Organic Farming Method

 

Last night we hosted an Organictakeover at Atlantis Natural, a children’s enrichment and wellness education center in Miami. During the Q & A part of the event one of the guest was seriously mislead about the organic farming method. We understand how all the information on the internet might lead you astray but we are here to dish out the truth. So we decided to do a quick review on the topic.

In order to qualify as organic farmers, the producers must use renewable resources and endeavor to conserve soil and water to enhance the environmental quality for future generations in the organic farming method.

• Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones during their lives.
• Organic food is produced without using harmful, conventional pesticides; fertilizers containing synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation.

Definition of farmers’ markets: a common facility or area where several farmers or growers gather on a regular, recurring basis to sell a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables and other locally-grown farm products directly to consumers.

• “Local Food” is food that is consumed within 100 miles of where it is grown and produced.
• The (only) difference between organic and conventional food is the way how the food has been produced and processed.
• Organic food is defined as the product of a farming system, which avoids the use of man-made fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators and livestock feed additives (such as antibiotics, growth hormones and medications in an effort to prevent disease and spur quicker growth)
• Organic farming rely on crop rotation, animal and plant manures, some hand weeding and biological pest control.
• The use of fertilizers and pesticides is restricted in organic production.

Thomas Jefferson used the phrase “All men are created equal” in the Declaration of Independence. But in dealing with “food” not all organic food is created equal. Guess they abrogated that in their declaration. This is an important fact to keep in mind when shopping for healthy food.

For more information please visit http://organicwinds.blogspot.com/2012/08/open-house-childrens-holistic.html

 

 

Reasons To Cut Back On Meats

1. Better Health

Animal foods, especially red meat, are among the largest sources of saturated fats in our diet. Eliminating meat―beef, pork, lamb, poultry―one day a week can reduce your risk of dying from heart disease and some cancers. What’s more, “cutting down on meat encourages people to eat more vegetables,” says Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University, in New York City. Adding a serving of produce to your diet each day (say, ½ cup of melon or broccoli) may lower your risk of heart disease by 4 percent and your risk of stroke by 6 percent.

2. More Money in Your Pocket

Consuming less meat boosts your bottom line. The average cost of a pound of sirloin is $6.20, compared with 90 cents for a 15-ounce can of beans, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. If a family of four replaces a steak dinner ($9.30 for 1½ pounds) with a fresh bean and vegetable salad ($1.80 for two cans of beans) once a week, they will save $7.50. After a year, that’s an extra $390.

3. A Greener Planet

The livestock industry creates almost a fifth of all greenhouse gases and takes up 30 percent of the earth’s usable land, according to a United Nations report. (Vegetables and other produce don’t even come close.) Eliminate 1½ pounds of meat (about what a family of four eats for dinner) once a week, says Gidon Eshel, a professor of physics at Bard College, in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, “and you’ll get almost the same benefits as trading in a standard sedan for an ultra-efficient Prius hybrid.”

Souce: Dailyrecnews