O for Organic

Organic products are grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers, and build biologically diverse agriculture.

In theory I would love to embrace all that is organic in my everyday life from the food I eat to the clothes I wear [dubbed eco fashion!] to the cleaning and beauty products I use. Who can argue with the fact that the use of pesticides is considered unhealthy and hazardous to the environment and human health in general or that we should adopt “an organic approach to a sustainable future for people and our planet”?

Organic fruit and veg

Actually quite a few – on the grounds of it not being possible to feed the world on organic food alone and the higher land and labour use for food production [as yields are smaller you have to cut down more trees, or plough up more land or disturb more wildlife] to name but three counter arguments.

And I am an old cynic and have images of vegetables marked organic being rubbed in mud to make them look more authentic and then the charge doubled! Well not quite but you know what I mean. There is certainly an expensive niche market out there – if I start on this I have to carry it through for everything I buy...

PS Why not visit a related topic on the use of palm oil and its affect on rainforests and animal habitats? http://lizbrownleepoet.com/2012/04/17/o-is-for-orangutan/