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Publication #FAR8048

 

Should We Go Organic?1

Kate Welch, Linda Bobroff, and Amy Simonne2

Figure 1. 
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Choosing what to feed my family is no easy task. In addition to seeking meals that can be ready for our harried schedules and differing tastes, today when I go to the grocery store I also have to make decisions about whether or not to buy organically grown or raised foods. Many consumers worry that pesticides used in conventionally grown produce may increase our risk of cancer. But is this concern based in reality?

The US Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, monitors pesticide residues to make sure our exposure is below health concern level (US Environmental Protection Agency, 2003). Additionally, annual Food and Drug Administration-conducted studies have shown that “levels of pesticide residues in the U.S. food supply are well below established safety standards” and do not increase our risk for cancer (US Food and Drug Administration, 2005).

And what about the claim that organic foods are nutritionally superior to those grown by conventional methods? According to a study conducted by the University of California, organically grown berries and corn did contain 60% more antioxidants than those conventionally grown. However, most of the food we eat has not been tested to determine if organically grown varieties are more nutritious. Dr. Kathleen Merrigen, director of the agriculture, food and environment program at Tufts University has said that we can’t say that organic foods are nutritionally better for us, but “we rely on intuition that food from an environmentally sound system is probably healthier.”

So should we go organic? In the end, it’s a personal preference. Organic foods may be healthier, but if we choose to buy conventionally grown produce, we can feel safe from excessive pesticide residues thanks to monitoring by the EPA.

Listening, learning and living together, it’s the science of life. “Family Album” is a co-production of University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences and of WUFT-FM.  If you’d like to learn more, please visit our website at http://familyalbumradio.org.

To listen to the radio broadcast:

http://radiosource.net/radio_stories/391.mp3

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References

Mitchell, A. (2005). Organically Grown Foods Higher in Cancer-fighting Chemicals than Conventionally Grown Foods. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Retrieved October 20, 2005, from the Institute of Food Technology website: http://www.ift.org.

US Environmental Protection Agency. (2003). Protecting the Public from Pesticide Residues in Food. Retrieved November 26, 2005, from the US EPA website: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/protect.htm.

US Food and Drug Administration. (2005). FDA Pesticide Program Residue Monitoring 1993-2003. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3003674 [29 August 2012].

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR8048, one of a series of the Family Youth and Community Sciences Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Broadcast as program 391 in January 2007. Published on EDIS August 2012. In the interest of time and/or clarity, the broadcast version of this script may have been modified. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2.

Kate Welch, student, Linda Bobroff, associate professor, and Amy Simonne, associate professor, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, Dean.