ORGANIC PRODUCE It's Time We Eat Food That Sustains Life on this Planet, Not Threatens It.  By Stephanie Gelman, Chef About Town

I belong to a local chapter of the American Personal Chefs Association. One of the recent topics for discussion was organic produce. We are very lucky here in California. Because of grocery stores such as Whole Foods and Wild Oats, we have good quality organic produce at our door step. That is not the case in many of the mid-west states and on the east coast where the Personal Chefs and/or Restaurant Chefs have to order their organics online or have it shipped.

This brings me to my subject of discussion today. I am very lucky to have an e-pal, Meredith, of "Wisk For Hire" in Kensington, ND. Meredith used to run an educational conference for the produce industry and knows just about everything about the cost of growing organics. She has worked with conventional companies such as Monsanto and Novartis, Dole, Sun-Kist and Driscoll Strawberry as well as with the Organic Trade Association, Pavich Farms, and several small organic growers.

Although these growers are not using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, they do have to pay for organic fertilizers and pesticides, in addition to integrated pest management programs and natural pesticides (also known as paying good money for poop and wasps). Because they're using organic pesticides and fertilizer, their fields aren't producing the same volume as they would if these crops were chemically induced. "Organic" bananas and strawberries, for example, are much smaller and more flavorful than their conventional counterparts, but the plan takes the same care and space to grow. Organic farmers also lose a lot more product to permutation (bugs, molds and disease). If theses permutations aren't treated by fungicides, wax, etc., the produce won't last as long, causing more loss and spoilage before it gets to you. These factors have to be built into the price.

QUESTION: Aren't organics just a designer fruit or vegetable? Organic farmers just don't use harsh pesticides but produce will be treated to some degree. Right? ANSWER: Yes, many organic items are treated, but with organic compounds. Technically, organic compounds are chemicals, as are water and air, but the word "chemical" has such a negative connotation organic farmers try to steer away from it. An example of an organic compound or "chemical" is Pyrethins. Pyrethins are concentrated compounds from the chrysanthemum/marigold family of plants. Pyrethins repel insects, which is why they often recommend planting marigolds or calendula in your garden.

Insecticidal soap is another "chemical" used by organic growers. Usually it contains Pyrethins as a repellent, but mostly it smothers the bugs. The difference between these and the chemicals used by conventional farmers is that the "chemicals" used by organic farmers will break down and decompose. As a matter of fact, that's another reason why organic farming is more expensive - these compounds so closely resemble nature that they are effective for only a short period of time and must be reapplied often.

Organic farmers fertilize with "chemicals" such as concentrated fish and kelp meal. Conventional pesticides and fertilizers often contain petroleum products which, if they biodegrade, do so over an extremely long period of time. These pesticides are so effective that they not only kill the targeted insect, but anything else that ingests the substance.

Organic products often have conventional pesticide residues on them. One reason is that when it rains, the rain contains pesticide residues. Another is that on the way to the market, there is so much pesticide residue floating around in the packing houses and trucks, as well as in your supermarket, that it contaminates the organic produce. Something similar happened recently to a farmer that I work with. The supermarket chain found pesticide residues on his lettuces. He had to pay for lab testing of his product, which proved to be leaving his farm clean. The culprit? The supermarket was stocking organic and conventional produce right next to each other and the mister was washing the residues off of the conventional produce and onto the organic. One way to remedy this situation is to rinse your produce with one of the new fruit and vegetable washes available in your supermarket.

Organic produce has much more flavor. Most people find that once they try organic produce they are willing to pay the higher price, not only because of the enhanced flavor but also because of the risk that pesticide use poses to our environment. But here's what I like most about organic produce - ladybugs in my lettuce! I want to eat food that sustains life on this planet, not threatens it.