Is Organic Best?
There is increasing research to show that organic crops have a higher nutrient value
than their non-organic counterpart. Furthermore, organic farming does not harm the
environment in the way conventional farming does. Organic farmers grow crops on a
'rotational' basis, which means that the soil has time to recover, and nutrients
are replenished using organic matter.
Non-organic methods result in contaminated water supplies from chemical fertilisers,
pesticides and antibiotic residues. This not only harms fish and other wildlife,
but costs the water companies (and ultimately us) £120 million pounds a year to clean
up. In some lakes and streams, fish are becoming "feminised" from exposure to environmental
chemicals that mimic oestrogen, affecting their reproductive organs. The effect is
not confined to fish but is passed on to us as we eat the fish and drink the water.
Some of these chemicals have been linked to hormonal cancer such as breast and testicular
and to the decreasing sperm count seen over the last 50 years.
The water companies are doing their best and tell us there are no detectable levels
of such substances. However, hormones work in the body at parts per trillion - it
does not take much to cause an imbalance and we see this every day with PMS, menopausal
symptoms and fertility problems. There may not as yet be equipment sensitive enough
to detect such miniscule amounts and we should not be complacent. It not only makes
environmental sense to support organic farming, but health sense.