What is “Organic”?

August 22, 2011 by crystal

I was recently at the Soulard Farmer’s Market with a good friend, searching for organic meat. We have recently made the switch to organic meat, and so it’s still new to me. I was walking around, blindly looking for anything that said “organic” on it, when my friend looked at me and asked, “What does that mean, exactly? What is organic?”

USDA Organic I started to talk about hormones and antibiotics. What about the animals’ living conditions? Their food? The way they are butchered? What happens if the animals get sick – are antibiotics okay then? Are there different rules for different animals? The more we talked about it, the more questions that I had. In the supermarket, I just look for the organic seal. At farmer’s markets and local butchers, it’s not always as clear.

So, I went over to the USDA’s website. They are the regulating body that approves that cute little green seal of approval. They have a LOT of information on the topic. I’m going to do my best to give you the quick and dirty version, and provide answers to some of the burning questions above.

What is organic?

- Organic food is produced in a sustainable way, with future generations in mind.
- No yucky stuff – Most pesticides aren’t allowed, and unnatural fertilizers aren’t allowed (i.e., “sewage sludge,” “synthetic ingredients,” and “radiation”).
- No genetically modified organisms.
- Organic animal products are not produced using growth hormones
- No antibiotics are allowed. At all. Period.
- Organic animal products were given only organic feed.
- Fewer additives, such as MSG, preservatives, artificial sweeteners, and dyes.

But don’t we need those things in our food?

- No!
- To keep soil healthy, crops can be rotated. Soil can be fertilized using natural sources.
- Rotational grazing can be used with animals, and the plants that they graze on can be varied as well.
- There are earth friendly methods available to keep pesky insects off of crops.
- Animals are given preventative antibiotics because they are raised too closely together. If the animals are given more space, they are less likely to need the antibiotics. Those animals that get sick and need antibiotics, which is rare, are removed from the herd. Organic meat contains NO antibiotics.
- Growth hormones that are injected into animals to make them bigger (and bigger quicker) and/or increase milk production are not necessary. Click here for more information on hormones in animals (and why I avoid eating them). Pay close attention to the part where Canadian researchers said that hormones can cause milk allergies, and then the FDA here in America claimed that they were wrong.
- When growth hormones are given to cows to make more milk – they then make more milk. The result is an oversupply. And just like with breastfeeding, an oversupply can easily lead to mastitis, which is then treated with antibiotics. So, dairy cows given growth hormones are more likely to need antibiotics.

Here’s something I didn’t know about growth hormones. They are allowed in cattle (for meat and dairy), but not chickens or pigs. Prior to researching the topic, I thought that chickens grew so fast because of hormones. However – that’s not true. Their rapid growth and large breasts are the result of years of breeding, and possibly their feed and antibiotics.

That being said, the levels of sex hormones that naturally occur in animals (estradiol, progesterone and testosterone) cannot be regulated, because there is no way of knowing how much was added and how much came from the animal. So, if you’re a conspiracy theorist, this might be especially frightening to you. Theoretically, they could be using these hormones, which are difficult to regulate.

So, in a nutshell, organic food is free of pesticides, antibiotics, and hormones. There’s no yucky stuff, like chemical fertilizers and genetically modified organisms. It is produced in using environmentally friendly methods, and the animals consume only organic feed.