Organic Food Articles

On this page we've compiled some of our most interesting articles on organic foods. You'll find more great information in our Magazine.

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Apples
By 1903 there were 7,000 varieties of apples growing in the United States. By 1983, more than 6,000 of those were extinct. Today, 10 kinds make up 90 percent of U.S. production, and the centuries-old orchards of the Northeast are declining as California and Washington take over the market. So what happened? Read more...

Asparagus
These thin green spears are the quintessential reminder that all our fruits and vegetables, no matter how hybridized or specialized they have become, all trace back to wild plants. Find a feathery bush of asparagus by the side of a road in summer, and you can return in spring to cut delicate green stalks - different from supermarket offerings really only in their freshness. Read more...

Broccoli
Broccoli provides a wide array of basic nutrients, particularly A and B-complex vitamins, and more Vitamin C than citrus fruits. It is even better than a pill, because it contains the beta-carotenes, chlorophyll, enzymes, and minerals necessary for the absorption of Vitamin C. Broccoli is high in fiber and provides the same amount of protein as corn or rice but with only one-third of the calories. Organic broccoli is also a good source of calcium, iron, and potassium-three of the 16 minerals essential to human health. Read more...

Melons
Melons would seem to be clean of agrichemicals once they reach the table, since the part we eat is protected by a thick shell. Alas, it’s not that simple. Melon plants ingest agrichemicals systemically; for instance, a cantaloupe plant might absorb a pesticide through its leaves, roots, and stem. Since those parts channel water and nutrients to the fruit, the juicy inside can still contain the toxic chemical even if the spray never touched it directly. Read more...

Organic Meat
By now everyone has seen images of the modern “factory farm.” While the loudest cry against such institutions deplores their cruelty, this is only part of a more fundamental flaw. Mass livestock production extracts the animals from the complete farm system. For instance, within a diversified plan, manure would be food for the soil; but without fields to fertilize it becomes an environmental pollutant, nitrifying waterways, and contaminating groundwater. Read more...

Organic Raw Milk
Raw milk offers a completely different set of nutritional values to the consumer than processed milk. Prior to processing, organic raw milk is alive with beneficial bacteria that are critical to the health of the immune system, filled with 22 essential amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, CLA, high Omega-3 fatty acids, lactoferrin (a glyco protein which kills pathogenic bacteria) and several essential enzymes (including lactase) all critical to digestion. Read more...

Rice
Originally, migratory waterfowl came for the Central Valley’s 2 to 4 million acres of wetlands. Thanks to urbanization and agriculture, only 300,000 acres remain in natural wetlands, and so the bird numbers have dropped—from 40 to 50 million annually in the late 1800s, to 3 to 5 million today. Rice fields have become a surrogate habitat. Read more...

Tomatoes
Technically, the tomato is a fruit (or even more accurately, a berry, since it has multiple seeds). Legally, though, tomatoes are a vegetable-at least that's what the Supreme Court ruled in 1893 after an importer tried to evade tariffs by labeling his crop as fruits, which weren't taxable. Whether you eat them for dinner or dessert, nutritionally tomatoes are a boon. As long as you eat them raw, tomatoes are rich in flavonoids, which have anti-oxidant antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. They pack lots of beta-carotenes, vitamin C, and potassium, as well as B-complex vitamins, magnesium, phosphorus and calcium. Of increasing interest is tomatoes' particular carotene lypocene, which is proving itself to be valuable in protecting against cancer. Read more...