The Benefits and Cost of Organic Food

Considering its many promises and scientific claims to be substantially healthier and more environment friendly, it comes as a bit of surprise why organic food has not become the dominant norm in the food industry today. The evidences in support of organic food as considerably healthy and more environment friendly alternatives are convincing. The studies are conclusive enough, the testimonies are legitimate, the cost is reasonable yet for some reason, organic food still lags behind its conventional food counterparts.

Organic food are food that are produced in environment-friendly ways. Among livestock and poultry products, this means meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products that come from animals that are not given antibiotics or growth hormones. In agriculture,  organic food are crops, fruits and vegetables grown without using conventional chemical pesticides, fertilizers from synthetic additives, ingredients, sewage sludge, industrial solvents, or from bioengineering or irradiation processes. These organic food products are also processed using methods that comply with the standards of  recycling, ecological balance, and biodiversity conservation.

Interestingly, this is where the problem begins: production.

The Appeal and Irony

The appeal of organic food is overwhelming. There is simply no reason not to patronize organic superfood. First, they are clearly and more substantially healthy alternatives and health and well-being are basic human concerns and is part of very fundamental physiological even survival needs. Anybody can easily relate to this issue whether for personal individual concern or filial or social concern for the well-being of someone else. And for that, anybody can be drawn to organic food.

Second, scholarly and scientific literature has already proven the health benefits organic super food including certified claims of containing fewer pesticides residues and are therefore considerably safer. Even sugar-products like organic maple syrup in Singapore have been certified by regulatory bodies and government commissions to contain significantly less sugar. In other words, there are very few reasons to think of these products as hoax.

Third, consumers have shown that the issue has very little to do with taste as they have shown readiness to compromise habits and taste preferences. This makes all the more sense and if considered within the issue of more health reasons which are far more important that taste or personal choices. 

Organic Food and Production Issues

The fact that organic food is still not a dominant food industry presence has to do with production and very little with consumer preference. As many critics point out, sustainability, costs and difficulty of organic food production practices hamper many farm producers and manufacturers from engaging in large-scale and continuous production of organic food.

For instance, using chemical pesticide in agriculture is still a viable option for many farmers since chemical pesticides are cheaper and is more effective for mass production. Since the production of organic food is more expensive, they also tend to be more expensive by the time they reach the organic food shops, groceries and markets in Singapore and this creates problem of cost for consumers. Simply put, organic food products in Singapore may be too expensive for the average consumer which is why non-organic food products sustain their appeal to a broader consumer base.