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Literature review of organic food
Essays on organic food production
Essays on organic food production
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Recommended: Literature review of organic food
"Order up! Big Mac, large fry, and a chocolate shake-no whip cream." I eagerly claim my meal and then find a booth and begin to unpack my lunch. I look forward to this moment each day. After all, I love McDonald's-especially their world-famous fries (I could eat a hundred-no doubt). My stomach begins to hurt and the more I think about it, I cannot remember a time when I did not felt bloated. I've always dismissed these symptoms as just normal everyday ailments. However, could there be an underlying cause that I have not acknowledged? Could it be a direct result of what I feed my body? Though some may view organic food as unnecessary, it is undeniably the most wholesome diet.
Eating organically is the way to go. “Organic, in food terms, is defined as free of chemical pesticides and certain farming practices." (Portnoy 24) Organic food has always been around; but it is now more scarce than before the rise of conventional (non-organic) food. In fact, when conventional food was first introduced to the public in 1921, it became a hit. Therefore, as a result, organic food has slowly been kicked to the curb while conventional food enjoys the spotlight. However, not everyone has completely turned their backs on their apples, pears, and bananas. In 2001, a new supermarket came about: Sprouts Farmers Market. Sprouts is a healthy, natural, and organic supermarket. Along with Sprouts, are other organic grocery stores such as Trader Joe's and Sunflower Farmers Market. And today, though conventional food is still much more convenient and popular than organic food, organic and healthy eating has become somewhat of a trend.
There are some disadvantages to organic eating. First of all, "it costs too much, and it's harder to find" (Kluge...
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...er. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.
Doyle, Andrea. "Food for Thought." Successful Meetings Nov. 2011: 34-38. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 20 Feb. 2014.
Kluger, Jeffrey, Eben Harrell, and Krista Mahr. "What's So Great About Organic Food?" Time International (South Pacific Edition) 6 Sept. 2010: 30-35. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 20 Feb. 2014.
Laliberte, Richard, Squire Fox, and Joel Holland. "Today's Special: 94% Safer Food!" Prevention Sept. 2013: 106-17. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 30 Jan. 2014.
Portnoy, Shari. "Organic, Natural & Healthy." American Fitness May-June 2013: 24-30. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.
Ricket, Allison. "The Health Benefits of Eating Organic and Non-GMO." Athens News [Athens, Ohio] 9 Sept. 2013: 14. Newspaper Source Plus. Web. 30 Jan. 2014.
Smith, Melissa Diane. "A Cut Above." Better Nutrition Mar. 2013: 62-66. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.
7. T, Pragya. "Organic Food Vs. Non Organic Food." Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. Web. 14 Feb. 2011. .
Steven Shapin is an expert when it comes to telling people the reality of the situation. In his, article “What Are You Buying When You Buy Organic?” Shapin exposes and explains the truth behind the word organic. He explains that our view on organic is not a reality. The small farms that we picture in our heads are really just big business in disguise and these big businesses are trying to do good by supposedly not using harmful pesticides. Which are supposed to not damage the environment but in reality they are probably not making any sort of difference. Some people care about the environment, while others are buying taste when it comes to organic food but using different pesticides are going to help the taste, only freshness tastes the best.
While the organic movement has increased the production and sale of organic food in the United States, something that should be noted is that the stock of Whole Foods Market, a grocery store is dedicated to the sale of organic food, has gone down 40% since October of 2013. Whole Foods Market’s success rates are slowly beginning to diminish and it may lose its dominance in the organic foods market (The Economist, 2014). While this may seem indicative of a decrease in public interest of organic food, it really indicates the opposite. After seeing the success of Whole Foods Market, new stores such as Trader Joe’s and Sprouts entered the organic market and became strong competition. The decline in Whole Foods Market’s success may be attributed
Calioglu, Arpi. “Eating Healthy.” Total Health 17 (1995): 42. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Roesch Library, Dayton. 18 Oct. 2002 <http://library.udayton.edu>.
