Uncle Jon

I had a conversation at a party this past weekend that got me thinking and that rarely happens (the thinking part), so I thought I would try and dissect it. I was talking to a nice lady who just moved here from Texas (drawl and all). She works at a local organic market and was going on about how she drinks Diet Coke and doesn't care what the other employees say and would never pay $6 for a pound of organic butter, 'cause it's still bad for y'all, even if it is organic!. Of course, being my passive aggressive self I kind of smiled and nodded along, and then thought of snappy replies on the way home. Now, I have to admit, $6 for butter is freaking insane, but it pretty much sums up how people think here think about organic food - there's price, and the health factor. My brother is an organic farmer (see "uncle Jon" pic at right) and I think he's one of the coolest people because he's doing what he loves and has very strong principles - and yes he's a total hippy that doesn't need material possessions to be happy and we all hate people like that because it makes us realize that WE SO DO!! Anyways... one of his sayings is to vote with your dollar, by buying things that are good for the environment. See, I think that most people don't get that about the food we eat - how it's grown not only affects our bodies, it affects the soil it's planted in, the insects that live in the soil, how cattle are raised and treated, it affects how famers who want to do the right thing are able to transition successfully to organic or self-sustainable farmers. It affects the rural neighbors who don't get a choice whether to breath pesticides or have it seep into their well water and the farm workers who have to continue picking fruit as planes fly overhead and shower them with poison. Now, I wrestle with whether it's better to buy non-organic locally and support my community farm, or buy organic even though it's travelled across the country. I also wrestle with trying to stick to a budget and not foreclosing on my house because I bought all organic groceries last week. So, my advice is to prioritize. The website http://www.deliciousorganics.com/Controversies/toptobuyorg.htm has a list of the top produce to buy organic - the ones with the most pesticides. It's a great starting point that I'm committed to following - and no, butter, is nowhere on the list. Add a comment if there are any other great sites out there -