You Are What You Eat - Go On Poison Yourself With Pesticides

[manxchatterbox]

On MR yesterday early eveining there was an interesting prog done by Beth Espey with the Richard Jacobs the Chief Executive of Organic Farmers and Growers an organic certifying body who has been visiting teh IOM. He's been offering advice to any farmers considering going organic. The MR farming correspondent and local grower, John Kennaugh said that contrary to increasing public opinion, inorganic food is not substandard.

 

Ah but ...in today's FT there was a piece about how vegetables and fruit are contaminated with pesticides, potatoes being well up on the list.

 

see also:-

http://www.foodnews.org/highpest.php?prod=PFR25J06&

 

 

So why don't the media do anything about asking DAFF about what pesticides are licensed and used on the IOM and also Environmental Health as to do they test IOM produce for pesticide residues and if not why not?

 

Locally grown new potatoes are now widely available...but are they organically grown or have they been treated with pestricides during the growing process???? are they healthy to eat or not ???

 

what about other locally grown produce thats widely available???

[Ripsaw]

OMG!!1!

 

I heard that broadcast and made my son play TT Superbikes with the sound off so that I could listen to it properly.

 

The guist that I took away from listening was that 70% of the Organic food consumed in the UK is imported and subsidies to farmers are being cut all over the place including the Isle of Man.

 

A lot of food produced on the Island is up to the standard of being labeled "Organic" but requires the official certification.

 

It would take a couple of years for the soils of the "non" organic farms to self produce the nitrates to match or excede current "supported" soils.

 

Demand for organic food continues to grow and the Isle of Man could exploit the market here and across a lot better than it currently does.

 

My overriding thought about John's input into the discussion is that he isn't entirely supportive of a move to Organic. He appeared to come across as a poor farmer, down trodden and scraping by on the breadline and instead of making positive contributions about new markets etc., he came across as more worried about losing his subsidies.

[Mission]

I'd like to see a greater organic offering locally.

 

I for one would certainly support anyone that was pushing organic produce.

[punchline1]

I think Shoprite try very hard with their choice of organic produce - ive heard that you can request certain fresh produce as well

[Gladys]

If that is true, then it is the only line that they do try hard with. Shame really, because Robinsons do seem to source a more varied range, but the quality is never quite there.

[Celt]

I would like to buy Organic things all the time but the price puts me off. Why does something that cost less the grow cost so much more?

 

I know they have to start somewhere but pricing it above the normal stuff seems strange to me.

[Gladys]

I think the reason Celt is that as they do not use chemical enhancers, pesticides etc. the crop yield is lower. The price is a major stumbling block; I know it is healthier produce, but when you compare the price against ordinary veg it does make you think twice about buying it.

 

Perhaps the way forward is for certain chemical treatments to be banned outright in all agriculture to encourage a return to more traditional, and healthier we are told, methods of farming. Having said that, when you think of the various compounds which are probably naturally present in soil, I wonder what the fuss is about organic produce!

[Ripsaw]

The Organic Farmers and Growers website

 

There are a lot of fallow fields around the Island that could be put to use providing the products that could be exported as part of the 70% that the UK is obtaining from everywhere else.

 

Organic is traditionally more labour intensive and can be subject to lower yields but the quality and taste is generally accepted to be higher in addition to the lack of chemicals etc., so commands a higher price.

 

I have no problem encouraging my son to eat his greens in meals or as snacks as he loves fruit and veg. I'd rather spend 30p on a handfull of carrots or a couple of apples than a single packet of crisps, so cost shouldn't be a major stumbling block.

 

If the demand was there (and I think it is) then supply could be increased and 'hopefully' the price would come down.

 

Seasonal availability is one downside. It is the desire to carry apples (for example) half way around the world that necessitates the use of some chemicals during the growing process.