Currently, there is a global demand emerging for organic products specifically a huge consumer demand in the United States and Europe. The United States ranks fourth in organically farmed land globally, and sales of organic food have increased by almost a factor of six, from $3.6 billion in 1997 to $21.1 billion in 2008 (Reganold, Andrews, Reeve, Carpenter-Boggs, Schadt, Alldredge, Ross, Davies, Zhou, 2010). In the United States, organic farming has gained much popularity in the farm sector, mainly due to the new wave or generally recognized as healthy food products (Uematsu, Mishra, 2012).
Paul, Maya W. “Healthy Fast Foods.” Help Guide. Help Guide, 10 Sep. 2010. Web. 9 May 2011.
Woese, K., Lange, D., Boess, C., & Werner Bogl, K. (1999). A comparison of organically and conventionally grown foods-results of a review of the relevant literature. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 74(3), 281-293. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.er.lib.k-state.edu/doi/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0010(199707)74:3<281::AID-JSFA794>3.0.CO;2-Z/pdf
Returning to organic farming, which our grandparents referred to as farming, and reclaiming our food is not only our choice, it is our right. Conventional farming practices are responsible for many negative health and environmental issues. One of the main issues is the creation of monocultures in the farming environment. Specifically, growing the same species of plants or animals in mass quantities without variation every season is not natural. Monocultures do not exist in nature (Pollan 67).
With the world’s population continuing to increase, the demand for food is higher than ever. This increase in food demand also calls for more efficient ways of growing and providing the food. Two methods that are very controversial are the organic and conventional method. While many people support the organic method because of its known benefits, others feel that it is an over inflated industry that cheats consumers out of their money. But recently many studies have disproved those critics. These studies prove that Organic food is a better choice than conventional because it is better for the environment, avoids the use of chemicals, and is generally more beneficial.
Organic food is generally not much healthier than regular fruits and such nutrition wise with a few exceptions. “Higher vitamin C concentrations were found in organic leafy vegetables, such as spinach, lettuce, and chard versus the same conventionally produced vegetables in 21 of 36 (58%) studies”( Foreman). Also mentioned is that organic and nonorganic milk is not much different as “In general, milk has the same protein, vitamin, trace mineral content, and lipids from both organically and conventionally reared cows.”( Foreman).Despite the exception, it has been stated that the exception does not have strong enough evidence that can let a statement such as “eating organic food is more beneficial than eating conventionally grown food” stand on its own and be taken seriously. Another unfortunate circumstance on organic food is the price. On average, anything organic is priced higher than non-organic food, and according to Digestive Specialists Inc., it “…costs anywhere from 20 to 100 percent more than regular produce” (Digestive Specialists). The higher price leaves any financially struggling person or family less likely to invest in organic food when there is always a cheaper option available, even if the cheaper product isn’t beneficial to their health. The reason for this, mentioned by Health Research Funding,“…Organic farmers do not use artificial fertilizers, they tend to produce smaller quantities. Their method of farming is also more labor-intensive with weed pulling and crop rotation. And then there is the issue of supply and demand – as the demand for organic produce increases, so does the price” (Health Research Funding). The quality of organic fruits, while being mostly free of pesticides and chemicals, can also have a lot less time to deteriorate compared to non-organic foods. To summarize the issue, Mayo Clinic states that, “Because organic fruits and vegetables aren 't
Thesis: Organic food is full of nutrients and when compared to conventional food is a much better choice
Firstly, consuming organic food promotes good heath as it is more nutrition dense and has less toxic pesticides then convention food, according to a research study done by The Organic Center, organic food is higher in antioxidant, vitamins and minerals. Study matched pair of both organically grown food and conventional grown and showed that organic food not only was higher in nutrition but biologically active nutrients, In another study done by reveals that dairy pro...
Lewis Brown, L. (n.d.). Eat Smart for a Great Start Newsletter. Retrieved November 23, 2014, from
Foods that are produced organically are better for the environment, healthier for your body because they do not contain toxic chemicals, and are more cost efficient than commonly known.
they can increase choice of organic foods. Nevertheless, for the majority of people, they need cheaper food, and they should regard conventional foods as their first choice. No matter what people choose organic or conventional foods, their main purpose is to get a healthier body. If people focus on changing their eating habits, not comparing organic foods with conventional foods, they will be healthier. As long as people can change their eating habits like eating more vegetables and less meat, they will get a healthier body whether they eat organic or conventional foods.