There is a lot of talk these days about eating organic food. There are those who swear by it and say it is one of the best things you can do for your body, while others feel that going organic is simply not worth the extra cost that you have to pay for the food.

There is no denying that in some cases, organic food does cost more. This is due to a variety of reasons. First, the market is still emerging so there are not always a lot of people buying organic, which keeps the price up. There are also less organic producers than non-organic producers, which keeps the price up. However, the world of organic is changing.

Organic food is the fastest growing sector in agriculture, with its sales increasing by 20 percent per year. Currently, there are 1.3 million acres of land in Canada that is dedicated to organic food exclusively.

To find out if organic food is worth it, we first need to know what exactly it means to say a certain food is organic.

According to the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of the soils, eco-systems and people. This includes creating eco-systems capable of sustained productivity, maintaining soil fertility, controlling weeds, pests and diseases using host-predator relationships, beneficial insects and biological crop controls. As well, plant and animal waste is recycled and there is the use of crop rotation.

In terms of why you should eat organic, here are several reasons to show why organic is worth the extra cost.

1. According to the British Soil Association, organic farming is better for wildlife because the farmland is much richer than compared with conventional farm land. There are five times more wild plants, 57 percent more species and 44 percent more birds.
2. A Swiss study found that organic farmland soil has more soil microbes and more earthworms, making the soil healthier.
3. In Scotland, a study was done that found organic vegetable soups contain six times the amount of salicylic acid as non-organic vegetable soup. This acid is important in fighting bowel cancer and heart disorders.
4. Organic food has more nutrients as well. In a study by the Globe and Mail, it was found that our fruits and vegetables contain much less nutrients than they did 50 years ago. Our potatoes have 100 percent less Vitamin A, 57 percent less Vitamin C, 57 percent less iron, 50 percent less riboflavin and 18 percent thiamine. Broccoli has similar results. However, organic food 27 percent more Vitamin C, 29 percent more Iron and 14 percent more phosphorous than non-organic foods. Organic foods typically have much higher levels of Vitamin A, E, B, Zinc, Calcium and Fiber as well.
5. Organic farming can increase crop yields by three to five times, as has been seen in Peru, Ethiopia and Brazil, where crop yields were 20 to 250 percent higher.
6. 
   

Organic may cost more, but it is certainly better for us, the environment and the species who call our farmland home.

Craig and Layla Baird spent an entire year doing a new green thing each day. You can view their green journey at http://ourgreenyear.blogspot.com and their new eco-website at www.atlasbear.com. Currently they are involved in green speaking and you can contact them at craig@wildmail.com