WEEKLY Q: Local, organic or ethical?
When you shop in what order of importance do you place the organic, local and ethical goals?
For example: would you pick the local option, the organic option from the other side of the world or the fairtrade, but not organic, option from the other side of the world?
For me I aim for local first as reducing food miles are most important in my opinion. Then I choose the ethical option if local is not available. Finally I go for organic if local and ethical options are unavailable.
Local wins for me because food miles, and the carbon emissions they produce, affect us all. Next come ethical choices, i.e. Fairtrade, as they directly affect the lives of others. Last for me is the organic option as they predominantly affect my own body first and others and the environment where the produce was grown to a lesser degree than ethical or local selections effect the bigger picture. Murky and subjective but how do you like them apples?
What do you think? What order do you place them in and why?
Thoughts?
Namaste
Al
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posted by City Hippy @ 9:29 PM
3 Comments:
I chose local seasonal first, then organic and then fairtrade. Like you I chose local because of emissions. I also chose it because I want to support my local farmers and economy. Then there is the fact that my body is living in a certain climate and I want foods that match the season my body is in so that I am energeticly balanced with my environment. Then I chose organic because I am not sure what the process is in delivery and transport waste with both organic and fairtrade but I do know what I am injesting. I strive to have both though.
No doubt about that -
organic wins by far. If it's local organic, the better, but I don't support the local farmers if they use pesticides, fertilizers, GMOs or in general are in factory farming. Can't support this! Then, local is of no value for me!
In contrast organic farming empowers farmers all over the world in sustainable agriculture. They and their family benefit, the animals benefit, the soil benefits, the environment benefits and last but not least the consumer benefit.
And it is hard to define "local" - some say, the main advantage gets lost if it is farther away than 12(!) miles, and it is difficult, to get all the food within a radius of only some miles.
So buy organic (seasonal is cheaper) but look for local organic food.
Fairtrade is something different - it's the way trade should be!
But it's a delicate matter and there are different problems involved with the current labeling system, though this should be no excuse - buy fairtrade whenever you can.
I agree with the other commenters that organic isn't just about your own health.
Non-organic farming involves vast quantities of fertilisers and pesticides that are very energy intensive to manufacture and whose raw materials are often oil and gas.
As such, local chemical farming is a lot less sustainable and may well involve a lot more fossil consumption than long-distance organic.
A survey in the USA showed fod contains around 6 calories from oil for every one derived from the sun.
Still very reluctant to buy anything that's been flown, mind.
And if - as the supermarkets offer - the choice is between UK chemical spuds or organic Israeli ones, i'd go for the UK.
Fortunately, there are local veg box schemes that mean we don't have an either/or choice.
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