Samantha and Kelsey Artist Statement

Senior Project Essay
Kelsey and Samantha

Organic food: produced according to certain production standards. Pesticides, insecticides and herbicides are greatly restricted in production.
The world organic market has been growing by 20% a year since the early 1990’s with future growth estimates ranging from 10%-50% annually depending on the country. According to Henry’s Farmers Market, "Certified Organic" means the item has been grown according to strict federal standards that are verified by independent state or private organizations. Certification includes inspections of farm fields and processing facilities, detailed record keeping, and periodic testing of soil and water to ensure that growers and handlers are meeting the standards that have been set. Organic food is certified and traced from the farm to our stores. Certification organizations are accredited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).”
Many people think that organic food is more expensive than your average grocery store, but according to an Australian study by Choice Magazine in 2004, they discovered that processed organic foods in super markets are to be 65% more expensive than organic farmers markets. After comparing prices at our local Vons and Trader Joe’s, and farmer’s markets and we found this to be true. This may be the reason why people are reluctant to buy organic foods along with the fact that a lot of people are unaware of the actual costs.
Since organic foods are limited to pesticides, insecticides and herbicides, you’re getting slim to none of these harmful chemicals. Trader Joe’s meat and poultry products prohibit the use of hormones by the USDA. Hormones are artificial steroids that make animals gain weight fast while reducing the amount of food they eat producing more meat or poultry. Today, more than 80% of the cattle are raised by using artificial hormones. Zeranol and Estradiol hormones can be harmful to humans causing cancer and other related illnesses. The Emory University's School of Public Health conducted a study of pesticides in everyday foods that monitored the diets of a group of local children. The study found that the “urine and saliva of children eating a variety of conventional foods from area groceries contained biological markers of organophosphates, the family of pesticides spawned by the creation of nerve gas agents in World War II.” Within eight to 36 hours of the children switching to organic food, the pesticides were no longer detected in the testing.

Sources:
"Organic Trade Association." Organic Trade Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .

"Henry's Farmers Market - Organic Commitment." Henry's Farmers Market Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .

"Organic food - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .

"Welcome to Trader Joe's - Your Neighborhood Grocery Store - Product FAQs." Welcome to Trader Joe's - Your Neighborhood Grocery Store - Aloha!. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .

SCHNEIDER, ANDREW. "Harmful pesticides found in everyday food products." Seattle news, sports, entertainment | seattlepi.com - Seattle Post-Intelligencer. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .