Should we buy organic food products from Asian countries?

Is Asia produced organic food worth buying?

The Workers’ Daily and other media have reported that some organic foods farms sprinkle pesticides and fertilizers on vegetable plots. Although the personnel of the certification body will go to the organic base to check the standardization of the planting process, they will inform the planting base in advance.

 

 

Summary of this issue:

•Organic agriculture is not equal to "pure natural", and pure natural does not mean "harmless"

 

• Existing research shows that organic food does not mean more delicious, healthier and safer

 

• Buying organic food is actually paying for the organic food certification standards

 

• Whether to trust organic products is not only a scientific issue, but also a question of whether to trust regulatory agencies and public power

 

Today is different from the past. In order to eat more nutritiously and environmentally friendly, people are willing to spend several times the previous price for daily needs. 

The rise of organic food coincides with the changes in people's diet and consumption psychology. 

Compared with North America and Europe, although Asia’s organic food industry started late, urbanites have a natural preference for organic food. This reflects the increase in the consumption level of urban citizens, but the more important reason is probably for Asia. Extreme worries about the food safety situation.

 

The Asians believe that "you get what you pay for", so does high-priced organic food really mean more nutrition and health? Is domestically produced organic food worth buying?

 

▲Organic fruits sold in a British supermarket

 

What is organic farms food?

Organic food is a concept that first emerged in Europe, covering food categories such as grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy products, poultry and livestock products, aquatic products, and spices. 

The basic principles and requirements for the production and sales of organic food are: 

1. Artificially synthesized fertilizers, pesticides, growth hormones, antibiotics, herbicides, sewage sediments, etc. cannot be used in the entire production and processing process. 

Only rotation and intercropping, physical Catch insects and cover to prevent pests and weeds. 

2. Cannot use genetic engineering technology. 

3. The products produced need to undergo quality control and review by an independent certification body.

When it comes to the organic food certification standards formulated by various countries and institutions, the definition of "organic food" becomes relatively complicated. 

In addition to the above principles and requirements, the "Agricultural Products Organic Production Act" promulgated by the European Union and the United States "Federal Organic Food Production Act" also stipulate that the origin of organic food must be free of any pollution, and the soil for cultivating organic agricultural products should not be used within the last 3 years.

For any synthetic chemical substances, no synthetic food preservatives, additives, artificial colors, etc. are used during processing.

 

Organic beef certified by the United States Department of Agriculture USDA

For the production of organic meat and dairy products, the United States’ organic food standards also require: 

Livestock’s food must be organic; prevent livestock from getting sick by maintaining a clean breeding environment, recycling grazing, and a healthy diet, instead of antibiotics. 

For four months, livestock and cows can graze on the pasture. The chicks should have the freedom to breathe fresh air, receive direct sunlight and go out.

 

What is the difference between organic food and pollution-free food and green food that are also popular in recent years? 

All three have higher production standards than ordinary agricultural products. 

Both pollution-free agricultural products and green foods allow the use of chemically synthesized fertilizers and pesticides, but the use of highly toxic and high-residue pesticides and veterinary drugs is rejected. 

In addition, green food ( green food Two technical levels: A and AA) It is also required to produce in accordance with green food standards, implement full-process quality control and obtain the right to use green food marks. 

Measured from the difficulty of production and certification, organic food>green food> pollution-free products.

 

Do all the advantages of organic food stand up?

The British charity soil association has launched a "Why choose organic food" survey, the results show that:

1. 53% of people choose to avoid chemical residues
2. 55% of people think that the nutritional price of organic food is high
3. 35% of people choose organic food It's more delicious
4. 44% of people are to protect the environment and nature
5. 31% of people are considering animal welfare

 

Does organic food really have these qualities?

Whether organic vegetables are more nutritious, there is no one-size-fits-all answer, and the conclusions reached by various studies are also slightly different. 

