Eating Organic Affordably, Part 2 October 25, 2011

Just this morning, I had another friend ask me if eating organic was really that important. This reminded me that this is an important topic and I need to finish my little series on it. If you are just jumping in to this conversation on my blog, check out part 1 of the discussion and figure out where you are on this organic-eating journey.

To flat-out answer the question, “Do I think eating organic is important,” I would say yes. If you look at my own food choices, you would see many organic options. (Just a quick reminder though, that my personal way of eating is not the only way to eat ‘healthy’. Each person needs to work out their own healthy eating lifestyle.)

At my Farm to Plate dinner a couple of weeks ago, the farmer of Black Hog Farm reminded me of something that I have been saying for a long time: Local trumps organic. Yes, it’s true. Why? Because local food is the freshest, meaning the highest nutrient content. It also travels less time to your plate which means less preservatives are needed and less gas is used driving it around. You also have the opportunity to get personal with your food. You know the people that grow it or raise it. If you have a problem, you can go directly to them.

Many of the local growers don’t have the means to go through the organic certification process. So they may be following organic practices, but are not able to promote their items as such. But again, when you know your producer, you can just ask them about it.

So all this to say that you should take advantage of any and all local resources that you can. A dollar spent here goes directly back to the producer to continue making high quality food. This is money well spent.

Many of the farmers markets offer a plethora of affordable, local produce options. I would recommend starting here. Produce is probably the most important place to start buying organic. Forget the processed foods for now. Spend the money on the whole, real foods. I would even say this for your kids. To me, processed is processed, whether it’s organic or not. Save the extra dollar or two on conventional processed foods and put it toward your produce.

I am working on compiling my list of local produce distributors and farmers markets to post for you. Check out my “Favorite Things” page for some of these links already.

More to come in part 3. Please post questions that you have about this topic so that I can make sure to answer them.

Eating Organic Affordably Part 1 October 14, 2011

Can it be done? I’ve had a couple of friends ask me can it be done this week. This is a great question and the answer is, yes! It just takes a little research on your part (and my part) to decide what’s the best way for you. The most important thing to remember is that eating more local or organic is a process. It takes time to figure out how to do it for your family. Be patient and start small. It’s a journey.

Here are the things you need to start considering before choosing what and where you will buy your food:

• Will I eat (almost) any fruit or vegetable you put in front in me? This is a diagnostic question for whether you are a good fit for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) or home delivery service. CSA’s are a group of people that pledge to support a farm through their growing season and then receive weekly “baskets” of the harvest. Typically, you don’t get to choose what you get. So if you are going to spend the money, you want to be an adventurous cook and eater. Many home delivery services are also set packages and can’t be altered. There are some, though, that allow you to pick what you want. I have found that you have to order a certain amount to have it delivered (around $25).
• Am I willing to travel for better prices or is convenience more important? Sometimes a longer drive will give you fresher, more affordable produce. For instance, many of our local farmers markets feature excellent prices, but it may not be convenient to you. I think they are worth the drive, but you may not, and that’s ok.
• What’s my budget? Most delivery services or CSA’s are a set price and the range is across the board. If that fits in your budget, then great. If you need to be able to determine how much you spend each week, buying individually may be a better option for you.
• Am I ok with not getting what I want? By this I mean, if you like eating spinach every day, every week, are you ok if it’s not available because it’s not in season or the crop is poor? Sometimes you may choose conventional produce over local/organic simply because it’s only available this way at certain times of the year. This is ok too. (I have to make this choice regularly.)
• Compare your regular groceries to the dirty dozen. Check out this great reference article to see what are consider the most important produce to buy organic. The verdict is still out on dairy and we may never get a “science based” consensus on whether we should all switch to organic. So you get to make that choice for yourself.

Start thinking through these things and assess where you are in the organic/local journey. And you don’t need to be far into it. It will unfold for you. If all you can afford is to buy 1 or 2 items organic/local, then great. That’s a wonderful start.

More to come…