Conscious Organic Food in India

As the world faces a huge food crunch, genetically modified food is produced to cope with the increasing demand, but the latest underdog that has been growing at twenty percent a year around the world is Organic food. Lets take a look at what makes food organic, the pros and cons of organic food, organic food in India and its availability in the market via conscious food. What is Organic Food?Wikipedia makes life so much easier doesn’t it? Organic foods are grown without the use of conventional pesticides, artificial fertilizers, human waste or sewage sludge. The post production processing of food should be done without ionizing radiation or food additives. Organic milk is produced by livestock that are reared without the routine use of antibiotics and growth hormones. In most countries, organic produce must not be genetically modified and is legally regulated in the United States, the European Union, Japan and many other countries. Producers are required to obtain organic certification in order to market food as organic, in India its regulated by the National Programme for Organic Production. Organic food in India: Recently a new brand known as Conscious Food has flooded the market, according to their website they were set up in 1990 and are India’s pioneering company in natural and organic food. The company sources most of its products from small organic farms and farming communities all over the country. Although the switch to organic food wont be viable for many people as the prices are higher than the normal variants available in the market. Although the entire product list is available on the website the prices are not mentioned. I have noted some of the prices below, they also deliver home for orders above Rs.300 Conscious food prices: Haldi 100 g Rs.37 Jeera 100 g Rs.50 Coriander Seeds 100g Rs.28 Yellow Lentil (Mung Dal) 500g Rs.76 Split Wheat Dalia (Organic) 200g Rs.27 The Pros and Cons of Organic Food: Pros Since there are no pesticides and lesser chemicals used organic farming is friendlier to the environment. Its healthier for the heart as organic processed food contains no hydrogenated fat. Its good for the animals as they are off antibiotics and hormones and ensures that animals are fed a natural diet and kept in free-range conditions. Genetically modified (GM) crops are not allowed under organic standards. Organic farms use less energy and produce less waste, such as packaging materials for chemicals. Organic fruit and vegetables contain up to 40% more antioxidants than conventional equivalents, and 90% more for organic milk Cons Organic fruits and vegetables tend to have a lower shelf life as they do not contain artificial preservatives and are not irradiated. One of the major set backs is the cost of organic food as discussed earlier. Although many people believe that organic food does not allow the use of any chemicals, organic food production does allow a limited number of chemicals to be used. Some studies show that organic food is equally nutritious and in some cases less nutritious than conventional food products, although with my personal experience of farm grown fruits and vegetables, the taste and feel is much better. Apart from the pros and cons developed countries organic systems on an average produce 92% of the yield produced by conventional agriculture. But organic systems produce 80% more than conventional farms in developing countries because the materials needed for organic farming are more accessible than synthetic farming materials to farmers. If you can afford organic food go ahead and try it, its a healthier option for people living in unhealthy cities.