OT..going organic.

[JillandFamily]

Any suggestion on were to start? Trying to change to all organic, but what things did you start with first? TIA

 

[Parkhopper]

We started with fruits and vegetables and then hormone free meats.

Suzi

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

I would start with fruits and vegetables. I love organic tomatoes on the vine. They are so good. This is what I am doing, getting various things when it is on sale.

 

[mickeytattoo95]

Here's the list of what to start with. I've read several articles that say you are better off not eating these fruits/veggies if you're not eating organic. Pesticides penetrate so easily into these. Here's the list:

* Apples
* Cherries
* Grapes
* Peaches
* Nectarines
* Pears
* Lettuce
* Strawberries
* Bell peppers
* Celery
* Potatoes
* Spinach

 

[busyshrew]

We try to buy certain fruits organic. Anything "soft" or typically high-spray.

Peaches
Apples
soft berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries)
Also:
milk (if it's organic, in our town, that also means it's local too - bonus!)f

We don't bother buying organic bananas, melon, oranges, grapefruit (the selection for us, in Ontario, is almost nil for those items anyway).

I find that for us, buying organic is not always the best choice. Instead, we really focus on buying local. We buy all our eggs and meat and cheese and milk, and all of our produce from May to October (Mother's Day to Hallowe'en) from local sources. Many of our local farmers and food producers use good practices (low-spray, etc) and are CLOSE to organic, but not quite. For example, we buy our poultry from a local processor. The chickens are locally raised, hormone-free, antibiotics free, etc. BUT because their feed itself is not 100% certified organic, the poultry can't be certified organic. Is it good enough for me? Absolutely. Is it organic? Absolutely not.

I find if you get connected to your food sources and ask respectful questions, you might be pleasantly surprised at the answers. I was very impressed when I learned that my butcher knew exactly what farm his pigs were coming from.... and offered to send me there if I wanted to take a look.

Enjoy!

 

[Kitzka]

i started with dairy as that is what we eat the most of. found a local milk man who will deliver organic, hormone free milk to the house. also eggs, cheese. then moved on to veggies. have not quite gotten to meat yet as it's so expensive but altering the budget so i can go organic in a few weeks.

lara

 

[sau418]

You may want to look into a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Some of them provide local organic produce and some also have meats. It is a much better budget option while also helping out the local farmers.

The one we participate in provides a ton of fresh fruit and veggies for a great price. We pick up our basket once a week and get 7-9 different items in each basket including lettuces, herbs, apples, watermelon, berries, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, just to name a few.

 

[CuteAndFluffy]

I started with organic milk and yogurt. Next were fruits where I eat the outside (apples, pears, berries). Then veggies. Meat is up next, but to make it affordable we need to cut down on how much of it we eat.

I don't bother with too many organic processed foods. Cheddar bunnies are great, but I can't justify paying double for a snack cracker when Goldfish are just fine.

Good for you for making a great choice for your family!

 

[Evi]

Here's the list of what to start with. I've read several articles that say you are better off not eating these fruits/veggies if you're not eating organic. Pesticides penetrate so easily into these. Here's the list:

* Apples
* Cherries
* Grapes
* Peaches
* Nectarines
* Pears
* Lettuce
* Strawberries
* Bell peppers
* Celery
* Potatoes
* Spinach

Yuppers start with the dirty dozen. Look into local CSA and local farmers market they can save you money. If your State does not regulate milk I know there are still a few that don't I'd look for hormone free milk not necessarily organic milk. I know in MA all of our milk is hormone free. I'd also start looking for meats free of growth hormones. You may also find local meats csa though I've found those to be more expensive then buying all natural meats in the market in my area. Ah and if you have the time start your own organic garden now is the perfect time to start planting.

 

[tolemommy]

Try buying your veggies at a local Farmers Market. My local Farmers Markets opened up the beginning of this month, I am planning on shopping weekly for fresh fruits & veggies from local farmers.

I started w/fruits & veggies, next up is dairy, and finally meat. Like a few other posters mentioned meat is really expensive.

