Read 'n' Seed 5: Fourth Quarter and Final Review of The Organic Food Guide: How to Shop Smarter and Eat Healthier

 I just finished the last couple pages of The Organic Food Guide: How to Shop Smarter and Eat Healthier. The last two chapters- Price: Real Costs and Value of Organic Foods and How to Get Started Eating Organic- wrapped up the book very nicely. Here's a brief summary of each chapter before I move on to what I thought of the book as a whole:

Price: Real Costs and Value of Eating Organic
This chapter said that people generally choose food based on five basic criteria:

1. Price
2. Taste
3. Quality
4. Food Safety
5. Health and Nutrition

If price is your biggest concern, the author says organic food is NOT for you. He describes organic food as more or less a gourmet food in which you pay more for superior quality, taste, nutrition, etc. For many of us college students, it seems like buying organic may be cost prohibitive. For those who are still determined to buy organic however, the author suggests picking one product you eat a lot of and committing to consistently buying that product organic. 

How to Get Started Eating Organic
This chapter provided some pretty good tips for people who would like to begin eating organic but don't know where to start:

• Once again, pick one product you eat a lot of and commit to buying that product organic
• Taste test organic foods to find ones you enjoy and start adding them to your grocery list
• Get to know organic drinks: sodas, milk, juice, or wine
• Buy organic coffee beans
• Start buying organic treats like chocolate bars, cookies, or ice cream

These tips encourage you to start small and learn what organic foods are affordable to you that you enjoy eating. I hope these helped.

Overall, I thought this book was a very interesting introduction to organic eating. The book provided helpful information regarding organic food. Origins of organic farming, health and nutrition of organic foods, how to decipher food labels, taste, price, and how to get started eating organic were all covered in this short 75 page book. 

The most important information I got from this book:

 - The philosophy of organic farming. I learned the importance of striving to maintain the integrity of the entire ecosystem. Recognizing that food does not come from the supermarket- it is just shelved there. 

- The health of organic foods. Organic foods are often healthier. Products such as because the lack of pesticides, fungicides, etc. can weaken a plant and block their ability to manufacture beneficial nutrients. Organic farms, which use no pesticides, fungicides, etc. breed stronger plants higher in healthy antioxidants and phytochemicals. 

-Factors that contribute to higher cost of organic foods. Organic foods often cost more because of the many extra required steps involved in organic farming. More manual labor, more research costs, more regulations, and less preservatives (and thus shorter shelf life) all contribute to the increased cost of organic foods. 

All of this information was really helpful to apply whenever I consider buying food or eating out. I think it's important to keep in mind the origins of our food instead of just blindly grabbing a box off a shelf. This book has helped me be mindful of where my food comes from and the extensive process it undergoes before I eat it. This book also helped me recognize that, in paying more for organic foods, people are typically paying for superior quality (in terms of health benefits, safety, etc). 

I would recommend this book as a very introductory book to organic eating. I enjoyed reading this book and it provided a lot of helpful information. It's a very fast read. The only complaint I have is that the book is a bit outdated- published in 2004. I think a more current publication could provide more extensive information and more current statistics in relation to organic foods and farming. Overall, a great introductory book to help get anyone started eating organic!