I don't know about you, but buying organic is important to me. I feel very strongly about keeping as many pesticides out of my kiddos bodies as I can. We already live in a city with lots of chemicals and pollutants about, so I do what I can--you know how it is. So imagine my dismay when I read this.
There's lots of disturbing stuff in there, but here's my takeaway--the peanut factory that's at the root of all the salmonella brouhaha was certified organic! And perhaps even more disturbing to me is the fact that companies pay certifiers to inspect them. How does that make sense? I've always heard that there was a stringent process in becoming certified... but I had no idea it had such a possibility for corruption. I knew enough to know that organic wouldn't necessarily mean safe from pathogens/germs/contamination, but I thought there was at least some heightened integrity in the system. Good grief.
So out of this frustration comes my deeper commitment to a goal I'd already set for '09: to grow as much of my own food as possible. I've got the compost bin; the compost pail is on it's way, the first seeds are taking root as we speak, and I'm even more committed than before. I'm using this book--which will allow me to grow a lot of stuff in not a lot of space.
I was pretty determined to do this, darn tootin' I will now--I'm mad! (Can you tell?)
see? my corn is already poking through. take that, food safety standards.So. Where will you find me this weekend? Getting things ready for my garden, y'all. I'll make sure to post more pictures as it comes along--hopefully I'll have something to show for all my work (and fuming).
Dolcemente,
Lindsay
This is from a friend of mine...
ReplyDeleteHey! I saw your post today with the Times article. I actually work in the food industry and in fact lead our organic initiative. You'd be amazed at the regulations (or lack thereof) and follow-through from the USDA. If you have any questions about the programs, or are just interested, let me know. There is a great book called Organic, Inc. that goes into detail of the process, etc. I will say that the certifying agency that worked with the Georgia peanut plant is not one of the more well known ones and certainly not one that our customers would recognize as above board.
BTW, I LOVE LOVE LOVE your new website / photo party excursion. I wish I lived closer so that I could take advantage.
Yep, we are doing the same. We have our vegetable garden starter seedlings ready to go once Spring arrives. Growing my own food makes me really appreciate the food I put into my body. And home-grown tomatoes are the best!
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