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Organic Foods

stores have all jumped on the organic bandwagon in recent years. People are more knowledgeable than ever about what they put into their bodies, and a demand for healthier options is one of the reasons why organic foods racked up $43.3 billion in total sales in 2015—a number that’s expected to keep growing. So what’s all the hype about? To find out, we’ll have to start with the key question: What, exactly, makes food organic?

Educational Video

Organic Labeling

Scan this code for a video about the USDA Organic label.

O rganic S tandards : A n O verview At one time, all food was grown organically. Humans used the natural cycles of the earth to grow and harvest their crops. Chemical pesticides to repel bugs did not exist. Neither did the technology to modify plants in laboratories so that they grew in certain ways or were resistant to certain diseases. In the 20th century, these technologies, and many others, were introduced into farming. Agriculture became industrialized, meaning that machinery was employed to produce food on a larger scale than ever before. Farmers could produce more crops, but they had to rely on chemicals, synthetic fertilizers, and other techniques that introduced toxins into the food supply and endangered the long-term health of the soil. What became known as organic farming rose up in response to these dangers, as a small group of people began advocating for agricultural methods that respected the environment and produced food that was healthy and safe. Over the years, the definition of organic has evolved to mean foods grown without chemical pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, and sewer sludge (the leftover solids from

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