Health-conscious people are making organic fruits and vegetables a popular choice. Produce markets and grocery stores offer more and more organic produce to meet the increasing demand. Organic foods cost more than conventional foods, but increasingly people are willing to pay a higher price for food they believe is safer, cleaner and more nutritious.
Nutrients
Studies of data compiled beginning with records from the 1960s indicate that organically grown foods have higher vitamin C content and lower nitrates than conventionally grown foods. According to Michael C. Chen, whose findings are published on eScholarship, organic foods also have higher levels of iron, magnesium and phosphorus. Some crops had slightly lower protein content, but the protein was of higher quality. The study analyzed data that was not collected for the specific comparison, and variables such as soil fertility or weather could not be managed.
Pesticide
Organic fruits and vegetables are not treated with synthetic chemical pesticides. Information at eScholarship.org indicates much lower levels of pesticide residue on organic than on conventional foods. The appearance of any pesticides at all in organic produce is due to wind drift, water contamination or persistence in the soil. Most of the pesticide that appeared in the organic crops was due to DDT, which was banned in the 1970s but persists decades later.
Taste
Organic fruits and vegetables are harvested at the peak of ripeness. They have better flavor and better color at this stage than conventional produce, which is often picked unripe for shipping, and then gassed to ripen later.
Irradiation
One way that conventional produce is treated so it will have longer shelf life is by irradiation. Irradiation kills bacteria in the food, but it also changes the molecular structure of the food. According to the website thebestofrawfood, some irradiation methods use radioactive substances and some use X-rays or high-energy electrons. The seeds of raw organic fruits and vegetables will germinate, and the seeds of irradiated produce will not; for some people, this raises questions about the results of irradiation.
GMO
Organic fruits and vegetables are not genetically modified. There is no long-term data on genetically modified foods or their safety.
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