Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[yarrow@sfo.com]

At 10:38 AM -0600 10/8/06, TradingPostPaul wrote:
> That piece I sent on from Business Week turns out to be a not-so-subtle
> slap at organic or sustainable growing. Why am I not surprised?....

> "While Americans may love the idea of natural food, they have come to rely
> on the perks of agribusiness. Since the widespread use of synthetic
> pesticides began, around the time of World War II, food producers have
> reaped remarkable gains. Apples stay red and juicy for weeks...."

Nor does the article mention that "organic" foods are becoming more 
popular because corporate-produced foods are tasteless. Those shiny 
red unblemished apples are not worth eating. I don't eat tomatoes or 
apples out of season, because I've tasted the real thing (ugly 
Ashmead's Kernel apples from the farmers' market! heirloom tomatoes 
from my garden!), and I don't eat any animal products, so I guess I'm 
not benefiting from "the perks of agribusiness."

I think the most important food trend of the last 20 years is 
farmers' markets and the recognition that buying locally often yields 
the best quality. Of course, BW ignores that trend and tries to paint 
"organic" as the opposite of "corporate," rather than "local" as the 
opposite of "corporate."