In 2012, the Stanford University Health Policy Center selected 237 papers with the highest correlation among thousands of papers comparing organic foods and traditional foods as the object of analysis. The conclusion is that organic foods have no nutritional content, even better.

 

However, in 2016, the research team of Newcastle University in the United States reviewed 193 papers on milk and 67 papers on meat and found that the omega-3 fatty acids in organic meat and milk (commonly found in deep sea fish, seal oil.

And some plants, good for cardiovascular and brain) content is about 50% higher than traditional meat and dairy products.

 

However, the current consensus among academia and government departments is that there is no significant difference in nutritional content between organic foods and traditional products.

 

Is organic food better than inorganic food? 

Many people believe that the use of chemically synthesized fertilizers and pesticides will affect the flavor of agricultural products. 

There are indeed consumers who believe that organic fruits and vegetables are more delicious than ordinary fruits and vegetables, but there is no research that can confirm this. 

In addition, there are many factors that affect the taste of food, such as the place of origin (juvenile Huaibei is citrus), variety, transportation and storage environment, whether it has been carefully selected and so on. 

Compared with traditional fruits and vegetables, organic fruits and vegetables are generally small and inferior in quality.

Organic spinach recalled by the US FDA in early 2015, suspected of being infected with Listeria

Is organic food safer? 

Since organic foods are used in the production stage to prevent and control diseases and insect pests through the selection of pest-resistant crop varieties, insect traps, beneficial microorganisms, etc., compared with traditional food, organic food has fewer pesticide residues. 

But can organic food be 100% safe and harmless? 

Not necessarily. The reasons are: 

1. Although organic food does not use synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides, it still needs to use organic fertilizers (plant compost or animal manure) and biological pesticides instead. 

If the harmless treatment of organic fertilizers is not complete, the harmful organisms in the manure Including parasite eggs and pathogenic microorganisms may enter people's food chain, but bacterial contamination is more common, and cooked food has little effect on personal health.

 

2. Since chemical pesticides are not used, some fruits, vegetables and vegetables will produce natural pesticides in order to prevent natural enemies. 

A study by Bruce Ames, a professor of biochemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, found that among the 64 natural pesticides produced in the tested objects, 35 were carcinogens. 

And because it is not protected by chemical pesticides and herbicides, after several generations of growth, plants will produce higher concentrations of natural carcinogens.

 

3. Neither organic agriculture nor aquaculture can completely avoid the impact of the environment, because air, soil and water are mobile.

 

Therefore, organic food does not mean "purely natural", and "purely natural" does not mean harmless and not worthy of obsession. Chemically synthesized pesticides and fertilizers do not mean that they are naturally harmful, and they are safe when they meet regulatory standards.

 

Concern for environmental protection and animal welfare is a sign of social civilization. The concept of organic agriculture originated from the intuitive perception that the application of chemical fertilizers pollutes the environment and causes the inherent productivity of the soil to decrease. 

The organic production method protects water and soil quality by reducing pollution. This may be the true value of organic agriculture.

 

▲Organic product label issued by the European Union: European Leaf

How to buy organic foods?

From the perspective of nutrition and food safety, organic food has not performed better. 

However, due to the complex planting process of organic food, it requires more manpower and material resources. 

Asia's organic food industry is still in its infancy and is far from being a large-scale operation. Therefore, the price of organic food is often higher than half of the price of ordinary food. the above.

 

So how to buy good quality organic foods? 

The U.S. Environmental Working Group (EWG) produced a pesticide residue ranking list based on the pesticide residue testing data of 48 agricultural products published by the USDA. 

The top ten are: strawberries, apples, nectarines, peaches, celery, grapes, cherries, Spinach, tomato, sweet pepper. 

For fruits and vegetables with high pesticide residues, you can try to buy organic products.

 

In addition, when buying organic products, be sure to check the certification mark carefully.

