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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] Growing our foods organically
  • Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 11:01:37 -0600



Good News
http://www.drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&action=detail&ref=2154

Growing our foods organically has proven to be one of the hottest,
fastest-growing movements of the 21st century. Already, more than 4 million
acres of American farmland have been dedicated to raising our food1 more
sustainably, with an eye toward our health and our future. That's four
million acres farmed intelligently without the use of toxic pesticides or
other toxic chemicals; four million acres nurtured with both ancient and
modern techniques that are in balance with nature, helping to reduce the
production of greenhouse gasses and reduce the threat of global warming.

As recently as 1990, when Congress passed the Organic Foods Production Act,
there were fewer than one million acres of organic farmland. In just twelve
years, by 2002, that amount had doubled. Then the pace of progress picked
up. Within just three more years, the amount of organic farmland doubled
again. In 2005 we enjoyed, for the first time, certified organic farmland
in all 50 states. It's been exceptional progress, but we can do more.

Even Better News

If organic cropland continues to double - and it can! - we can hope to see
a revitalization and renewal of our streams and our soil as we build a
smart, sustainable future. I can remember drinking stream water in our
National Parks when I was a child, because it was so pure. I can remember
catching and eating fish from our local streams. Today, all of the streams
surveyed by the USGS, and over 90 percent of fish tested in farming regions
were polluted with pesticides. 2 We can reclaim our streams, our food, our
future.

Delicious, nutrient-packed, healthful organic food is becoming more
available every day - and with a few, focused, strategic, simple purchases
we can make a huge difference together.

Almost every day someone asks me, “What are the most important foods to
buy organic?” Every bite of food is either an investment in your body's
vitality or a debt your body is taking out - or a combination of both. To
make your investments really count, for yourself, for your family, and for
the planet, I've created Dr. Greene's Organic Prescription - the top ten
items (okay, 11) where I believe we can make the biggest difference.

Using Dr. Greene's Organic Prescription

On the following pages you will find my top organic food choices for the
health of your family and of the planet. I've put them in a suggested order
based on their impact and on the ease of the choice. If you want to make
only one organic switch for your family, choose number one. If you've
already made that switch, and want to do another, move on to number 2, and
so on.

You may have seen the Environmental Working Group's excellent Shopper's
Guide to Pesticides in Produce3. They give you the USDA data on which
fruits and vegetables have the highest pesticide levels at the time they
are eaten. They did not attempt to sort which pesticides are the most
worrisome.

Many people first exploring organic foods begin with fruits and vegetables
in hopes of reducing their exposure to harmful pesticides. Choosing
strategic organic foods can indeed quickly and dramatically decrease your
family's exposure to worrisome pesticides4. While this is very useful,
fruits and vegetables are only part of the diet, and pesticides on the
plate are only one part of the health story.

In creating my organic prescription, I've also taken into account reducing
the negative effects of antibiotics, synthetic hormones, and chemical
fertilizers. I've crafted this list with an eye toward our children
inheriting a cleaner, healthier planet: decreasing greenhouse gas
emissions, decreasing depletion of non-renewable resources, decreasing
toxic chemicals in our air and water, and decreasing the uncontrolled
spread of genetically modified organisms - all while converting chemically
killed dirt into rich, living, productive cropland.

Meanwhile, let's increase the nutrient value5 and taste6 of the foods your
family eats. It all begins with #1.
http://www.drgreene.com/21_2155.html

#1 Choose Organic Milk

There's more to a glass of milk than meets the eye. You see the milk, but
hidden from view is the cow it came from, the dairy where the cow was
raised, and all of the land devoted to growing food for that cow. It's a
huge opportunity. When you choose a glass of conventional milk, you are
buying into a whole chemical system of agriculture. When you buy a glass of
organic milk you're creating more benefit than you see.

When parents start making organic choices they often intuitively start at
the top of the food chain, with organic milk, if dairy is part of their
family's diet. When moms understand that the food they eat and the
medicines they take can go into their breast milk, they often make the
connection that the medicines and foods given to dairy cows can affect
their family's health. They prefer avoiding the routine use of antibiotics,
artificial hormones, pesticides, and genetically modified feed. And with
good reason. Some recent USDA monitoring data found synthetic pyrethroid
pesticides in 27% of conventional milk samples, and in only one organic
sample - and even that at a lower level7.

Some people who switch believe organic milk is better for their families8
because of omega-3 fatty acids9 or the antioxidant beta-carotene10. Others
may choose organic milk because they prefer the taste, or as a means of
supporting responsible, compassionate animal care.

These are all good reasons to choose organic milk, but for me...

A Lever for Change

I picture each glass of organic milk as the tip of an organic iceberg.
Rich, living soil, responsibly nurtured, produces healthy organic pasture
and nutritious organic feed, which leads to healthy organic cows. (Organic
cows must, by regulation, be allowed to graze on pasture during the growing
season.) Organic milk represents a whole organic ecosystem. If you drink
milk, choose organic every time.

An astonishing 200 million acres of farmland in the US are devoted to
growing feed for our livestock11. By choosing to drink organic milk, or to
eat cheeses or yogurts made from organic milk, you are pulling a little
lever to effect a big change.

If you go to a fast food restaurant, ask for organic milk (or water or some
other healthy beverage - let your beverage be a positive choice). Ask for
it in your schools. If you eat ice cream, look for it there. If we join
together to pull this lever, imagine what could happen.

But can it really work?

The popularity of organic milk has already resulted in many conventional
farmers choosing to raise cows without the use of artificial growth
hormones. This is a big accomplishment, brought about by consumer trends.
If we keep choosing organic milk, we can expect similar changes in the
whole system - as well as good nutrition - and a cleaner environment - for
our families.
organic arrow previous

Dr. Greene's Organic RX


7Benbrook CM. FAQS on Pesticides in Milk. Organic Center. December 2006.
Calculated from USDA's Pesticide Data Program, 2005.
8Bergamo, P, et al. Fat-soluble vitamin contents and fatty acid composition
in organic and conventional Italian Dairy products. Food Chemistry.
82:625-631. 2003.
Dewhurst R, Fisher W, Tweed J, Wilkins R. Comparison of grass and legume
silages for milk production. Journal of Dairy Science. 2003; 86, 2598-2611.
9Robertson J and Fanning C. University of Aberdeen. Omega 3 Polyunsaturated
Fatty Acids in Organic and Conventional Milk. University of Aberdeen Press
Release, December 8, 2004.
10
11Jacobson, MF. Six Arguments for a Greener Diet. Center for Science in the
Public Interest. Page 11, July 2006. I cross referenced this statistic with
USDA data. Certified organic and total U.S. acreage, selected crops and
livestock, 1995-2005. USDA. December 15, 2006.
http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/Organic/Data/Certified%20and%20total%20US%20acr

eage%20selected%20crops%20livestock%2095-05.xls accessed Feb 5, 2007. In
2005, 62 million acres were in hay and silage, 82 million acres in corn, 72
million acres in soy, 57 million acres in wheat, 6 million acres in
sorghum, 4 million acres each in oats and barley, and a million acres in
rye. This was in addition to 456 million acres in pasture and rangeland. If
anything, the 200 million acres is a conservative estimate.









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