The 5 Pros and Cons of Organic Food

The healthy lifestyles coming to everyone's attention, purchasing organic food has become a regular habit for most diet-conscious individuals. Unfortunately, choosing organic does not always ensure optimum dietary requirements and quite often puts a significant punch in your final grocery bill. Below are the five common arguments both for and against purchasing organic fruits, vegetables and meats.

Cost

Pro: Although organic food has traditionally cost more than those using pesticides and herbicides in their cultivation, the price is becoming more competitive as demand has grown. Cost conscious organic consumers frequently attend local farmers' markets or go directly to their area supplier where they can purchase organic foods that quantities for a discount.

Con: As soon as major food manufacturers realized that consumers would pay more for organic food, they began devoting much of their resources to producing organic food, but continued using the "factory-conditions" that exploit laborers and strain resources to keep their products competitive.

Quality

Pro: Food items that have not been overly processed and exposed to harmful chemicals or radiation naturally have less toxins and therefore allow the body to absorb more nutrients. Any food labeled as "organic" has to be approved by a rigorous set of Federal standards.

Con: Organic foods, especially produce, quite often has less "eye-appeal" than factory produced equivalents because it does have the protection afforded from decay during shipping by pesticides and irradiation. It is also worthy to note that many food contamination issues have come up around organic food such as spinach that is washed in unhealthy water, which is not regulated under current standards.

Nutritional value

Pro: Fresh organic food undoubtedly has superior nutritional benefits when eaten fresh and prepared properly. Raw food dishes, juicing and salads are greatly enhanced when organic ingredients are exclusively used.

Con: Despite the numerous studies conducted on the nutritional value of organic foods vs.those sprayed with chemicals, no hard data has to date been released that proves that organic food provide substantially greater nutrition than their equivalents. Of course this does not apply to foods that have been processed or altered from their original state.

Availability

Pro: Many organic foods are governed by the seasons, and consumers traditionally purchase quantities when they are available and store them for later use by preserving, pickling or salting. The spread of organic practices around the world have helped correct this problem sœurs popular items can be shipped in from areas they grow year-round. Personal organic gardens may yield enough produce to share with friends, neighbors and family members.

Con: Since organic foods are seasonal, many items can be impossible to find certain items at certain times of year that are available year-round through more commercial manufacturers. Organic distributors are also often at the mercy of international tariffs and taxes which limit their ability to compete with the larger companies.

Perishability

Pro: If fresh organic food is properly stored it can retain its nutritional value for a long time, such as carrots or potatoes stored in straw in the cellar over the winter. Highly perishable fruits and vegetables can be juiced, pureed or preserved for later use.

Con: Organic food does not "travel well" and can quickly deteriorate into a moldy mess since it does not contain preservatives and chemicals to stop the natural decay. Dairy items and meat with organic certification often have shorter expiration dates than their non-organic counterparts, once again because the preservatives expand their shelf life.

Guest post contributed by eco friendly products stockist Also Home.