A Word on Sustainable Agriculture and it's Cost

"It's bizarre that the produce manager is more important to my children's health than the pediatrician."  ~Meryl Streep

No doubt you have heard the debate for organic and locally sourced foods.  My husband and I are huge proponents of buying organic and local as much as we can.  We are blessed within our area to have 3 strictly organic grocery stores and a variety of farmer's markets that enable us to buy local products.  We have even taken to having our milk and eggs delivered from a local farm.

One of the main arguments I hear against the movement is that it is cost prohibitive, but I have a few things for you to consider.

1.  We have all heard the phrase, "You are what you eat" right?  Well how about this phrase, "You are what your food eats"?  Commercial and industrial farming practices are making our soil deficient.  A recent study conducted over 4 years in Britain found that organically grown produce has over 40% more antioxidants than commercially or industrially grown produce.  One of the main reasons for this is organic farming respects soil.  It enriches soil, and the soil is where our produce absorbs its nutrients from.  

2.  Among natural and organic food champions, it has long been held that you'd have to eat 5 commercially farmed apples today to get the nutritional value of 1 apple from 40 years ago.  This ties in with my first point, but also brings up a second.  There are over 15,000 chemicals that are allowed to be added to or sprayed on foods that the government does not require to be listed on nutritional labels.  These chemicals and additives can contribute to the loss of nutritional value.

3.  If I had told you 20 years ago that you would be able to find $125.00 more in monthly budget for cable you would have called me crazy.  If I then told you that you would have another $125.00 in your monthly budget for a smart phone with a data plan, I think you probably would have laughed.  And yet, here we are, with a large percentage of Americans finding that $250.00 extra a month for those luxuries.  Yet, we will search for the lowest cost and most cheaply made food.   That food comes at a price; chemical and additive laden, it rarely provides the nutritional essentials.

Food is the foundation of our livelihood.  It supports our cellular structure and all of the systems within.  There is more and more evidence to suggest that food also can help regulate our moods, help with the treatment of various diseases, and enhance our productivity and overall well being.  It is true that organic and locally sourced food can be more expensive, but many big stores are producing their own label of organic food that is more wallet-friendly.  You don't have to go to Whole Foods; Wal-Mart, Giant Food Stores, Safeway, even Food Lion are offering organics at lower cost.

Here are some of the ways you can support the Food Revolution:

-Find out if your community has a farmer's market.  In addition to sometimes being cheaper than grocery store food (as you're cutting out the middle man) you also get the freshest foods available in any given season.  Our son loves to go with me to the farmer's market and help pick out the fruits and veggies for that week of lunches.

-See if your local grocery store carries its own organic line or other organic lines.  Do a true cost comparison and see if there are items you could swap out of your weekly list and replace with some organic alternatives.

-Plant your own vegetable garden and use compost made from your own food scraps.  (We started composting a year ago and we are going to plant a winter garden this year with kale, beets, potatoes, and carrots.)

Lastly, one of the most important things you can do to support the food revolution is to simply cook fresh.  Every time you cook a meal from scratch you support the idea that food is life.  Every time you buy ingredients instead of a packaged meal you are sending a message to corporate food companies that you will not tolerate the dismal options they are giving us.