Organic Agriculture

This week, the first fruits of all my labors this semester were harvested! I was able to pick a variety of vegetables that were plump, juicy, and ready for consumption. Take a look below to see my plunder!

As you can see from the picture above, I picked two heads of red lettuce, one head of green lettuce, two squash, an eggplant, a zucchini, and lots of beans.

After spending most of my time in the garden collecting my goods, we came together for a class discussion about organic agriculture. Here were some questions posed during the discussion:

1. Why (or why not) do you choose to eat organic foods?
2. Does the Organic label suit your needs?
3. What do you think sustainable agriculture means or should mean?

In regards to the first question, I would have to say my decision of whether or not to eat organic foods usually comes down to price. If the difference in price between organic and non-organic food is reasonable (I can't say I have a hard figure for the acceptable markup), I might choose to buy organic. However, more often than not my shallow, college-student pocket dictates my purchases.

We uncovered some information about the labeling that is associated with organic products.There are four categories of which food can be assigned based on its organic content:

• 100% Organic
• Organic (95% or more organic ingredients)
• Made with Organic Ingredients (At least 70% organic ingredients)
• Less than 70% Organic Ingredients

If a product falls within the first two categories, it may employ the use of the Organic Seal shown below.

I think this is a suitable labeling system once someone understands what each label means, but I have a feeling most people probably aren't familiar with these formal definitions (at least I wasn't).

Lastly, we touched on possible meanings of sustainable agriculture. I've always thought of this in the sense that the types of foods that we are growing and the techniques by which we are growing them must satisfy the population, enhance the growing environment, and limit the use of non-renewable resources. Libby brought up a valid addition to this definition, which is that sustainable agriculture needs to be cost effective for the grower and consumer. Otherwise, no matter how beneficial our practices may be to the population and environment around us, we won't be able to consistently afford them.

I'll leave you with an interesting link about Compost Tips for the Homes Gardener. This is a link from EDIS, a single-source repository of all current UF/IFAS numbered peer-reviewed publications. This site has lots of information about topics regarding (as quoted by the website): profitable and sustainable agriculture, our environment and natural resources, 4-H and other youth programs, Florida-friendly landscapes, communities that are vibrant and prosperous, and economic well-being and life quality for individuals and families.

Check it out!