First off, the term organic refers to the conventional way agricultural products (plants and animals) are grown, raised, and processed. That said, you might want to ask yourself this question: Do you know where the food you eat comes from? And whether it is meat or other produce, do the livestock farmers follow the set regulations?
Food regulatory guidelines vary from one country to the other. In the United States, for instance, organic food must be grown without the involvement of herbicides, fertilizers pesticides, or any bioengineered genes (GMOs). This means that all organic livestock raised for meat and dairy, as well as poultry raised for eggs or meat, must be raised in living conditions that can accommodate their natural sense of getting outdoors to graze, feed, and forage.
Eating organic means scheduling your meals with purely organic foods (foods from farmers who don’t administer antibiotics, growth hormones, or any other animal by-products to their animals. Instead, organic food production is based around the application of grazing on pasture for animals and the use of compost manure as fertilizer to nourish soil and plants. With that in mind, let’s explore the benefits of eating organic foods.
Organic Foods Minimize Consumption Of Resistant Bacteria And Chemicals
You have all probably heard the ongoing debate about Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). The concept of GMOs is to make plants and animals resistant to certain bacteria or herbicides. And while the debate is still ongoing and nothing is written in stone yet, many people already read between the lines and are opting for organic foods where they can. And the director of Cleaver’s Organic – dealers in 100% organic beef – agrees that while there is no evidence to date to suggest that GMOs are dangerous, counter studies show that levels of extremely toxic metals such as cadmium were 50% lower in organically grown food.
That means that the inorganic agricultural produce (that uses pesticides and inorganic fertilizers) has a higher concentration of toxic metal residues that could have long-term effects when they accumulate in the body.
Organic Meat Has No Antibiotics And Synthetic Hormones
Inorganic agricultural practices that promote the use of hormones and antibiotics to boost the growth of livestock are considered hazardous in the long-term. That’s because hormones are injected into young animals to speed up growth and weight gain to quantify meat production. And all that is done with total disregard to the guidelines that regulate the acceptable amounts of injectable hormones farmers can administer to animals.
Furthermore, hormonal substances are injected to lessen the maturity time of the animals, produce more meat, and as well cut the cost of feeding expenses. All that plays into the hands of greedy farmers while offering cheaper meat and milk that is potentially harmful to the consumer. On the contrary, organic meat and milk, as studies indicate, are richer in certain nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids.
Organic Food Is GMO-Free
First and foremost, Genetically Modified Organisms have their genes biomodified with DNAs that are altered in unconventional ways that contradict what is naturally possible. And the potentially dangerous part is that GMOs are altered in order to become resistant to pesticides. And by doing so, organisms have to produce an insecticide to help their course, which is often accompanied by the use of numerous pesticides or antibiotics that could accumulate to dangerous levels. But that is not the case with organic food as no additives mentioned above are used.
Organic Produce Is Obtained While Fresh
When you go organic, you will be guaranteed to get fresh supply as farmers often sell organic foods directly from the farms. Selling is done immediately after harvesting, which means there is minimal processing involved. This ensures that the product is good for consumption. Moreover, the less processing involved ensures that there are no pesticides and chemicals added as preservatives.
How your food is grown, raised, and processed has a huge impact on your health and the environment. Organically grown foods are more natural and have extra nutrients such as antioxidants. The inorganically grown foods have a higher concentration of chemicals, which are added in the form of herbicides, pesticides, and antibiotics.
And while we cannot state conclusively that GMOs are dangerous to humans, preliminary studies on organic food show a lesser concentration of chemicals in organic foods than GMOs. And that is so because GMOs are grown or raised with exposure to hormones, pesticide residues, and antibiotics. Overall, organic food is grown and raised in conditions that do not degrade the welfare of animals, and as well as in conditions that do not negatively impact the environment.
