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In the modern world we are often encouraged to eat organic. Its more nutritious, pesticide free and protects animals and the environment. We all have been told such things again and again and I sometimes back felt that it something we are being sold.
Well it seems I was not much wrong. Thanks to a very effective marketing many people actually believe it to be true. According to a Cornell University experiment most people if given choice between organic or regular food will choose organic believing it to be nutritious and healthy.
And millennials will also having a feel good factor with it, and will also pay more for the organic choice. But, the reality of these beliefs about organic food is faraway from reality.
In 2012 Stanford University Center for Health Policy did a comprehensive comparison between organic and regular food and concluded that organic food are not nutritionally superior to any conventional alternatives. And a recent review into 20 years of research into animal products by some Italian researchers confirm these findings. The authors concluded that “scientific studies do not show the organic products are more nutritious and safer than conventional foods“.
It was an eye opener to a lot of people but as Bjorn Lomborg, President of Copenhagen Consensus Center explains that a lot of woke millennials would argue that that they prefer organic also because they care about the treatment of the farm animals and the environment. But, That’s not completely true either, and the facts tells us otherwise.
Animals in organic farms are not generally healthier than animals on regular farms. A 5 years U.S study of dairy farms by Oregon State university showed that health outcomes for animals on organic farms are similar to the conventional dairies.
Also the Norwegian Scientific Committee For Food Safety also came to similar conclusions. While pigs and other poultry animals may enjoy more freedom in open spaces on an organic farms this ‘Freedom” also increases there exposure to parasites, pathogens, and predators.
As for the environment it is true that in organic farming a farmer would use less energy and create less greenhouse gases, but by forgoing fertilizers and pesticides organic farming is much more less efficient than regular farming. Which means that organic farming needs much more land than regular faming to produce same amount of profitable crops. Something which tremendous stress to Indian farmers who already face a scarcity of land.
For example a study found that to produce the same amount of milk organically it would require 59% of more land, and for crops almost 200% of land would be required. Thus, more land for agriculture means less land for nature.
Economically it also means that organic food needs more land, labour and capital. Though many would argue that organic farming means no pesticide. However, that’s not completely true either. Organic farming does use natural pesticides like copper sulphate and pyrethrin which have resulted in 3 folds increase in Leukaemia among farmers whereas Cooper Sulphate have also resulted in liver diseases In Vineyard sprayers in France.
Thus, if one goes by logic and a little brain Organic food is neither healthier for us nor is it better for animals and the environment any more than conventional alternatives.
So, Why the Craze & popularity with Organic?
Short answer, The power of marketing. Organic food is a First world luxury, and technically buying it is just as valid as any other luxury purchase. Thus, people should resist any implied moral superiority while buying organic food. Leftists Elites living in first world country and other often do not understand it and often inhumanly implies in forums and debates and Op-eds that those who cannot buy organic food should “Eat Less”. Most notably Millionaire Fashion Designer and ultra-Leftist Vivienne Westwood.
Unfortunately a lot of people in the developing world don’t have the option of eating less, they worry about eating at all. And for that they need access to cheaper food and for that more access to cheaper fertilizers and pesticides.
People should not get carried away with just smart marketing, and should not let the mainstream establishment including both government minister and corporates and activist insult their intelligence and intellect. It doesn’t take much to find the facts yet these woke campaigns and activism continue to forward their narrative. With people blindly following.
People should really not let their integrity and intellect be manipulated by them. And it should start with people like us, i.e, people from the generation of generation z.
Also read: SubscriberWrites: India’s ‘system’ has failed but illusion of leadership lingers
These pieces are being published as they have been received – they have not been edited/fact-checked by ThePrint.
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