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It may not be different nutritionally, but it tastes so much better (at least to me).

I can't believe people would think that it is! If you grow the same varietal of produce, but one is organic and the other used pesticides - genetically they are still the same - why would there be a nutritional difference? The organic cause started as a means of eliminating pesticides from our food and the environment...nothing more.

genetically modified food does not accumulate in your body

take an apple cut it in half and sprinkle half with diazanone I'll tell you which half I want.

i had a little argument with my mom and a friend today because they ragged on me for not wanting to use lemon zest from regular store bought lemons .... i told them i didn't want pesticide zest, i wanted lemon zest...
some people get so hostile towards those of us who make the organic choice.... i can't believe it. i don't judge them on what they buy or eat, i wish they'd stop judging me.

As I mentioned in another comment section on the " corn free diet " the use of "organic " is a marketing ploy as is "grass fed ". Elimination of the use of " chemicals " in modern production of food and fiber is way ahead of the drug addled "sixties" mentality DUDE ! The last ditch argument "that it tastes better" is of course in the eye of the beholder, a position that organic growers depend on every morning . Julia Child ,the darling of all foodies [me included ] once said " there isn't enough horse shit in the world ". Alice Waters take notice!

@inkandsausages--absofuckingloutley.

It tastes better. And, there are less chemicals. It's worth it. Like someone else said, I don't typically buy organic bananas, avocados, etc, but I do buy organic tomatoes, peppers, apples...ESPECIALLY apples. I can't stand conventional apples.

I would much rather pay the money difference to buy produce grown without chemicals. It really bothers me when people just make food decisions based on money alone. You are supporting the degradation of the environment, and doing your own body harm by ingesting these chemicals.

And when it comes to grass fed vs factory farmed, organic or not, factory farmed meat is horrible for you, the animal, and the earth.

Make the right choices!!

I do it because I want fewer pesticides in the environment and our ground-water and I want to support traditional, less chemically intensive farming practices.

For that same reason, I care less about official "organic" certification that low-pesticide farming practices. A lot of times small family farmers (particularly the Hmong farmers here in CA) don't bother getting certified as it's too expensive to do so, but they don't use many chemicals in their farming. Plus, I like the idea of putting fewer chemicals into my own body - but as I said, that's NOt my primary motivation. And really, why do people get so judgemental about it anyhow?

I can think of a whole lot of ways this study could have been flawed. Where did they get the non-organic produce, for example? If they got the produce from neighboring farms and one is certified organic and the other uses organic methods but isn't certified, you're going to have nearly identical produce because all the environmental variables -- weather, what's naturally in the soil, etc., are going to be as identical as you can get. But it's not a true test of nonorganic foodstuffs because the nonorganic farmer is technically organic -- he just hasn't been certified.

If the organic farmer happened to be right next door to a nonorganic farmer, and winds happen to blow in that direction a lot, that organic produce may be grown without pesticides, but you can't stop the wind from blowing things from one farm to another. Maybe there are fewer pesticides and fertilizers, but when you get a good wind going, dust and dirt can travel a long way.

Besides those flaws (and others like them) when people say that they think organic is better for them, I don't think they're talking about the amount of vitamin A, they're talking about the lack of chemicals. Those are two completely different concerns.

For me, I find it refreshing when I buy organic lettuce from the farmer's market and there's actually DIRT on it! I don't know, it is probably just in my head, but I do get sense of freshness from organic produce that I don't from conventional. I also started only buying organic bananas after my mother heard that the pesticides they use on banana crops were killing birds in surrounding areas. I agree with the comments that say this study totally ignores the environmental effects of farming with pesticides, it's too bad.

Yeah, sure the actual nutritional content of the produce may be the same in terms of vitamins and minerals, but what they didn't consider is the nutritional value of pesticides, they have no nutritonal benifits. I am a active advocate of organic produce and i try to convince everyone i can that it is worth the money to buy organic food. Personally, i don't think our society is organic friendly enough.

Organic food tastes better because you've generally bought it at a farmer's market, which means you're buying very fresh, naturally ripened produce, as opposed to the pap we buy at the grocery store.

Locally grown pesticide-laden produce of the same freshness would most likely have a comparable flavor.

At any rate, "organic" as it's applied to domestic food products is a meaningless term stolen by food processing giants looking to make a few extra bucks.

Organic Kellogg's for breakfast? What a joke. I feel sorry for the suckers buying into that garbage.

Following a truly "organic" lifestyle by definition should exclude the edible food substances Michael Pollan so loves to discuss.

In the long run, organic isn't healthier unless you're following a healthy diet to begin with, and even then, it poses only nominal value: cook for yourself every day, and mostly eat veggies, and you'll be fine.

Watch the latest edition of Penn & Teller's show Bullsh!t on Showtime.

