Issues > September/October 2006 (#116) > Local or Organic? I'll Take Both

Local or Organic? I'll Take Both

by Mindy Pennybacker

Joan's Pear Chutney Kosenko

From Joan Gussow's This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader (Chelsea Green, 2001, $19.95, www.chelseagreen.com)

"If you can find a bag of slightly brown-around-the-edges pears that a local farmer is selling for a reduced price, they'll do just fine for chutney."

Mix together:

4 cups pears cut in 1-inch dice

1 cup light raisins

1 cup cider vinegar

3/4 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon each ginger, cinnamon, allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 fresh green or dried red chilies, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

Bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. Spoon into hot sterilized jars. Delicious!

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Photo: Local or Organic? I'll Take Both

What You Can Do

*Think, but don't fret about what you eat. "It's difficult to eat 100 percent organic. There are trade-offs. If you buy salad mix from California, that's a lot of food miles, but a lot of acres in California aren't going to be covered in pesticides," Fromartz says.

*See if you can eat more locally, especially in the season of abundance, from summer through fall. For inspiration, read the adventures of Sue Kiyabu, a Honolulu writer who, inspired by The Omnivore's Dilemma, resolved to eat nothing but food organically grown in Hawaii for a week—no small task in a state that grows only 25 percent of its food. See "No Shoyu. No Milk. No Bread. No Rice. The Gas-Saving, All-Organic 100-Mile Hawaiian Diet," at www.honoluluweekly.com.

To find a farmers' market near you, go to www.ams.usda.gov and www.localharvest.org.

*It's harvest season. Go to a nearby farm and pick berries, apples or pumpkins. And visit your local harvest fair. See www.foodreference.com/html/upcomingfoodevents.html.

*Ask your local farmer how he farms and raises animals. "Don't ask, 'Are you organic?' That's the wrong question. Ask, 'What pesticides and fertilizers do you use?' They'll tell you," Pollan says. For the worst agricultural pesticides, see the Lawn Care Product Report at www.thegreenguide.com/reports.

*Learn to separate marketing hype from meaningful words. "I'd encourage people to look beyond the language; read carefully," Pollan says.

*Look for labels that reflect your values. Know which labels are meaningful by downloading the Food and Drink Label Choices Smart Shoppers' Card.

Recommended Reading

Books can be ordered at www.thegreenguide.com/books

Organic, Inc.: Natural Foods and How They Grew by Samuel Fromartz (Harcourt, 2006, $25)

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan (Penguin, 2006, $26.95)

What to Eat: An Aisle-by-Aisle Guide to Savvy Food Choices and Good Eating by Marion Nestle (North Point Press, 2006, $30)

The Way We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter by Peter Singer and Jim Mason (Rodale, 2006, $34.95)

"Breaking the Chain: The Antitrust Case Against Wal-Mart" by Barry C. Lynn, Harper's Magazine, July 2006

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Filed under: Organic, Food and beverages, Certification and eco-labels, Factory farming, Community supported agriculture

Green Guide 116 | September/October 2006 | For Cooks