 

USDA Organic Label of the United States Department of Agriculture

Certification marks are generally issued by certification bodies authorized by regulatory agencies in various countries. 

In the United States, USDA is responsible for the management of organic product legislation, certification and accreditation, penalties, and international cooperation. 

84 certification agencies (including private organizations and government agencies) are accredited by USDA to engage in organic product certification activities. 

The certification body shall conduct a review of the enterprises and farms that have obtained organic certification once a year, and may adopt on-site assessment without prior notice. 

The National Office of Organic Products conducts sampling tests on more than 5% of certified organic products every year, and handles complaints lodged by certification agencies and consumers. 

The result of complaint handling is usually to require companies to replace labels as required, and companies that have not previously obtained certification in accordance with the law Obtain certification or take mandatory enforcement measures. 

If mandatory enforcement measures are taken, the company will be fined less than US$11,000, and the organic certificate will be suspended or revoked.

 

Chinese organic products, organic conversion product labels

China currently has 61 organizations that can carry out organic product certification. 

When consumers buy organic products, they can check whether the product or product sales package has used the national mark of organic products, whether it is marked with a unique machine code, certification body name or logo. 

At the same time, you can also inquire about the product information corresponding to the organic code in the "China Food and Agricultural Products Certification Information System" (food.cnca.cn) of the CNCA.

 

Is Chinese organic food worth buying?

From a scientific point of view, whether or not organic food is worth buying is a controversial issue both at home and abroad. But why did Sanjiang Kitchen discuss this topic? 

Because the quality of organic food is not only a scientific issue, but also closely related to food safety supervision.

 

Strictly speaking, the authenticity of organic food cannot be concluded by scientific inspection, and can only be distinguished by identifying the authenticity of organic food. 

Because organic food emphasizes a production process, a set of certification standards covering planting, harvesting and packaging.

 

In other words, consumers are not only paying for the nutrition and deliciousness of organic food, but also paying for the organic label and the certification standards behind them. 

What they trust is the certification body and authority that endorses the certification system.

 

In the United States, the fair, transparent, and strict implementation of the organic food certification system relies on 84 credible certification agencies and USDA. 

In addition, consumers and organic producers are no longer strangers in the trading market. They will actively form alliances to form close relationships to enable individuals or communities to continue to support and supervise organic producers.

 

However, in China, due to weak supervision and lack of social integrity, the seemingly strict certification process actually has a lot of "operation space". The key to the chaos in China's organic food industry is the randomness of the certification process.

 

The Workers’ Daily and other media have reported that some organic farms sprinkle pesticides and fertilizers on vegetable plots. 

Although the personnel of the certification body will go to the organic base to check the standardization of the planting process, they will inform the planting base in advance. 

As long as it costs 20,000 to 30,000 yuan, some certification agencies or intermediary companies will send special personnel to help "finish" the entire certification process such as application, document review, and field inspection. 

There are also some "magic" certification service agencies that can provide "one-stop service", turning the enterprise from a poor one to a "high-quality" enterprise that "meets the certification requirements". 

The state stipulates that certification agencies cannot be engaged in certification consulting business at the same time, but in reality, most of them have tacit cooperative relationships with certification training agencies.

 

After all, whether you trust organic food is actually a question of whether you trust regulatory agencies and public power.

 

Reference materials:

 

[1] Stanford University's research on the nutritional components of organic foods

 

https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2012/09/little-evidence-of-health-benefits-from-organic-foods-study-finds.html

 

[2] Research on the nutritional components of organic foods by Newcastle University

 

http: //www.ncl.ac.uk/press/news/2016/02/organicandnon-organicmilkandmeat/

 

[3] Research by Bruce Ames, professor of biochemistry at the University of California, Berkeley

 

http://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2011/august/unfounded-pesticide-concerns-adversely-affect-the-health-of-low-income-populations.html

 

[4] A ranking of 48 pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables released by the US Environmental Working Group in 2016

https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/list.php

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