It's on organic food. My favorite bit was slicing a banana in half and telling test subjects one half was organic and the other was not. A big majority of tasters said the "organic" half of the banana was much tastier, more natural, etc, while the other tasted artificial or flat. LOL!

Most tasters (in a blind test) preferred NOT organic tomatoes that otherwise looked the same. They were stunned at their picks.

The show also shot down the theories that organic means more nutrition, less toxins, and better for the environment. Watch it for details.

According to an organic guru cited on the show, total organic farming on a global basis would not produce enough food for the current population of the earth to eat. About 3 Billion folks would have to starve out. Are you willing to sacrifice yourself? Somebody has to go.

Organic has become a buzzword that big food corporations use to sucker hipster doofuses into paying more for food so the hipsters can send a message that they "care" more about the earth. Buy a T-shirt. It's cheaper, and better for the environment.

I truly care about the environment and safe food, but I believe the "organic" label has turned into a marketing ploy that generates corporate profits based on the desires of smug people who think they are doing the right thing,

Well yeah, no sh*t...organic foods don't suddenly have less calories, or more vitamins and minerals because they're grown a certain way.

But, you're not getting all of the chemicals and other crap when you buy organic. So, even if the food is essentially the same, you're still getting some benefit from buying organic. I buy organic fruits and veggies where it's appropriate, but I'm not really worried about things like bananas, that have a thick outer peel that is removed before consumption.

well, 'nutritious' and 'healthy' are not the same. it is heathier to not eat poison. therefore, non-pesticide foods are healthier than pesticided foods. i can't believe someone paid for this study. why would organic be more nutritious? what a useless study.

Heroin, gasoline, bird crap, and marijuana all come from nature's organic bounty.

I eat as much organic and home/local grown for what ISN'T in it: pesticides. And honestly- homegrown *in season* organic produce tastes 1000x better than anything I have ever bought from a big supermarket...or even my beloved trader joes :)

Organic Produce is still grown with Pesticides, it's just grown with organic pesticides.

Unfortunately, Organic doesn't really mean what it was intended to mean. I'm not sure about the nutritional value of organics versus non-organics, but my palate tells me there is a taste difference between fresh organic and non-organic.

As far as studies are concerned, if you want to prove something and skew the study the right way, you can come up with just about any result you want.

I just wanted to split this into two seperate replies, so I don't ramble :)

@pavlov: I agree, a lot of commercial companies and corporations are jumping on the organic bandwagon, turning organic not so much into a product, but a brand. This is entirely not what organic farming principals were founded upon, and it really amplifies the things that are not so good about organic farming and organic foods. Many commercial companies (Stony Field and Earthbound Farms come to mind) are using the same farming techniques they used for conventional - mass producing food using factory methods - only instead of conventional, they slap on the organic label, doing 'just-enough' to earn that badge. Even though this is an improvement upon the older industrial farming methods, especially in regards to the environment, but the same idea of mass production is still there ... industrial-organic. The term organic as it applies to farmers-market produce, and organic as it applies to TV-dinners or cereal blends are, in my opinion, not the same term.

Regarding the cost of organic foods, first i have to clear the air and say that yes, organic food are grown without pesticides and chemicals using more sustainable(and slightly more expensive methods), BUT you are most likely going to be the one eating the food, and if you are not willing to spend a little more money to buy food that is better for you, then what would you be willing to spend money on for yourself???
Food is something EVERYONE NEEDS, at least a few times a day, you might as well make it as good and delicious for you as it can be.

YOU ARE WORTH IT!

So... you'd rather have an Organic apple shipped from Australia than one from your neighbors yard?

Who the heck says most Organic comes from farmer's markets?! HA! Go read Omnivore's Dilemma to get an idea what the word Organic really means these days.

>>> "Study finds: Organic food is no healthier than conventional"

That's the biggest crock of shit I have ever heard in my life.
As if Organic isn't better than food grown with chemicals and in soil depleted of all of it's minerals and goodness. Where does food get it's nutrients? From the soil and the sun... and if the soil is dead, chemicals fertilizers have to be used...Why are chemical fertilizers used anyways? What about eggs? Are free range chickens and eggs worse for you in some way? Big Pharma doesn't like healthy people,, who wrote this article? Who are you people who think Organic isn't better for you, especially in some cities where the environment will kill you slowely... How do you make your body stong so you don't get sick? Medicine? If anyone thinks that, you're a fool!

Better for the environment? NOT. Organics are fertilized with manure (the ONLY allowable fertilizer for organic labeling). Cows produce methane which is 23 times more harmful than CO2 for all you organic global warmers out there. We can make the argument that organics are therefore MORE harmful to the environment.

