Organic shopping & Cooking

Good Morning Gardenstewers:
(edited 6/22/7)

I wanted to start a thread to see how many Organic cooks there are out there & why you MAY or may NOT be an organic cook.

I will tell you that I shop and cook organically (by my poll scale) most of the time, 50 - 80%. Yesterdays shopping run would put this weeks dining at the always level.

I have lots of good reasons to shop organically that I will put out here as I start to get responses. For now I am very interested in hearing what you have to say about organics.

Why are you all reading the thread and not taking the poll? 136 have viewed the post and only 12 have taken the poll.

Seeya,

Uncle Jabba

 

My answer is a most of the time.
...But I also have to say that it is REALLY easy for me shop that way, because I work where it is sold.
If I had to travel for it, I might not be as inclined to search for it.
If the choices are both there in front of me, even if it costs more (as is usual), I go organic/natural.

 

Lately we are more particular about buying and consuming organic but it is horrendously expensive here , one of the reasons I started taking gardening seriously .

 

I only buy organic food when they are on sale. How much more better or healthier can organic food be than regular food?

 

Wow "FoodLover" I am having a hard time understanding how anyone can question if organic food can be healthier (ie: No poisons sprayed on the food, soaked in, ingested by you and now in you) let alone be better. In a few days I will post at least 10 if not 20 reasons why.

I will bring you over to the healthy side of being a food lover.

Your Friend in Food,

Uncle Jabba

 

Howdy, Uncle;
As for myself, on this look I ticked a vote in your poll; but I'm kind of waiting and watching to get an idea of your fervor on the ORGANIC subject.. Maybe I'm not the only one doing that, with, as you say, so many looks and only a few recordable responses.. I think the idea for a thread on this subject can be very interesting and informative....but it can also deteriorate into a soap box harangue which would be a total bore; as the originator, it'll be up to you to keep it informative and interesting... We have some pretty good folks watching who will keep it from becoming a 'name calling, shouting match'; so Don't lose patience, keep on trucking;
Hank

 

I've marked "some of the time" as I have a mixed approach to organic items, some of them (bananas for instance) don't make sense to me as I am not even eating the part that would have been sprayed...likewise "organic evaporated cane juice" just makes me roll my eyes...sugar is sugar... On the positive side, our local grocery has slowly added more organic produce with time so I can get at them easier. We already do occasional runs to a health-food grocery a ways away to load up on low-sodium, wheat-free and sugar-free for my household.

Having three growing teens in my family, I have to more often go with whatever is on sale, and they get the regular lettuce ever since we kept encountering aphids in the organic salad mixes (my kids just don't face bugs in their food very well).

I don't use any sprays, etc. on my own garden veggies or fruit trees, so I suppose all of that is organic too. I concur with Henry - I think folks may be waiting to see if they are criticized for their choices or if there will be interesting info coming down the pipe.

 

I eat organic about 40-50% of the time. It's expensive, and not always readily available, which is why I don't do it all the time. I'm also taking steps to eat more fruits and veggies and less processed food. I kicked soda a couple months ago! Haven't had it since. Now that was a big step.

 

I try mainly to stick to the main food groups-wood, metal and the stuff that's in the middle of Twinkies. Works for me.

 

I simply can not afford to buy ALL organic! I suppose though, if I could I would. All the home gardening is done organically, which this time of year is a good thing. Also, a good friend of mine is constantly bringing home fresh local organic veggies. He's in the organic produce business, that helps! No doubt of the benefit, but simply WAY to expensive, especially if you fall into the 100% category. I really love food and love to eat. I suppose it might cost less if I were a vegan. But I'm not and I love to eat animals too!! They are REALLY expensive to shop for. Good luck with it Uncle Jabba. By the way, I can't figure out how to click on your poll.

 

Timmylaz,
If you have even a little land you can raise a couple of lambs or goats. The trouble is a lot of people get attached and think of them as pets. It really is hard not to. The alternative is to buy a killed animal from a local producer and have them send it to be cut and wrapped. Much cheaper but you must have freezer space.

muddy

 

The main reason I don't buy more organic food is the price Jabba. BUT ...
I have a large veggie garden that is all organic.

 

It's not that widely available here in the rural south.

 

Thanks for the inspiration muddybob, actually considering starting a small sustainable farm. BTW I LOVE curried goat!! It's one of the dishes that I really look foward to when traveling to Jamaica. Ya Mon!