fact, I have a friend who is "allergic to apples that aren't organic" = he's allergic to the pesticides! That's the only fruit that must be organic for him. For oranges and others with peels, they take lower priority because the fruit itself is less affected by the chemicals (which is not to say that they're NOT affected, just less).

No matter what, but especially with nonorganic produce, I always use a wash to get any residue off.

Good luck!

[vwinters]

Hi there TahoeCutiePie,
I’m about 50% organic. I’d love to be 100% but availability of quality organic produce at reasonable prices in my rural area is an issue. Not only for the reasons stated below, but because every time we chose organic over mainstream factory farm produce we put economic pressure on the agricultural industry to go organic. I’ll be traveling about 118 miles each way, from Ocean Park to Olympia Washington, to shop at a Farmer’s market (http://www.olympiafarmersmarket.com/produce.html) that runs April through October. We’ll likely make the trip twice a month, but if you’re concerned about the environment you also have to factor in the environmental impact of burning gas in your car.
http://www.tagworldresources.com/Tagworld-Graphics/Animated-Emoticons/4c98760d98993ad564b206e71271ea37.gif (http://www.tagworldresources.com/TagWorld-Graphics/Tagworld-Animated-Emoticons/TagWorld-Image-1176.aspx)

http://www.ketoforum.de/diet-ticker/pic/weight_loss/11398/.png (http://www.diaet-ticker.de)

[RawFoodieMom]

I just want to clarify... someone mentioned apples, bananas and grapes are sprayed heavily... Apples and grapes, yes... But bananas are on the "least sprayed" list... Which is good because sometimes the store is out of organic bananas and I can't do without them, LOL.

Here's the "Dirty Dozen"... buy these organic first:

peaches
apples
sweet bell peppers
celery
nectarines
strawberries
cherries
pears
imported grapes
spinach
lettuce
potatoes

Least sprayed:

onions
avocados
frozen sweet corn
pineapples
mangoes
asparagus
frozen sweet peas
kiwi
bananas
cabbage
broccoli
papaya

[soulstar]

RawFoodMom

Thanks for posting that list. I've seen it before, but need to make a copy of it.


I am sooo glad that mangos, pineapple, and papaya are on the least sprayed list.
:p I rarely see organice ones, anyway. And when I do they are out of my $ range...:eek:

Soultar

[tinystrawberry]

i heard that strawberries were one of the most heavily sprayed fruits, and peaches were not so bad. but that doesnt really matter, just adding it

[Stina]

Five years ago I was an apple picker in Tonaset Washington. It was a conventional farm. Why do we call spraying food with cancer-causing chemicals conventional anyway? People farmed organically for thousands of years! Until approximately World War 2. So I picked sprayed apples that had a white coating on them from the pestices. My hands tingled. Cancer rates were extremely high on the small town from rains bringing the chemicals into the water supply. Nobody would discuss the disturbingly high cancer rates.

[everclear]

I eat organic whenever possible, but I currently don't have a job and can't afford it 100% of the time. So I do about 40% organic. I think if you eat as much as you can organic, that's better than nothing. The list that RawFoodieMom posted is a good one to follow.

[dreamrawalwz]

Five years ago I was an apple picker in Tonaset Washington. It was a conventional farm. Why do we call spraying food with cancer-causing chemicals conventional anyway? People farmed organically for thousands of years! Until approximately World War 2. So I picked sprayed apples that had a white coating on them from the pestices. My hands tingled. Cancer rates were extremely high on the small town from rains bringing the chemicals into the water supply. Nobody would discuss the disturbingly high cancer rates.

I've wondered that myself. There shouldn't be a seperate category to the side for organic, but rather organic be the mainstream and "conventional" should be called "poisoned" lol or something like that. "Organic shouldn't even have to exist as something special.