The only reason to eat organic is to send a message that you "care" more than those of us who don't. It's a political statement, nothing more, nothing less.

Just like "recycling". Those who do look down on those who don't.

Organic and locally-grown produce (together or separately) will continue to be a niche market. As someone above noted, if we could flip a switch tomorrow and demand that everything be grown organically, there wouldn't be enough food to feed the world's population. If we banned food shipments and demanded that people only eat local produce, people would have to leave many cities or risk starvation. I doubt that New York City residents could survive if they could only eat foods grown in a 50- or 100-mile radius.

If we flipped that switch, resigned ourselves to the fact that millions would starve, and banned food shipments, we'd be risking a whole lot of localized famines when crops failed. Right now there's some nasty blight killing plants in the east. Where I live, we've had too much rainfall this year (after several years of water rationing for things like pretty green lawns) and we've also had some hailstorms that did significant damage to farms. Just west of here, a late frost this past spring did major damage to the stone fruit production. Without pesticides, a lot of farmers would not be able to keep up with insect damage. It's one thing to go out into your garden and pick the bugs off with tweezers, but even a small farm couldn't do that. Given a choice between losing an entire region's crops due to a locust infestation, or bringing out a bigger arsenal of pesticides, I wonder how many people would choose to lose the farm (no crops, no income) or let the entire region starve?

And of course, we have those nasty seasons. We'd all have to learn how to can and pickle and store foods to last us through winters and last us even longer in case of local shortages.

Of course, those scenarios are extreme. It's not going to happen. We have factory farms and synthetic pesticides and they are here to stay. People who choose to grow organic crops are free to do so. People who want to buy nothing but local and organic can choose to do so. But they have those options because the vast majority of people choose differently.

Personally, I buy local produce when it's available. Much of the year it isn't available. I buy organic when it makes sense. But I realize that many people can't afford organic, don't care about local, and that's their choice. And honestly, sometimes it's not my choice, either.

I'm trying to eat as many of those methane producing bastards as I can... In the meantime, I'll drive my Hummer down to the farmers market and buy Organic, because it tastes better...not because it is a political statement.

If the added benefit to organic food is ocean front property for the fine folks of Nebraska... then so be it! I've always wanted an excuse to buy a big assed boat!

Tastes better (even The Hubby notices the difference)

Less "offensive" to my diabetic (over 40) body, which helps balance fluctuating hormones - due to age and condition

Less processed (which has steadily lowered my blood sugar naturally - a plus since I take12 pills a day and would like NOT to)

Just plain better for the environment....

He may have been at my local Farmers market, there's always several Hummers, Escalades and other land Yachts.

@dbcurrie: I think they meant processed as in containing synthetic ingredients ... there are lots of packaged items in the grocery store (tv dinners, cereal, cheeses, yogurts, crackers, etc.) that are labeled organic, but you have to give the makers of these things credit: take a look at their ingredient list, and you will not find things like HFCS, Caramel Coloring, Red 40, or any other mysterious chemical (At least on the things I've seen ... I know HFCS and many other things are derived from corn, and as far as I know, that is their primary ingredient .... does anyone know if HFCS counts as organic if its made from organic corn?) Not to say that HFCS is bad in and of itself .... that's a whole different can of worms!

@Sienna: So true ... Living around the edge of the Portland area where city meets farm, I happen to know several farmers and growers. The added weight of having to carry the 'organic' label comes with a hefty price, and some just don't do it because of the added costs and governmental intrusion, even though their food is 'un-officially' grown organically.

In this sense, I must agree with you ... there is a large marketing factor involved in buying 'organic', which is why I say organic is becoming a 'brand' more than anything. When you buy something labeled organic, you can be guaranteed that it meets the necessary requirements of the organic brand - Just as when you buy a Pepsi or a Coke product, you can rest assured that it is going to be just as good as every other Pepsi or Coke, and always will be. This makes the organic brand a 'safe choice' for those interested in buying only organic, and large companies have become very efficient at getting people hooked on brands. But who is to say that non-organic produce could be just as good as organic, even if it doesn't carry that label? As a self-described organic buyer, I have to thank you for reminding me of this point.

I think the best solution is for consumers to know as much as possible about where their food comes from. Its been kicked around a few times in govt. about adding labels indicating where a particular cut of meat or bushel of apples comes from right on the packaging. Produce already does this ... doing this for meat would just make as much logical sense as well. Those people that really care about where their meat comes from can choose one that comes from a farm they like ... these people can research that farm, find out how they raise the animals, ask the farmer questions about their methods ... And those that don't care ... well, then the extra information won't mean much, but at least it will be there. Anything that gives the consumer additional information about origin of production would give consumers more confidence (if they so choose to use the added knowledge) about buying their food ... 'organic'-label or not.

