http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/oct/07/why-should-i-eat-organic-google

I just came across the above article in The Guardian. What I find quite baffling is the following:

” . . .   Of the “conventional” non-organic food we eat, 46% contains residues of one or more pesticide, and levels are going up dramatically, not down: in 2003 the equivalent figure was just 25%. Consumers are assured that farmers and growers take human health protection very seriously, but the truth of the matter is that the National Farmers Union and chemical companies militantly defend their pesticide armoury in the face of any government attempt to restrict it . . . .”

” .  .  .  Can you afford organic? The annoying thing is that because the true environmental and health costs of chemical agriculture (pollution, soil erosion, ill health, animal suffering and more) are “externalised” , that is, not accounted for up front in calculations of the “efficiency” of our existing food system, organic food generally costs more. But choosing organic whenever you can nevertheless makes good sense. . .  .  ”

 

I ask myself: Can I afford organic? Peter and I buy food on a weekly basis with a certain amount of money. If we cannot increase this amount, I guess we just have to eat a bit less of everything to make the money last to buy only organic food! Some products in supermarkets are labelled ‘organic’. I have to check, how these products compare in price. How much more do organic products actually cost? 

I found this in http://www.pan-uk.org/files/pesticides_on_a_plate_2013_final.pdf

“A COMMON-SENSE APPROACH
Over recent years levels of pesticide residues in our food have been steadily
increasing, and as much as 40% of the food we eat contains them. Residues found
in several fruit categories exceeded Government limits. A number of the most widely
used are highly toxic and have been linked with developmental defects, cancers
and other disorders. . . . “