Buying Organic Needn't Be All or Nothing

If you are anything like me, you live somewhere in between the ivory tower of eating all-organic, all-local foods made by the loving hands of a commune of grandmothers and the 7th circle of processed fast foods that contain no traces of actual vegetables except perhaps for the oils they are deep-fried in. While I'd love to make sure that everything that enters the temple of my body--and my kids' bodies--be nothing less than pure, natural, and delicious, the unfortunate reality of cost and supply often derail the organic train.

So, given somewhat limited means, what organic products should we buy and which are a waste of money?

Happily, Consumer Reports and the Environmental Working Group (EWG) have some very helpful recommendations. Overall, there are three priorities:

1. Produce from the EWG list (12 most important organic produce buys detailed below). Some fruits and veggies, even after thorough washing, still retain much higher levels of pesticides than you would want to be ingesting on a regular basis.
   
2. Meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy. Animal products should be an organic priority because of the risk of diseases such as mad cow, and due to the antibiotics and hormones used in conventional animal husbandry.
   
3. Baby food. Not only are babies' small bodies less well-equipped to filter out the bad stuff, they systems are still developing and therefore more likely to be damaged by pesticides/hormones/etc., and because processed baby food purees often concentrate residues off all that bad stuff. (Of course, another option would be to just make your own baby food, which is more more fun and much easier than you could imagine!)
   

I must confess, meat and eggs are two things that I have not been buying organic. In fact, of the fresh food my family eats most often (tomatoes, lettuce, onions, eggs, milk, plain yogurt, cheese, ground beef and chicken), all of those except tomatoes and onions are on the "must buy organic" list, which means I need to seriously re-think what has been until now a very loose attachment to buying organic food.

Produce to Buy If At All Possible
These 12 fruits and vegetables contain the highest amount of pesticide residues:

peaches
apples
sweet bell peppers
celery
nectarines
strawberries
cherries
lettuce
imported grapes
pears
spinach
potatoes

Buy Conventional (Non-Organic)...
These are the 12 with the lowest pesticide residues:
onions
avocado
frozen sweet corn
pineapples
mangoes
frozen sweet peas
asparagus
kiwi
bananas
cabbage
broccoli
eggplant

Organic, Grass-Fed, and/or Free-Range Meat & Poultry

Why Switch to Grass-Fed Beef?

Nutritional scientists report that by switching to grass-fed beef you will lose weight, have a healthier heart, reduce your risk of cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and allergies and improve mental clarity. The reasons involve fundamental nutritional differences. Compared to grain-fed beef, grass-fed beef has higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), more Beta Carotene, more Omega 3 fatty acids, more Vitamins A and E, and lower levels of saturated fats. See here for a great article on the history of fats in the American diet and why grass-fed is better.


What About Organic?

The problem with sorting through the options at your local supermarket is that so many foods can claim to be "all-natural," "organic," "free-range" without providing good definitions of what that means. "Certified Organic" means different things in different countries, but generally involves avoidance of synthetic chemical inputs (e.g. fertilizer, pesticides, antibiotics, food additives, etc) and genetically modified organisms; use of farmland that has been free from chemicals for a number of years (often, three or more); keeping detailed written production and sales records (audit trail); maintaining strict physical separation of organic products from non-certified products; undergoing periodic on-site inspections. (From Wikipedia). Sounds complicated? You bet, and expensive too. That's why many local farms, while following the spirit of organic farming, are often not allowed to call themselves certified as organic. The joy of buying locally, however, means that you get to ask them just how they grow their crops, how they house their chickens, and what they feed their dairy cows. Because what goes into their crops, chickens, and cows is what goes into you--and, lest we forget, into your kids.