 

Just did a quick search as I just remembered organic foods being asked about previously on the forum:

 

Local organic food sources

[saveourwater]

I have been interested in organic produce for some time now. Before my son was born I read an article that said children could exceed ‘safe’ levels of pesticide ingestion by eating a single apple or pear (let alone other food produce). Naturally we wanted to give our child the best possible start in life and have tried very hard to give him as much organic produce as we can find, including some home grown veggies etc.

 

It is hard though and you cannot always get what you are looking for, but over the past year the organic offerings of the local supermarkets have grown considerably and within the UK as a whole organic is the fastest growing sector and already valued at over £1 billion.

 

On the island there are already many organic growers and produce can be obtained if you are willing to look for it, a useful place to start is the Manx Organic Network T. 835436.

 

I also believe that the IOM government could support and take advantage of this growing sector, with proper subsidies the entire island could become organic. Organic farming does not necessarily have to mean lower yields either as there are many different methods out there some of which can actually increase yields, in fact I had a proposal I wanted to put to the government but then found out that their experimental farm at Knockaloe was to close so I put the idea on hold, but maybe if there is enough support out there I should approach them again.

 

Organic farming is definitely the way forward, not only is the produce healthier by containing more natural nutrients and less contaminants it is also better for the environment because of the way it is farmed i.e. less pesticides in field water run off that will eventually end up in rivers and the seas. It also tastes far better than non-organic, this point is re-enforced by the fact that many of the UK’s top chefs will only use organic produce in their restaurants because it makes the food taste better.

 

Go buy some organic milk or orange juice today and have a taste test against the non-organic stuff I think you will be able to taste the difference, as for the extra expense I think my child is worth it.

[Rog]

If people really ARE what they eat then a sizeable proportion of MHK’s not to mention members of LEGCO must be heavily into oral sex.

 

But to be serious --- (come to think of it, I was!) there is another knock on effect over the use of pesticides and that is that it kills bugs.

 

Pretty obvious eh? But bugs provide the food for many species of birds.

 

Here in Norfolk the bird population has gone pretty much into freefall for many species, especially the migratory birds such as house martins, swifts, swallows, etc. Even the indigenous kind are being dramatically depleted in numbers and there’s a marked change in the kinds of birds that we now see with magpies being far more common than in the past. This year to date I’ve not heard a single skylark for example.

 

It stands to reason, we destroy part of the food chain and those creatures that depend on it fail.

 

The effect of widespread and overuse of pesticides is very clear from the number plate and windscreen of my car.

 

Whereas a trip of around 150 miles on a Summer evening a few years ago would have given me a greased up windscreen with the corpses of a myriad of goodness-knows-whats splattered over it and a number plate that was simply smothered in guts-gunge the same journey now and in similar weather gives very little signs of things smashing into it.

 

I detest the sight of the local farmers killing the environment but at the same time I do recognise that it is in no small part die to the terribly destructive policies of central government and especially New Labour that as resulted in very low farm incomes that has led farmers to have to get the most saleable crop per acre simply to survive.

 

There really is no excuse for the UK government and especially not the Manx government to go 100% organic. It makes so much sense.

[manxchatterbox]

are any MF members or guests IOM farming folk???

[manxchatterbox]

..so that'll be a no then..guess the farming folk can't afford computers or MT access...its not very inclusive is it if that section of Manx society can't air their views on this forum??

[Alias]

There are 'farming folk' on this forum.

[manxchatterbox]

the Irish Govt have published a report on pesticides and residues in Irish produce - why hasn't the IOM Govt done a similar report ? or has it and doesn't want it made public??

 

link:-

 

http://www.teagasc.ie/research/reports/foo...8/eopr-4548.htm

[Albert Tatlock]

the Irish Govt have published a report on pesticides and residues in Irish produce - why hasn't the IOM Govt done a similar report ? or has it and doesn't want it made public??

 

link:-

 

http://www.teagasc.ie/research/reports/foo...8/eopr-4548.htm

Oh MCB I've missed you so much...though hopefully my rifle sight should be repaired by the end of the week.