There’s a red herring in the discussion about whether organic foods are better than so-called conventional ones raised in industrial operations.   That red herring, probably fished up by a public relations department in industrial agriculture, is the debate over whether organic food contains more nutrients than conventional food.   Once again, last week, a columnist for the Vancouver Sun suggested that organic food is just a scam.  After all, he said: “Studies have consistently shown that organic food has the same nutritional content as the cheaper varieties.”

The problem is, that’s irrelevant.  No-one I know ever claimed that organic food has more vitamins or minerals in it.  What organic food does have is fewer  pesticides,  antibiotics in the case of animal-source foods, and other potentially harmful chemicals.  So what organic food offers is less of the bad stuff.  It’s pretty straightforward.  But that fact has trouble getting traction because of the dominance of the red herring in the discussion — the constant repetition of that empty phrase that organic food has equivalent nutrient content.

The harmful effects are well-established of the chemicals used in conventional farming.  For example, many of the pesticides are organophosphates that directly interfere with humans’ and animals’ brain neurotransmitter systems.  Get enough of these pesticides in your system, and you won’t be able to function normally and healthfully.

On top of all that was the release  in October 2011 by the U.S.-based Rodale Institute for agricultural research of the results of their 30-year side-by-side study on organic versus conventional farming methods.  The study showed that organic farming is superior to the chemical kind.  After an initial period of transition from conventional to organic farming, producers found that organic methods produced as much food, and more in drought conditions (of which more are predicted in coming years), that organic farming used less energy and that it was often more profitable. (http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/fst30years)

If we’re going to compare organic to conventional, let’s ask the right questions.  For example, if our question is ‘Which one is cheaper?’ then the answer will be conventional.  But where our health and communities are at stake, we might want to consider alternative points of view.

Once again there has been an E. coli outbreak, this time across the Atlantic.   ‘E. Coli Death Toll Grows in Europe,’ says the New York Times of May 31, 2011.   Hundreds of Europeans have suffered from diarrhea, cramps and other symptoms, and the death count has climbed to 13.  Most sufferers seem to have become ill from eating vegetables, and several species have been pulled from grocery shelves in a number of countries.

When incidents like this occur, too often vegetables are considered the problem.  Having first read about this on the front page of the International Herald Tribune, I therefore wrote this letter to the editor there:

In reference to your May 30 article on the unfortunate E. coli outbreak in Germany, it is important to realize that vegetables are not to blame.  E. coli is a product of the mammalian gut.  In most such contamination cases the bacterial source is livestock manure, mountains of which emanate from today’s voluminous industrial production of poultry, pigs, and cattle.  While small amounts of organic manure are good fertilizer, there is now so much animal waste on the planet that it is routinely dumped in excess on plant crops.  The solution is not to stop eating vegetables, but for large-sale meat consumers to cut back their intake of animal products to moderate levels, which would allow such foods to be made sustainably, and incidentally compassionately.   The science demonstrates that the amounts of meat now eaten by the average European, American, Canadian, Australian, and some others are impossible to produce within the carrying capacity of the planet.  The results are significant contributions to climate change, pollution of water supplies, loss of rainforest and undermining of biodiversity, and other environmental crises.  There is nothing wrong with livestock, and nothing wrong with meat — in small amounts.  Eating less meat is a step toward addressing the problem.

I’ll let you know if they print it, and I welcome your comments.

There’s nothing like a well-make bruschetta, those hand-held bites of toasted bread piled with tomatoes and basil.   Everybody loves this Italian appetizer, which is easy to make.

The bread can be almost any type that can be cut into small rounds or squares.  Toast the bread.  Then pile with the following topping, to make perhaps 10 individual bruschetta.  Topping: 2-3 tomatoes chopped into tiny pieces, half a tsp of chopped garlic, 1 tsp dried basil, lots of fresh basil, a little salt and pepper, 2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 2-3 tablespoons good quality olive oil.   Pile the topping onto the toasted bread bits, and serve.

This dish has a history, of course, and afficionados have strong opinions about the details.  Some people feel you should rub garlic onto the toast before adding topping.     Others use hearty bread, untoasted.  And there are loads of other variations.  Have fun with it.

We all care about community.  We are about our geographical, cultural, and social connections to neighbours, friends, and others.  So how can we support that in our food choices?

One way is to eat locally made, organic food from small-scale producers.

Another is to cut down on processed, highly packaged foods, most of which come from industrial factory operations controlled from afar.

Another is to eat less meat, and consume animal products that are sustainably and compassionately made.

Additionally, we can support groups that work toward local, community control of food systems, that work toward a world in which small-scale farmers can make a good living, and that are designing policy to take back rural communities from agribusiness.  Such groups include the BC Food Systems Network, Food Secure Canada, Beyond Factory Farming, and others.   Their web addresses are on this site.

Supporting community through our food choices addresses the last of the Five Key Challenges for Food Systems that I outlined previously:

• To feed a large and growing world population
• To produce food ecologically
• To consume food for human health
• To act compassionately toward all living beings
• To support community well-being.

Thanks for being with me on this brief series of posts.    Please let us know about your own food experiences and thoughts.

While the number of farms has declined in Canada, the size of remaining farms has climbed. We need to create conditions in which small farms can survive and thrive.