What's the Stitch on Your Food?

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Terence Douglas Clark
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1 What's the Stitch on Your Food? Lion Authors: Madison Bodine, Mari Maldonado, Kyris Mcinnis, Eric Sailors What is Really in Your Food? There is many things behind both organic and conventional food that you should consider before you decide what snack you pick up after school from the grocery store. As well as what's better cost wise, agriculturally for the planet, and what exactly goes into your food, as well as how the food you consume affects your body. Pesticides According to Wessels Farming, before World War II, many citizens were dying due to diseases that originated from insects such as typhus and malaria, but in 1939 DDT, an insecticide, was discovered and that later kickstarted the use of pesticides after WWII. Throughout history there have been many factors that endangered our food supply including various types of plants, animals, and insects. When they pose as a threat to us

we then consider them as pests and we don't take their impact lightly. Pests have led to many consequential events, such as the plague in the 14th century.

2 we then consider them as pests and we don't take their impact lightly. Pests have led to many consequential events, such as the plague in the 14th century. In our current agriculture system, farmers still use pesticides to be able to produce enough food to feed an abundant amount of people. Supply and demand is a big factor in the use of pesticides in farming. Since we re clear on what exactly pesticides are, we should come to an understanding that both organic and conventional foods are grown using pesticides for both preservation and productivity of crops. Beth Skwarecki, a health editor claims Organic farmers may use pesticides, so long as they choose from a list of approved options. The USDA organic program does not disallow all pesticides, just synthetic ( man made) ones. Since both organic and conventional farming use pesticides, the effects of pesticides are going to both organic and conventional consumers. Pennsylvania State University put out an informational pesticide safety fact sheet in 2009 and the information stated is something that may change your views on how you see the agricultural industry, organic and conventional included. Insecticides, commonly used in farming are the highest among pesticide poisoning in the United States. The effects of common insecticides are: irritation to skin, eyes, and respiratory tract, vomiting, diarrhea, heachaches, muscle weakness, bizarre/aggressive behavior, burning in mouth, throat, chest, and upper abdomen, and in severe cases death. Sadly pesticides are a necessary evil in today's agricultural system and we need them to survive. Regulations Well as you know many pesticides and other chemicals are used in farming to make the food pest free and take longer to rot so it can stay on shelves for longer periods of time. In a 2018 U.S. senate document states that a concern is growing in the scientific community about the pesticides and its residue on food, "This is extremely concerning given that residues of these pesticides are regularly found on fruits and vegetables and food is a significant continued source of exposure for consumers... ". This document helps to show that any food contains traces of pesticides, that many people don't think is in their food when purchasing. Farmers as well as the community that lives by them are exposed through pesticides in the air. With the use of pesticides and chemicals food companies as well as farms have many regulations they have to follow. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug administration (FDA), The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and many more regulate and enforce the use of the pesticides farmers can use. The FDA has

3 created new guidelines for the term healthy and its use on food labels. When consumers read healthy on food packaging they automatically think it is the better option to consume, but in reality it's still not all that great for you. In magazine article Alexis Jones claims, in order for industries to use the term healthy it must contain low levels of total and saturated fat, sodium and cholesterol, and have 10 % of the daily requirements of vitamins, fiber, and other nutrients. While organic food is thought to be the better option over conventional food, it is clear that this is not always the case for both consumers as well as the environment. Be a Better Consumer One of the main concerns of organic food is whether or not it s beneficial for the environment. According to an article by Steven Novella, organic farms take up a lot more land and take more effort to harvest compared to non-organic farming. In the same article it also claims that an organic diet could potentially leave a higher carbon footprint on the planet due to the fact that it uses 20-40% more farmland, it also stated how we use 40% of the Earth s land for farming and if we only use organic agricultural methods, it would take up more land which would be a huge detriment to the planet. This only proves that although conventional foods may use synthetic fertilizers, it is more efficient to harvest and does not use nearly as much land as organic agricultural farming methods. Not only does organic farming have a cost on your wallet, it also has a cost on the environment. Organic farming could be very expensive to people who want to consume healthier options however, is it really worth it? Many researchers say that organic foods is not much healthier than conventional food, in fact they provide almost the same amount of nutrients and vitamins. Based on an article by Stephanie Watson, an editor for the Harvard Women s Health Watch exclaims that organic and conventional foods are the same nutritional wise, however organic just has less pesticides and they re a lot more expensive (Watson). The way that organic food is being promoted in society could be one of the reasons on why people consume organic foods to begin with. When in fact, organic foods are similar to the produce and other organic options at your average grocery store. In other words, due to the fact that it's an expensive version of what s almost at every grocery store, take into consideration what you are truly spending your money on as a consumer. The Price You Pay Money makes the world go round, with that being said when using the organic agriculture method over the conventional methods, the products you buy in a common grocery store would cost more because of the healthier methods used in producing it. A question that is always asked is, Why