[RawFoodieMom]

dreamrawalwz, I really love your avatar. You look so pretty. :)

Debra

[dreamrawalwz]

dreamrawalwz, I really love your avatar. You look so pretty. :)

Debra

Thank you :D

[Stina]

I describe it as traditional versus chemical farming; I believe it cuts to the heart of the matter.

[Solace]

Ok ya ya I might be saying the same stuff but so what :p Eat organic as much as you can. Make that special trip. Ask around your area maybe there are others who want to take turns driving or picking up organics. If you want it, there are always ways = keep your eyes open. Also, its not just the stuff thats sprayed on them its the value of the soil its grown in, making the fruit/veg not as nutritious. Also the more you buy the more you will be supporting the organic farmers and in turn the sooner it may get to where YOU live because theres a market/demand for it ......

[RowanC]

If you can't afford 100% raw then I'd say stick to the list as much as possible.

Out of the "bad" list, I've heard strawberries, bell peppers, and apples are the WORST. So at least buy those organic.

I wouldn't worry too much about things with heavy peelings like avocados (I grew up where they grow and never saw them sprayed), pineapples, and bananas (if you wash them before peeling) ...

However, one the reasons for organic is not chemical spray but Genetic Engineering. Someone really should research this for us and post the results. It would be nice to have a list of YOU MUST BUY ORGANIC vs IT'S YOUR CHOICE, wouldn't it?

[RawFoodieMom]

However, one the reasons for organic is not chemical spray but Genetic Engineering. Someone really should research this for us and post the results. It would be nice to have a list of YOU MUST BUY ORGANIC vs IT'S YOUR CHOICE, wouldn't it?

I have a chart for this too. :D Since we're raw, we avoid a lot of it already (thank goodness). I just read today that 70% of all processed food contains GMO's products (corn syrup, etc).

You can avoid GMO's by checking the produce code on the produce sticker of what you're buying...

If the code is 5 digits and starts with an "8", that means it's been GMO'd (Genetically Modified). Avoid this produce at all costs (OBVIOUSLY, LOL).

If the code is 5 digits and starts with a "9", that means ORGANIC, so you've probably seen that one a lot.

If the code is 4 digits, regardless of what it starts with, that's conventional produce...

Debra

[tdesign]

use your best judgement on organic foods. Like pasta/white flour/eggs/etc - out of the question. I go to Giant Eagles alot for the organic foods (they sometimes have sales that last 2-3 weeks). I know what you mean about traveling, I to travel to a whole food store - 35mins. You could find online stores and order online and have it deliever. Like http://www.bulkfoods.com/nuts.asp?REFERRER=yanut (w/ free shippig over $50) or http://www.wildorganics.net/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=66 (probably the cheapest I saw) or go on amazon.com

Do a search on web. Good Luck! Peace out.

[Maria]

I like all of my greens organic at all times. If I can't get some of the fruit organic all the time, I have a veggie wash that washes off a lot of the pesticides and the wax layer they put on to extend shelf life. It works as I can feel the wax and residue coming onto my hands....:( Better than nothing.

I live in Florida and Walmart down here carries a lot of organic stuff, and so does Publix. P. has an excellent selection, but more expensive than the healthfood stores. I get all my greens for a good price at the healthfood stores. We're also blessed with veggie and fruit stands on every corner where you can get bananas for a pittance.

Sam's Club sometimes has great deals on large tubs of organic greens. They sell non-organic tropical fruit like mango and pinapple for a great price too.

Check around your area for unlikely sources of organic.

Maria

[Eva]

tdesign: great links with great prices!!! i'm getting pretty low on nuts; i'll just order there instead of going to the overpriced hfs around here! yay! and i've been wanting to get some agave nector, but not for the prices i've seen it sold at. double yay!

rawfoodiemom: also GREAT info. i actually copied the stuff you wrote down onto a small piece of paper, like a shopping list to access at the grocery store. i'm going to keep it in my wallet... and that's both things, the different fruits that are most sprayed and the numbers and what they mean

what a great thread! this has been really useful to me. :D