 

[ntink]

I completely agree with this

I find that for us, buying organic is not always the best choice. Instead, we really focus on buying local. We buy all our eggs and meat and cheese and milk, and all of our produce from May to October (Mother's Day to Hallowe'en) from local sources. Many of our local farmers and food producers use good practices (low-spray, etc) and are CLOSE to organic, but not quite. For example, we buy our poultry from a local processor. The chickens are locally raised, hormone-free, antibiotics free, etc. BUT because their feed itself is not 100% certified organic, the poultry can't be certified organic. Is it good enough for me? Absolutely. Is it organic? Absolutely not.

Some of the vendors at the local farmers market we buy from practice organic farming but do not have the financial resources to pursue the "organic" certification.

 

[eliza61]

I actually started with organic meats. I swear I always go left when everyone else goes right. I had a grass feed steak a few months ago and it was almost like hearing a heavenly choir singing. The taste was amazing. Now I've been working through my daily food. I've been buying "in season" local fruits and vegetables.

 

[Melmac]

We try to buy certain fruits organic. Anything "soft" or typically high-spray.

Peaches
Apples
soft berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries)
Also:
milk (if it's organic, in our town, that also means it's local too - bonus!)f

We don't bother buying organic bananas, melon, oranges, grapefruit (the selection for us, in Ontario, is almost nil for those items anyway).

I find that for us, buying organic is not always the best choice. Instead, we really focus on buying local. We buy all our eggs and meat and cheese and milk, and all of our produce from May to October (Mother's Day to Hallowe'en) from local sources. Many of our local farmers and food producers use good practices (low-spray, etc) and are CLOSE to organic, but not quite. For example, we buy our poultry from a local processor. The chickens are locally raised, hormone-free, antibiotics free, etc. BUT because their feed itself is not 100% certified organic, the poultry can't be certified organic. Is it good enough for me? Absolutely. Is it organic? Absolutely not.

I find if you get connected to your food sources and ask respectful questions, you might be pleasantly surprised at the answers. I was very impressed when I learned that my butcher knew exactly what farm his pigs were coming from.... and offered to send me there if I wanted to take a look.

Enjoy!

This is us as well. I try and buy local rather than not. As someone who looked to go organic for environment sustainability as well as health, it made no sense to me to purchase organic strawberries from Florida when there are "almost" organic strawberries grown 20 minutes up the road. The fuel and emissions used to ship the Florida strawberries defeats one of my purposes of purchasing better produce. I also never buy organic bananas, oranges, etc. (fruits with thick peels) as sprays do not penetrate to the fruit itself in those cases. I also try and buy local meat from the "almost" organic farmers too.

Other things I do not buy organic is items like crackers, cereal, bread, etc. Annie's Cheddar Bunnies are not better for you than Goldfish crackers - they are just made with organic sugar instead of regular sugar and are still processed.

Typically, my organic purchases tend to be raw foods. This helps keep the grocery bill down too! Good luck!

 

[writerriann]

I actually started with organic meats. I swear I always go left when everyone else goes right. I had a grass feed steak a few months ago and it was almost like hearing a heavenly choir singing. The taste was amazing. Now I've been working through my daily food. I've been buying "in season" local fruits and vegetables.

We started with meat too. DH works in public health with our local anti-obesity initiative. He's all about the food and exercise!

We started with meat and can really tell a difference with taste. We buy our fruits and vegetables through local farmer's markets and fill in gaps (things like bananas) with our local Publix. IMO, it depends on how heavy a meat-eating family you have. We have meat every night except our Meatless Mondays, so we were more concerned about all the antibiotics and hormones in the meat rather than the pesticides on veggies and fruits. Aside from the Dirty Dozen list, most of that stuff can be washed out pretty easily. However, you can't suck the antibiotics back out of the meat.

 

[katied]

The MUST be organic list for us:

Milk/all dairy (butter, yogurt, etc - anything used consistently)
Eggs
Chicken
Fruits & veggies based on the list below. We get our brocolli frozen from Costco (organic). At times, buying frozen veggies organic is a huge cost savings.

Like to have organic -
Other meats - we tend to look for grass fed (the truth is, we eat chicken most nights, so that's why it's a must for us. Beef, pork, lamb, etc are more of a once a week thing, so not a critical).

 

[JillandFamily]

Thanks for all the helpful replies!

 

[Aristomommy]

We started with dairy products and meats first. I had a concern over the hormones and antibiotics used in both products. We also have a great farmer's market in the summer time and our grocery store uses local growers fro fruits and vegetables.