4 should we buy organic food if the price for non-organic is cheaper? the main thing is the amount of pesticides that are going into organic and non organic items but what has been confirmed is the least amount of pesticides are used in organic farming methods. Assuming your goal is to avoid ingesting pesticides, pick organic crops from the "dirty dozen" - peaches, pears, apples, grapes, nectarines, strawberries, bell peppers, celery, lettuce, carrots and kale - identified by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit public-health advocacy organization. Marketing efforts for organic food usually focus on the values, presenting the product as environmentally friendly, healthy, and as a means of bucking the system. For example, many organic food companies base their products' images on low environmental impact and local origin. By advertising their food as environmentally safe and of local origin, it presents the competition as potentially dangerous and part of the corporate agenda, these organic food producers attract those who identify with environmentalism and alternative lifestyles. Many companies try to portray as healthier option to get more consumers to purchase their products, but they should be more informed what they are truly consuming. Most people are misinformed and often tricked into purchasing and consuming food they believe to be healthy. Your personal health as well as your families health is very important, the food you buy and consume may have long term effects on you and your body. With the information given we hope you will now take into consideration the chemicals and other harmful substances you consume daily. As well as motivate you to be more involved with the products you purchase for you and your family, to become a better consumer for yourself, and your environment.

5 Work Cited Ag Communications and Marketing. Potential Health Effects of Pesticides Pennsylvania State University, 2009 extension.psu.edu/downloadable/down Ganzel, Bill. Farming in the 40s. Ganzel, Bill. Farming in the 40s. WWII Causes a Revolution in Farming, livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe40s/intro/. Howard, Jacqueline. "'Healthy' Foods have most of Us Confused, Survey Finds." CNN Wire Service, 16 May SIRS Discoverer, Humectants and Anticaking Agents. Food & Nutrition Magazine, 26 Oct. 201, foodandnutrition.org/july-august-201/humectants-and-anticaking-agents/. Jones, Alexis. "What do these Food Labels Mean?" Youngzine, Mar SIRS Discoverer, No Pesticides Cartoons and Comics. Syntaxes Cartoons and Comics - Funny Pictures from CartoonStock, Accessed 12/3/18 Novella, Steven. Organic Farming Is Bad for the Environment. Area 51 Revealed NeuroLogica Blog, 25 May 201, theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/organic-farming-is-bad-for-the-environment/. Quantitative Monitoring of Pesticides in Food: How Much Is Too Much? - Analyte Guru - Post. Analyte Guru, 15 Dec. 201, analyteguru.com/quantitative-monitoring-of-pesticides-in-food-how-much-is-too-much/. Accessed 12/3/18 Skwarecki, Beth. Your Organic Food Is Treated With Pesticides, Too. Vitals, Vitals, 13 Apr. 20 Turner, Tracy. Trader Joe's: Pesticides Residues Testing GMO Foods Genetically Modified Food GMO's Genetically Modified Organisms E. coli HUS Listeria Salmonella Food Poisoning Arsenic Wines Arsenic Rice Palm Oil Pesticide Tea Genetically Engineered Food GMO Free Diet Aldi Aldi's Trader Joe's Brands Revealed Olivebiodiesel.com, olivebiodiesel.com/. Accessed 12/3/18 Watson, Stephanie. Organic Food No More Nutritious than Conventionally Grown Food. Health Blog, Harvard Health Publishing, 5 Sept. 2012,

Organic Foods: Understanding Organic Food Labels, Benefits, and Claims

Organic Foods: Understanding Organic Food Labels, Benefits, and Claims Organic food has become very popular. But navigating the maze of organic food labels, benefits, and claims can be confusing. Is organic