@ajbetz, I doubt most people would define "processed" as "containing synthetic ingredients." Most folks would say that it's something that has been cooked, ground, separated, heated, frozen, mixed, steamed, or otherwise gone through some sort of processing that changes it from its original state (a fresh tomato) to a processed food, like jarred spaghetti sauce or packaged mac 'n cheese.

As far as processed foods that are labeled organic, they can be just as processed as a nonorganic box 'o processed goop. And depending on which "organic" label we're talking about, it can have up to 30% non-organically derived ingredients. So if you want only organic, you need to know a little more about what those labels mean. Almost 1/3 non-organic is probably not what people assume when they see the label.

And as it has been pointed out upstream, organic doesn't mean that pesticides aren't used, and it doesn mean that the pesticides used are benign to humans or the environment. So that argument's out the window.

As far as GMOs, currently in the US organic foods aren't supposed to contain GMOs, but that rule differs in other countries. So if you're buying organic produce that came from another country, it could still bear that country's organic blessing.

As far as reading labels on organic processed foods. Meh. No thanks. I don't buy processed foods much, whether they're organic or not. But your examples of what's not in there -- the red dye used in food is completely natural. It's made from bugs. Could be organic or not, depending on the source of the critters, I suppose, but it is a completely naturally-derived product and not synthetic. Caramel color is also considered a natural rather than synthetic product. So if the concern is whether something is synthetic or not, those two items are most likely not synthetic. Of course, someone could play with them in a lab and do scary things to them, but right off the bat, they aren't evil substances.

I'm not going to get into the world of HFCS.

IMHO the problem with the organic label is that people look at it and assume all sorts of things that aren't necessarily true. And they look at other things on labels and make other assumptions, which also may not be true. Just because something is described by a chemical name, it doesn't mean that it was synthetically derived, or that it's bad for you. Dihydrogen monoxide, for example, is perfectly benign in normal quantities.

@shnickyy: I don't think people are proposing that thick-skinned stuff are immune to pesticides, just that if you had to make a choice, those would be lower on the list as far as cost effectiveness goes.

The "organic" food movement may have started out as a move toward a healthier way of life, but it has, for all intents and purposes, become a marketing ploy. It has become trendy, and when something like that becomes trendy, it often loses much of its original purpose. Since the USDA is in direct control of what is labeled "organic" in the US, lobbyists and large industries are able to direct what is "organic" to suit their needs as producers, rather than our desires as consumers. From Wikipedia: "In December 2005, the 2006 agricultural appropriations bill was passed with a rider allowing 38 synthetic ingredients to be used in organic foods. Among the ingredients are food colorings, starches, sausage and hot-dog casings, hops, fish oil, chipotle chili pepper, and gelatin. This allowed Anheuser-Busch in 2007 to have its Wild Hop Lager certified organic 'even though [it] uses hops grown with chemical fertilizers and sprayed with pesticides.' "

As a person who likes to make conscientious food choices, this displeases me. The bigger the organic industry gets, the more loopholes there will be to allow them to market questionable items as organic. What's more, many small operations can't even afford to be tested and labeled organic, even though they may employ purer and more sustainable means of production than the heavy-hitters.

Personally, I think the answer is to buy local and grow your own food when possible. Not only does buying local impact the local economy much more directly (and positively), but it has the added benefit of allowing you to form a relationship with the people who actually produce your food. And even though organic and conventional taste about the same most of the time (they do--I used to work at a natural foods grocery in the deli, so I ate a lot of organic food), local produce and meat usually tastes leagues better to me than the grocery store versions. To this day, I haven't had a grocery-store tomato that is as good as the tomatoes my grandmother used to grow in her garden; they are all weak and pale imitations. Add to the fact that you're paying a hefty fuel cost for food that travels from distant locations, and it's kind of a no-brainer.

Methane is a byproduct of the bacterial flora in a cows digestive tract. it is there to break down the complex carbohydrates in grass to digestible food. That is why they have 4 stomachs and regurgitate cud, it is symbiotic, just like the bacterial flora in your system breaking down complex carbohydrates and producing methane when you have improperly washed beans or White Castle hamburgers. Grass fed ruminants produce methane as their food is digested, corn has nothing to do with it, if anything, the sugars in corn are more easily digested as they are simple sugars, and don't require enzyme activity or bacterial fermentation to make them usable by the body.

All this string has shown me is that Organic is a religion to the devout, nonbelievers are heretics are fools. There should be a happy medium in between. There is not enough organic fertilizer of farmland available to feed the world with organic practices. Tyson and Smithfield are damned as factory farmers, chicken, cattle and hog waste are pollution, but where are the organic growers who need the manure to fertilize? if they were gone, and farming went back to small, they would not have enough manure to be sustainable..