The ORGANIC ADVANTAGES

Organic produce is grown with no synthetic chemical pesticides, no synthetic chemical fertilizers and with great attention paid to the health of the soils, animals and ecosystems that are involved in its creation. As a result, organic production offers the following benefits:

• It decreases the quantity of poisonous and determined chemicals in our food supply. This may have a dramatic effect on overall health.

• It uses practices that remove polluting chemicals and reduce nitrogen leaching, so safeguarding and preserving our water resources.

• It protects the condition of future generations by making long term answers to rural issues. The selections we make today will have a heavy impact on future generations.

• It encourages the protection of rural life.

• It creates a safer, healthier food supply.

• It improves the quality of the soil.

• It creates healthier habitats for both humans and wildlife. Organic agriculture places the balance of the ecosystem at the top of the priority list.

• It preserves a true economy. Organic food may seem to cost more, but conventional farming demands much more of society in terms of environmental and health costs.

THE LABELLING CONFUSION

Some of the terms used to describe eco-friendly products have some significance; others do not. It is important to remember however, that these products are not organic. Here’s what to look out for:

• GREEN A ‘green’ product is less damaging to the environment, but it still is not organic unless it has a certification symbol.

• FRIENDLY AND SAFE These terms create a wholesome image for a product, but if no further information is provided, it is impossible to tell whether or not the product really is less damaging to our environment.

• RECYCLED If something is marked ‘recycled’ it means it is made from, or contains, material that would otherwise have been waste; ‘recyclable’ simply means that it is technically possible to reuse material in the item. It does not guarantee that recycling will actually take place.

• BIODEGRADABLE This means that a product breaks down easily and naturally. Look to see whether some or all of the ingredients are biodegradable, and how quickly this will occur.

• NOT TESTED ON ANIMALS The ‘leaping bunny’ logo guarantees to consumers that no animal tests were used in the development and production of a product. The logo is already in the marketplace in the United States and Europe, and was organised by the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC).

• ECOLABELS The European ecolabel and its identification number code indicate that a product has been independently assessed and has passed very stringent criteria.