Organic food - what should I make organic....

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Hello

I cant afford to buy organic all the time but always buy organis milk for dd and carrots as they are cheap!

Sometimes the proce difference does persuade me to buy the normal stuff which is a shame, just noticed another thread about organic and heard someone say if you cant afford tobuy all organic there are certain foods you should buy organic.

Can you all tell me?

Thanks

what an excellent question, i've wondered this myself

i have really gone off the idea of buying non-organic meat, but it's so expensive that i'm virtually a vegetarian now!

I read an article - guardian or observer, can't remember, which said buy organic potatoes, carrots, poultry and I think milk.

I always buy organic milk, bread, eggs and carrots

I buy as many organic products as I can afford (which is not much)but was shocked to find out from a newspaper article (probably the same one) that for eggs to be certified organic the chicken only needs to be fed organically for the previous eight weeks so now I just buy the best free range ones I can afford.

I read an article recently that had a list of things you should buy organic and those where it makes little difference.

Bum. Must have been in the Grazia I read at my MILs house.

If you want meat, just get organic white meat, no point in organic red meat (as advised in the Indie). Never understood why organic bananas are a must since you peel them.

British lamb and beef are fine non-organic but go for organic chicken/pork/bacon

things that grow in or near to the ground should also be organinc ie potatoes, root veg

the healthiest eggs are columbus NOT organic

use organinc dairy/milk products

All the above advice came from Garzia magazine and I use it as a rough guide.

Here's the recent article in the Guardian

HTH

Thanks for posting that it was very interesting!

I read an article in the Observer Puff which said don't bother with Organic milk, but I simply don't believe it.
Sorry I can't remember what else it said and often wish I'd kept this article.

The Guardian piece says that organic milk has been shown to have up to 71% more omega 3 or essential fatty acids in it. That's enough for me to continue buying it.

I switched to organic milk for the higher omega 3/EFAs.

It's not always to do with the amount of pesticide residues.

Bunny2, that is pretty much the same as the article I read in the Times a couple of months ago.

If you are going to buy some organic produce buy - milk, root vegatables, apples, chicken, pork (red meat not necesary - there was a very good reason for this but I can't remember ). Buy British rather than organic red meat.

I changed to buying organic milk a few years ago after reading that a generation ago cows yielded approx. 9litres (I think) of milk a day, now they yield up to 6 times that amount due to the hormones, anti-biotics and other revolting sounding stuff that is pumped into their food. This doesn't happen with 'organic cows' so I am informed so for me there was no question!
with regard to organic meat, i get our meat from our local farm shop and although it's not organic it's home reared without the use of additives etc. so it's worth looking for a good farm shop (not much more expensive either)

My understanding is that root veg, chicken, milk and tomatoes are better bought organic. Can't remember why tomatoes...

I read that non-organic milk has a far higher mucous content than organic (something to do with being fed meal not grass or something else maybe). The word mucous is a very persuasive factor in my purchasing decisions...

Bunny2 - why are Columbus eggs the best?

As Allanah says, for eggs to be classified organic, the chicken only needs to be fed an organic diet for 8 wks. Non-organic eggs contain such tiny traces of non-organic undesirables, the difference between organic and non-organic is insignificant. Columbus eggs are naturally (due to the type of grain the chickens eat) very rich in the omega oils which are good for your heart. Hope that makes sense!

We eat everything organic if possible because the long-term effects of pesticides etc are unknown. Better safe than sorry.

We buy all organic meat (apart from sausages cos dd doesn't eat them), But this has meant that we actually cook a lot less meals involving meat.

we buy all organic fruit (dd loves her fruit) and vegetables depend on what we can afford

I get an organic delivery from a farm every week because my Father is the driver and I have found that I actually save money because the supermarket prices for organic food are a lot more expensive so might be worth looking at if you have any farms in your area. I do like to buy organic chicken though because of the hormones link with non-organic. Didn;t know red meat not worth it. That was useful. Out of interest Tesco seems to do more organic meat than Sainsbury's which did surprise me.

thanks Bunny2 - yes, it does make sense.

Why is buying organic red meat not necessary?

I buy milk for ds when available, eggs, some meat, veg & fruit where possible, if not I use local butcher & farm shop.

I was a dedicated organic shopper then read an article (Observer Food Monthly?) about the air miles and started checking the country of origin more thoroughly. Noticed that a lot of supermarket stuff is from overseas. Now I try and buy locally-sourced stuff from farm shops where I can ask exactly where something was grown/reared. Although they do not necessarily have organic accreditation I have been surprised by how much is grown without recourse to pesticides. Usually more seasonal too. Just wish I had the dedication for an allotment.