10.06.2013

Simply NOT Organic

You should know that I don't have a lot of faith in anything labeled organic...whether it comes from a store or farm or farmer's market. In fact, I'm going to surmise that it's actually just a chance for the non-organic farmers to get rid of the produce that isn't quite up to PERFECT IMAGE par....because many of the experts will tell you that organic foods might be blemished or imperfect "BECAUSE" they are natural. So the stuff that normally would've been fed to the swine, cattle and landfills is now repurposed as organic.

Pffffffffffffffffffffffffft.

Mind you, if you're a lawyer for the produce and farming industries, I said that I'm SURMISING this...I did NOT say it's a proven fact. :P

And actually, through the course of shopping and actually paying attention, I have noticed that the NON-organic stuff is a lot less perfect and less stable than its organic siblings.

Something really frightened me.  Back in July, the 23rd to be exact, I bought a package of "fresh" rosemary at Kroger.  Kroger brand "Simply Organic".


Maybe we should take a moment to consider what we consider to BE organic.  To me, it SHOULD mean, fresh, non-GMO, no chemical fertilizers, waters, pesticides or herbicides, no NOTHING just an heirloom, non-hybrid (redundant, yes) seed that grows into a fruit or vegetable and needs to be sold within a few days of harvest.  Ok, so here's the rub....

This picture was taken this morning, about 10 minutes ago:


This is OCTOBER 6.  July 23 to October 6....that's right...TWO and ONE-HALF MONTHS ago, I bought it.  Today it still looks like it did that first day. No mold, no discoloration, no wilting, no nothing. You may ask how I can tell that something is rotten in the state of Organics?  Because I have grown rosemary.  I have picked stems and I have watched them wilt, even with refrigeration, after a few days. This is highly, HIGHLY abnormal behavior for cut plant stems. Highly ABNORMAL.  

So, when the label says "No Preservatives" and Grown "organically"...I think I'm going to err on the side of BULLSHIT...because something, somewhere along the way made this "plant" grow to last.  Just for shits and giggles, it's back in the fridge, and we'll check on it periodically to see JUST HOW LONG it takes for it to spoil.  Needless to say, I think I'll just start and continue new herb plants because I have no desire to be preserved, above or below ground, for another century.  

Next up, remember when I got the farm-grown, fresh tomatoes?  September 3rd, if you don't recall.  Approximately one month ago.  Here's the haul on that day....


Note that the tomatoes and the cuke were consumed. Now note the unsuspecting zucchini on the left.  That was September 3rd.  This is today, again, October 6th: 


So, in a month, other than getting a little dirty because I dropped some olive oil on it while cooking....other than that, it is totally free of blemish, spoiling and still hard as a zucchini-shaped rock.  No, this farm does not advertise organic or non-GMO products, but still, it's a vegetable, grown on a FARM...you would think it would behave as normal garden-grown vegetables do.  

Clearly, there's some GMO action going on inside that less-than-squashable squash.  

So, yeah, organic? I don't buy it.  Literally or figuratively.  

Grow your own. That's the best advice I can ever give.  Even if you do use hybrid, GMO seeds, you'll at least be able to control exposure to chemicals and soil condition. 

Now, run away screaming. 

Happy Sunday! 


If you want to see what became of these items, go HERE




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