Local (DC Metro) Options:

• Polyface Farms delivers to Arlington, and if a number of people are interested they may add another drop off point in the area.
• The Organic Butcher
  6712 Old Dominion Drive
  McLean, VA 22101
• Mount Vernon Farms also has local drop locations.
• Golden Farm in Middletown, Virginia carries grass-fed beef and lamb, as well as eggs and organic vegetables in the summertime. No growth hormones used. Orders can be placed at 540/868-2765 or 540/868-2389.
• South Mountain Creamery - delivers milk, eggs, cheese, meat and poultry
• Chesapeake Bay Foundation: "There are no hormones, antibiotics or pesticides in our beef. Our cows graze healthy pastures eating only grass, the natural feed for ruminants like cows. As a result the meat is lean and clean and good for the environment." For more information contact Michael Heller or Rob Vaughn at 301.627.4393 or mheller@cbf.org.

Online Sources:

• Here's a great listing of small, independently owned farms at the EatWild website, "your source for safe, healthy, natural and nutritious grass-fed beef, lamb, goats, bison, poultry, pork and dairy products."

As always, let me know if you have any suggestions! I'd love to hear about other, healthier, meat options out there.

Local Produce: CSAs, Home Delivery, and Farmer's Markets

The idea behind Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is that a consumer pre-purchases a “share” of the harvest for the season—thus creating a relationship between local farmers and community members.

The good news is that you'll get a nice variety of fresh veggies and fruits. Some farms offer the option to get eggs, dairy products, and herbs as well. Some places will deliver your share to a central pick-up location, some farms offer "you-pick" times in addition to the shares, and most farms welcome visitors/helpers.

The bad news is that farms won't have exactly the vegetables you want exactly when you want them. Plus, being a smaller entity, they are more subject to the whims of Mother Nature than the supermarket down the road.

Bottom line: a CSA share is great for someone who is willing to try new foods and to adapt their recipes to suit the vegetables available that week. Just like people had been doing since the dawn of time, right?

However, the "surprise!" aspect of CSAs just doesn't appeal to everyone. If you have a picky child--or spouse, for that matter--maybe you want to be sure to have certain foods on hand for them. Say, all things orange. Farmer's markets offer much the same freshness as you'd get through a CSA delivery, but with a little more choice on your part--don't like the kale or collard greens? On to the next stand! Many markets offer diary, eggs, meat, and poultry stands as well. Although some fall during the week (Rosslyn, Virginia's is mid-days on Thursdays) most are on Saturday mornings, and if you can drag yourself out of bed to be there when they open, then you get the best pick of the available fruits and veggies. Don't be afraid to ask if they'll let you sample something unfamiliar!

• Here's a list of Farmer's Markets in Virginia. I've personally tried the Saturday morning markets in Falls Church (300 Park Avenue, Contact: Howard Herman, (703) 241-5027) and down in Fredericksburg (in the commuter parking lot on Route 3 West). The Falls Church market is a great location--the parking lot of the community center--and we've gotten some pretty food vegetables and fresh bread. Prices seem ever-so-slightly on the high side, but perhaps that's just in comparison to the abundance of very reasonable priced veggies to be found at the Fredericksburg market. If you like to head out of the city on the weekends, I highly recommend taking a trip down to Fredericksburg to catch this market--great tomatoes all summer long, delicious varieties of peaches and other stone fruits towards the end of the summer, and fabulous sweet corn. There are also several stands with dairy, meat, poultry, and breads.
• In Virginia, check out Virginia's Assocation for Biological Farming for a listing of CSA Farms.
• In DC, check out the Washington Post list of DC farmer's markets
• Find markets all across Maryland, and search by county, here.
• If you're looking specifically for organic, here's a list of organic food sources (farms, farmer's markets, stores) in the DC metro area.
• For a great list of farmer's markets, family farms, CSAs, and other "sustainably grown food" vendors across the country, try the Local Harvest website.
  

Local Farms that offer you-pick or delivery:

• Great Country Farms & Foggy Bottom Vineyard in Bluemont, VA. 540-554-2073.
• Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
• Washington's Green Grocer offers home delivery of a large or small box of either all-organic or mixed organic and conventional produce.
  

I hope you enjoy exploring all the options for healthy local eating! If you know of any other resources that should be included here, please let me know!