Organic Food Shopping

No longer the preserve of eccentric vegans, organic food is becoming more affordable and easily available.

When governments start advising you to top and tail carrots to get rid of the most toxic pesticides (which is what happened in the UK), you know it's time to switch to organic. Sure, some people insist that there are no health benefits to organic produce, but personally I'd rather not wait around to find out when the shops are positively bulging with delicious chemical-free produce.

Organic food is also softer on the environment than factory-farmed produce and should offer animals kinder living conditions.

To be organic, the food must have been produced on an organic farm, which is free of any chemical fertiliser or pesticides. Animals on organic farms must be kept and slaughtered in a humane manner.

When you look at a product that claims to be organic, in most cases you will see the symbol of an organic agency, for example the Soil Association.

BOX SCHEMES

It always gives me a little thrill when my weekly box scheme arrives, a colourful mass of the freshest possible produce, mud still clinging to wherever it's supposed to cling! It really is the easiest way to try out organics. A selection of seasonal produce is delivered to you from an organic farm, normally weekly. Most schemes offer a range of boxes, each with a set selection of farm produce, but you can often mix and match. You usually also have the option of organic extras such as cheese, honey, preserves, meat and eggs.

Most of the year you get a good variety, but there are a couple of lean months when not much is growing, and then some box schemes beef up the contents with imported goods. Before you commit, look into the origins of the scheme's produce as well as comparing prices. In addition to being accredited by an organic agency, ideally it will be as near to you as possible to reduce the food miles, and should of course recycle all the cardboard boxes it uses.

FARMERS' MARKETS

Farmers' markets in car parks, fields, halls or other open spaces are becoming increasingly popular, and you can see why. As well as giving you the chance to wander around looking - and tasting - different kinds of foodstuffs, they offer you the chance to chat with the producer, and learn about their growing or manufacturing methods. Expect to find good quality meat, eggs, dairy produce, cakes, preserves, fruit, vegetables, puddings, honey and more.

Keep an eye on whether food is organic or not by looking out for accreditation, perhaps in the form of a certificate on their stall. If they are in the process of becoming organic, ask how they are going about it.

SUPERMARKETS

Supermarkets have undergone a sea change in the last couple of years, and now most are bending over backwards to offer a good range of organic foodstuffs. Prices still remain on the high side, but stores tend to say they are simply reflecting the extra costs needed to produce organic food and that profit margins are the same as for all their other food.

WINE

Bacchus, the ancient god of wine, would surely nod in approval were he to see the amount of vino we quaff today. But he perhaps would have shaken his head over some of its production methods and additives.

Many of the world's vineyards are now highly industrialised, and use pesticides like they were going out fashion. There have been mutterings about exploitative immigrant labour, too. And when wine is coming from another continent, we have to wonder just how sustainable it is to ship a heavy liquid in glass across vast oceans. Perhaps one answer is to buy organic wine from as near as possible. Or you could try a Fairtrade wine, beer or spirit. Or make your own, of course!


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