maria rodale organic manifesto

Organic food might be better for you but better for the environment? Organic farming is more inefficient and requires more land. More land use means deforestation and less room for wildlife. Remember, some foods still have to be imported (fruits, coffee, etc.). And despite their claims, fair trade programs don't offer as much oversight as we're led to believe. So enjoy your organic food and nevermind that someone in a third-world country has to go with less or without any food because you thought you were doing a good thing!

Organic does not mean clean, pure, or safe. It means that, except for a few exceptions, it has a carbon atom. Motor oil, gasoline, DDT, pesticides, and plastics are organic materials.

Maria, I would guess, is the product of having to be surrounded by people who have experienced healthy eating habits. And she continues to subscribe to this important culture of eating healthy in her latter years. I'm 74 yrs old and as a young boy (about 6 yrs) my Dad had us kids plant vegetables in the backyard. Cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. I recall one night at dinner time my Dad had cooked a cabbage meal (from the garden) and lo and behold, an overdone caterpillar surfaced on my plate. After a loud yell from my chair, my Dad replied, "that caterpillar is healthy for you, so eat it". End of story and I'm still alive!

Thanks so much for the spread of the word. I have been doing this nealy 7 years now inside and outside my home. I just started to grow my food organically. I been buying organics and I have cleaned out my entire home of all chemicals\. Its seems like alot to do, but your changes can be small but steady. Before you know it, your house is chemically clean . Our old product such as borox, peroxide , baking soda and vinigar are the worlds greatest product along with the use of a few essential oils to bring sent and aroma to your home. Keep on educating and everyone should strive to make our lives a much cleaner place to live. Our sweet animal friends also they really need help too. They were not meant to eat the food we have processed for them, and the health problems are risen along with out children lives. For a healther lifestyle go green..

I m glad that organic food gets more and more into our everyday language.I m now 30 years old and I started to read about it when I was only 14 years old...Back then a lot of people thought that I was weird.....I always told them to look arround; little girls early developed ;physicly becoming women at 8 years old....That is not normal! Organic farming isnt only good for our planet but for us as well. All those chemicals and hormones to "help" growing fruits, veggies and cereals or to raise cows ,chickens or other animals that end up in our plates.We do ingest those chemicals .The body assimilate it and We are genetically affected by it.More cancers, more deseases...We are what We eat!.I want the best for those I love and I do want a familly; a healty familly. Thats why organic food is part of my life. Thank You for spreading the words! Everyone has to know the impact of eating healthy organic food. Let s grow old on an healhy planet!You re doing a great job!Keep the good work!Thank You!

Organic matters to me, because I just want my kids to grow up healthy and strong. Processed food is killing our country! I am trying to learn how to grow more of our foods, but I sadly don't have much of a green thumb. So I am thankful for organic farmers and what they do for our food supply.

Organic matters to me because those foods have been proven to have a higher nutrient density!

A long time ago, organic farming was the only way of life. Commercial pesticides were not invented yet and farmers and non-farmers grew fruits and vegetables as a mainstay in their lives. They ate what they grew, therefore they knew that what they put in their soil and on their tables were what was going into their bodies.

Nowadays, with mass farming both locally and conventionally, and the population growing worldwide, food needs to be grown quickly and delivered to the stores quickly because of competition.

Ofcourse not everyone can go back to the old simple days of organic farming without some sacrifices as it's almost ironic how organic farming 30 years ago was a lot more cost-efficient than organic farming now.

Organic farmers have an intrinsic sense of duty to not only the public but to themselves and their families as well. Their main obligation as agriculturists is to feed the people well and to maintain the earth, whether altruistically or not.

We can thank organic farming by purchasing and supporting organic companies whose model of behavior helps protect Mother Earth and all of her inhabitants - present and future.

I'm not just writing this post to try and win a contest, but I've been toting organic and all-natural living since I was very young. My mother is a good role model of natural and healthy living. When I was young, my parents had mostly organic food on the table as they were able to grow it themselves so it has stayed as a focus in my life and I am also trying to raise my son to eat and live healthily.

Organic matter because we need to keep chemicals out of our bodies...period

As a busy Mama to 5 kids feeding them organic foods is so important! I want my children to be healthy and live long lives and I think the key is to be healthy and learn how to be healthy at a very young age!

I have to go a little outside the usual response to this. Organic matters to me, because we have done HORRIBLE things to our health as a species. In the process of destroying other creatures and 'making grown foods stronger' we have mutated our own immune systems, beaten up or internal systems and drastically altered both our own bodies and the bodies of our children. There are more cases today of asthma, food allergies and sesitivity and birth 'troubles' today than ever before. This is, I firmly believe, due to the chemicals and genetic alterations we use on one of the few things we MUST have in order to live.
For me, this makes organics an absolutely vital move for our nations health, as well as that of our suffering planet.
Thanks for letting me rant,
Gypsy
:D

I'm glad you have done this, and hope you can get it out there with your clout and name recognition. Been around long enough to have been in the forefront, then called a "leftover hippie", and now to see my own daughter involved in many wonderful causes like the "crop mobs" just featured in NY Times. Keep up the good work.

Right on Maria! I am a Mother of three and I whole heartedly agree with you. My goal in life is to learn to grow as much of our own food and medicine as possible (as well as be a good mom and human being).
I appreciate who you are and what you stand for.

That was great! Loved the cue cards at the end.