Definitions
Many of the following definitions are provided as they pertain to food cultivation or in classifying healthy food itself.If there are other terms that you would like clarified, please email the web manager with any details.
Organic
Organic Farming Practices are not new to some farming practise. The definition of what is organic has become complicated because it depends on the certifying agency and country of origin. There are many exceptions to the no chemical list that is allowed. So Organic does not necessarily mean no chemicals or additives used in the food's production. What you are buying in a product labelled with the term Organic it is grown with fewer additives, insectides, herbicides and chemical fertilizer. Organic foods are a better choice, but consumers are faced with higher costs for organic versus non-organic. Certification of organic foods is costly for the producer and may result in a lower yield at harvest time. Any added cost for organic is usually justified. Health Educators can provide a list of foods that are absorb more chemicals in their growth and these may be the produce type to start with, if living within a strict food budget. As you purchase more organics, you will gradually switch over to more and more organic vegetables and fruits. There is a movement in Ontario, that some producers are no longer opting to paid the high prices required by certification but continue growing their fruits, vegetables or livestock as naturally as possible. This puts the consumer in the predicament of buying uncertified organics as opposed to organically labelled and marketed. There are many laws on the books that are to protect the consumer but in these hard ecomomic times, choices may have to be made in terms of one's health. Visit your local grower at farmers markets or through their produce stands and ask questions about their products and how they are grown or raised. You may have to develop a realtionship of trust based on the answers and the local reputation of the operation.Organic Food (Yahoo Answers 2007)
Notes by host J. Keith van Straaten *On the streets, we talked to dozens of people from all over the world. I don't think we found a single person who said organic food wasn't a better way to go. *The very crafty Jules Dervaes runs the Path To Freedom Urban Homestead with his family. They've created a genuine farm on their plain ol' city lot in Pasadena. They were gracious hosts to us for our shoot. And they didn't give us a hard time for misspelling their family name in the video. *Christine Bybee is indeed a certified nutritionist --and a nutritionist to the stars! The Rutgers University study she cites is actually still a topic of debate in the nutrition community. Judge for yourself. *Anna Getty has already judged and is definitely pro-organic! She's a spokesperson for The Organic Center and understandably I felt a little uncomfortable taking a Big Bite of hot dog in front of her. No worries; I more than made up for it a few weeks later. *The lady serving me my pizza and salad is Mani, our fabulous PA. I call her Libbie as a way of saying hi to my grandmother. What got cut... The salad Mani/Libbie put down was put together by the Dervaes family. It was made entirely from their farm, was 100% organic, and was topped by edible flowers. Yum! Still, the original ending had me getting into a tug-of-war over the non-organic pizza with our cameraman! (He won.) For more info on who I am and what I'm up to, check out my Yahoo! 360 page or my personal site. And who knows, maybe next time we're out talking to people on the street, we'll run into YOU! Visit these urban farmers and urban homesteaders at their website www.PathtoFreedom.comOntario Government Links on Organics
Gearing up for the 2011 
