Organic Food in general

Organic Food is one of those aspects of the Food & Drink Industry that has intrigued me for a number of years. Let me pose a series of questions about Organic Food. Is organic food grown : a) Using selected chemicals, which have each been proven to be completely non-toxic? b) Using selected man-made and ‘natural’ chemicals, some of which are accepted as being highly toxic? c) Using only 'natural' chemicals? d) Using no chemicals at all? And is Organic Food : e) Significantly higher in nutritional content than food produced conventionally? f) Safer than food produced ...  Read the complete review

The word organic was first coined by a Lord Northbourne, who mentions it in his book 'Look To The Land' in the late 1930's . It refers to the idea of a farm being a complete organism. 'Organic' refers to the exclusion of the large majority of pesticides and insecticides used on crops (except as a last resort) and keeping livestock free of growth hormones and the prolonged use of antibiotics. Its basically a more natural approach to food production, with the exclusion of potentially harmful technologies. I am a massive technologist and am absolutely all for technology and progress but just not in the food i eat. If you'd asked me about ...  Read the complete review

I'm very much in favour of healthy eating, responsible consumerism and trying to minimize the impact we have on the environment. Obviously then, Organic food is something I have an interest in. However, I am concerned by the way in which the word 'organic' is bandied about, perhaps giving people more reason to think well of it than is justified. Organic food is grown with minimal chemical use - in this country, farmers who want to be designated as organic have to apply to the Soil Assocation, which is fairly rigourous. While any efforts to reduce spraying, and thus reduce harm to wildlife trying to live alongside crops, is excellent, you have to be ...  Read the complete review

As the worldwide recession strengthens its hold on UK households, scrutiny is being placed upon every single item of expenditure. The area that seems to be coming up for the keenest analysis is the weekly grocery shop. A particularly nauseating report on ITV1 last week had the channel's resident "expert" trying to persuade us that branded goods were nothing but hype and nonsense and that we should all be stuffing our trolleys with Tesco Value products. The part of the show that I watched (that'll be the first ten minutes, after which I switched off in disgust) completely ignored the ethics of food shopping. Brutally sideswiped by the masses as just a fashion ...  Read the complete review

Do you feel as though you have the choice of eating quickly, or eating well? So much of our food is eaten on the run, with the packet being opened and the contents thrown in the microwave to nuke and serve. Few people these days have any knowledge of what's actually in their food, or how it's produced. We are told to eat 5 portions of fruit and veg per day, but what if that fruit and veg is covered in pesticide residues? What if that chicken nugget you just fed your kid is full of bacteria, growth hormones, and grease? What if the milk she drinks, to give her nice healthy teeth and bones, is so full of hormones and lindane she will grow up at increased risk ...  Read the complete review