Over the past decade, a new fad has swept the nation: organic foods. Organic markets like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's are popping up across America, offering a variety of organic produce, grass-fed beef, cage-free eggs, and all natural cosmetic products. People switch to organic products usually out of a desire to eat healthier and to take a stand on conventional agriculture and meat products. Food markets like Whole Foods actually feel more welcoming when you walk in. Compared to most grocery stores and pharmacies, you are greeted with warm lighting and earth-colored walls and floors, rather than fluorescent lights and linoleum floors. The meat section features elaborate detail, depicting pastoral settings of cows on wide open pastures and chickens running wild. Every item in the produce department is traced back to where it was grown, and the "USDA Organic Certified" label is printed on almost everything. In this context, consumers feel they are eating a healthy alternative, without synthetic hormones, pesticides or GMOs. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. These foods actually come from organically certified farms, but these farms are not as tight in regulation as one might assume. In reference to these cozy organic products and their origin, Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma, states: “They are organic in letter, not organic in spirit…if most organic consumers went to those places , they would feel like they were being ripped off." There are tons of loopholes in the organic system that allow them to sell fewer organic products to the consumer. And we fall for it. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned" ?Get an original essay Today we import more food from around the world than ever before. We have faded from a time when spices were one of the most valuable commodities to a time when we can walk into our local grocery and drug store. having everything we could want from all over the world at our fingertips. While this may seem like a dream come true compared to the old days, it doesn't come without serious consequences: higher food prices, chemicals being sprayed massive emissions, from synthetic hormones to preservatives, and carbon emissions are at an all-time high, in part due to the use of fossil fuels used to transport these food products from around the world. globe. This is not sustainable. Many see organic farming as a viable way to solve this mess. However, organic farming is not as different from regular farming as you might think at first glance. Upon further inspection, organic farming standards are not airtight and leave plenty of room for the spraying of harmful pesticides. The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) requires that these chemicals and pesticides come from a “natural source.” Let's take Rotenone for example. Rotenone has been a chemical used to spray organic produce for decades. In her article Mythbusting 101: Organic Farming > Conventional Agriculture, Christie Wilcox writes: “Because it is of natural origin, found in the roots and stems of a small number of subtropical plants, it was considered “safe” as well as “organic.” However, research has shown that rotenone is highly dangerous because it kills by attacking mitochondria, the powerhouses of all living cells.” Rotenone has been linked to Parkinson's disease in rats and can also cause itdeath in humans. This was allowed because of its “natural source,” but natural doesn't always mean good for you. These chemicals that come from a natural source are then processed lightly, if at all. NOSB is an organization that also votes on proposed pesticides allowed for organic farming, so the list is constantly evolving. Another concerning aspect of these chemicals is that the volume they are sprayed is not monitored by the government. Many of these chemicals are sprayed in heavy volumes, which can pose serious health risks to people and the environment. This is because these chemicals are often not as potent as conventionally used pesticides, so more of them are needed to have their proper effect. So what is the purpose of these organic foods? The organic food market has made $52 billion in the last two years worldwide, so it is obviously making a profit. Is certified organic food becoming widely available to provide the masses with a healthy, ethical alternative, or are companies like Whole Foods painting these beautiful pictures to turn a profit? It could be a mix of both. Organic foods aren't bad, despite what they might seem, and often provide a healthier alternative for consumers. However, these companies use a “supermarket pitch” to sell their products which makes it easier to hide what happens behind the scenes. As Michael Pollan states, “The supermarket pastoral is an extremely seductive literary form, seductive enough to survive in the face of any number of disheartening facts.” To ensure a healthier organic market with more accessible information, the organic food market must have different characteristics. standards and increased monitoring by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture). At the moment, the USDA still allows some GMOs to be used in organic farming, but the screening process allows them to go undetected. USDA organizations such as the National Organic Program (NOP) set regulations for organic foods, grant certificates, and conduct investigations when certified organic farmers are suspected of violating the code. But the level of regulation that currently exists is extremely lenient. This means that the organic label is misleading, because the product is treated with substances that are not strictly organic. Once an organic farmer obtains organic certification, he must comply with a production plan. This plan is then approved by a certifying organic agent. Once certification has been granted, a farmer cannot be penalized for the involuntary use of GMOs or inorganic pesticides used on plants, as long as it is not intentional. This in turn creates a loophole through which farmers can escape, allowing them to use these inorganic substances as long as this is “unintentional” in nature. The products they distribute can therefore be labeled as organic even if this claim lacks truth and their names are intact. If suspicion arises that an organic farmer is abusing their production plan and intentionally using pesticides, the USDA will intervene. The USDA requires that “certification agents test five percent of their certified operations annually. The certification bodies themselves determine which operations will be tested. (Henri Miller).” These testing policies are supported by organic communities and federations. The USDA's answer to why they mandate such minimal testing is that increased testing would incur operational costs.