Organic Food Vs. Non-organic Food

Most of the world's population consumes non-organic food. Such food uses conventional farming methods. Organic foods are preferred by people who are more conscious about their health. They are produced using organic farming principles.

Organic farming uses preventive measures rather than cures. Organic farming is based on principles of health, ecology, care, and fairness. Keep reading to know more about organic food and conventionally produced non-organic food.

There are many myths surrounding organic food, with regards to its nutrition value, the manner of production, environment issues, cost, etc. Some people say that the taste differs between organic and non-organic food, but this is debatable, as taste is a factor which varies, from individual to individual.

There are several differences between food grown in an organic manner and food grown by conventional farming. Read the information ahead, to compare the facts about these two types of foods.

During processing, non-organic foods lose some nutrients and such nutrients have to be artificially added back to the food.

Organic foods contain more nutrients, that is, a higher amount of minerals and vitamin C.

Non-organic foods : Chemical fertilizers are used to provide nutrients for the growth of crops in conventional farming.

Organic foods : Natural fertilizers like green manure and compost are used for the plants and soil in organic farming. If the question is of chemical vs. organic fertilizers, then chemical fertilizers are obviously more harmful.

Non-organic: In conventional farming, there are over 450 pesticides which are permitted for use. Many of these pesticides are toxic.

Organic: Pesticides are not allowed in organic gardening or farming. In certain cases, they may be allowed but only after considering factors like necessity, effect on human health and environmental health.

Non-organic: Human waste is used as a fertilizer to grow crops in conventional farming. This contaminated sewage sludge may cause diseases.

Organic: Use of sewage sludge is not permitted in organic farming.

Herbicides are used in non-organic farming to protect crops from insects and weeds. Herbicides sometimes leave a harmful toxic residue on the plants.

Methods like crop rotation and hand weeding are used instead of herbicides in organic gardening and farming.

Non-organic food is irradiated, to kill harmful bacteria and other microorganisms. Such radiations might cause diseases in human beings.

Irradiation is avoided in organic farming.

Non-organic: Fertilizers contain nitrate as a common ingredient and this nitrate gets converted to nitrosamines, which may be retained in the food and may cause cancer.

Organic food contains lesser amount of nitrates in it.

Genetically-modified seeds are used in non-organic farming. Such seeds are expensive and difficult for farmers to afford. Such seeds give high-yield crops, but such plants may be deficient in nutrients.

Organic farming selects healthy seeds by seed testing.

Non-organic: Animals are given antibiotics against diseases. Intensive farming methods are used to grow chicken quickly and most of the time the animals are kept indoors.

Organic: Good animal husbandry standards are maintained in organic farming. No antibiotics are used on animals, but homeopathic medicine is used, in case an animal gets sick. If a farmer gives any antibiotic to an animal, he loses the certificate for organic farming. Livestock are handled and given a proper diet, and adequate exposure to the outdoors.

Non-organic: There are more chances of food poisoning with conventional farming food products because of the use of chemicals in the form of fertilizers and pesticides.

Organic: Possibility of toxic pathogens is very less in organic foods.

Non-organic: As animals are given antibiotics in conventional farming, human body, when sick does not accept the same antibiotics, thus reducing the body's immunity in the long run. Exposure to pesticides is harmful to humans and especially harmful to women's health.

Organic farming is not permitted to use such harmful chemicals. Thus, when you measure the pros and cons of organic vs. non-organic food, organic food is better, as it has lower health risks.

Non-organic: Use of pesticides damages aquatic life. Herbicides and pesticides contain toxic chemicals, resulting in lesser number of birds, insects and wild plants on the farmland. Earthworms are essential for good soil health and using pesticides and insecticides reduce earthworm population. This leads to increased dependence of the soil, on pesticides.

Organic farming uses crop rotation to prevent pests, by creating a more diverse ecological system to naturally grow the pest's predators. For increasing the quality of soil, natural manure and composting is done. Thus, the benefits of organic farming are more long-term and benefit in fighting problems like degradation of the environment.

Non-organic: Due to productivity and cropping regimes in conventional farming, there is more soil erosion.

Organic: Use of green manure and good topsoil management prevents soil erosion in organic farming.

Non-organic food contains many hidden cost like taxes and the cost of the treatment for the harm caused to the environment by conventional farming.

The pros and cons of organic farming shows us that organic food is more expensive. But with the number of farmers shifting to organic farming and increased government funding, the prices will come down. Also, organic food has lesser hidden cost.

Non-organic food is treated many times with preservatives.

Organic food decays earlier, as there are no preservatives added. Also, it looks similar to non-organic food, but sometimes might have different shapes and color.

All non-organic food products have the normal quality approval labels on them.

All organic food should have a USDA organic label.

Many times harmful preservatives are added to non-organic foods.

Organic foods are safer and better, as they don't use any toxic chemicals.

If you measure the availability of organic food to non-organic food, mostly it is the latter which is more easily available.

Some organic foods are imported from other countries and therefore, you cannot be assured of the quality of imported organic food.

Maximum consumers buy non-organic food, as it is cheaper and easily available.

Consumers are shifting towards buying organic foods, with growing awareness.

Organic food is better as it uses natural farming techniques. It is similar to preferring natural remedies when suffering from a disease than eating chemical antibiotics. So, the question of organic vs. non-organic foods - which is better, is clearly answered by the information that organic food surpasses the conventionally-produced food in several ways.