Do you know that? When it comes to organic food, the front lines are often hardened. While for some organic is the only true thing and beyond all doubt, others label it as a privilege of the upper class or an organic niche. The fact that opinions differ so much has a lot to do with the fact that there are a lot of persistent myths that have spread around the topic of organic food. We'll now take a closer look at what's actually behind it.
Organic is always the more expensive choice
For a long time, the range in organic stores was reserved for very nutritionally conscious people and wealthier people, or at least the price differed significantly from the price of conventional food. However, due to the organic trend of the past few decades, the range of organic brands and farmers has increased significantly and even in discount stores there are now brands with an organic seal that differ little in price from conventional alternatives for some products .
This means that the myth that organic is always significantly more expensive is only partially true and only true for some products. Especially since winter 2022, many chemical fertilizers have also become significantly more expensive due to the rapidly increasing energy costs. This in turn has a direct impact on the price of the food that depends on it. In other words: The price of organically produced food has also risen, but less sharply than for conventional products because they are less energy-intensive: organic products can serve as a brake on inflation , so to speak.
A final thought on the question of cost : Even if organic products are often a little more expensive from a purely financial perspective, the overall price is actually cheaper - namely if you take into account the price that the environment involuntarily has to pay for industrial agriculture.
Organic products are healthier than others
That's true, but you should be careful to argue with the right facts. It has been scientifically proven that food from organic farming is practically free of pesticides and other chemical fertilizer residues. This is definitely an important factor for our health. They also contain fewer nitrates, which can potentially harm us humans.
However, when it comes to the nutritional content of organic and conventional foods, opinions differ. However, some studies have already proven that the vitamin content of organic products is significantly better.
Organic is organic
Not everything that comes with a seal of quality is organic – unfortunately. Most retail chains now have their own organic labels or environmental certificates that promise organic or sustainable quality. This makes it difficult to decide which of them you can really trust. With its quality seal database , the Südwind association offers you a good source for checking what is really behind the promises of the respective quality seals and whether the criteria are also checked by independent bodies.
Organic and regional are equivalent in terms of sustainability
In the perception of many consumers, the Austrian apple from conventional farming is a more sustainable choice than the organic one from New Zealand. But the “where from” says nothing about the “how”. The term “locally grown” does not provide any information about which pesticides the local apple was contaminated with or how and for how long it was stored. When it comes to animal products, it is not clear whether the animals were fed soy food from South America, for example, or what their living conditions are like. In fact, the carbon footprint of organic food with long transport routes can be better than that of regional products without certification. If you look at the greenhouse gas emissions from food production as a whole, then transport “only” accounts for around 10% on average. While organic production methods have a positive impact on the climate and global resources, mere regionality does not make a product sustainable.
You can't feed the whole world organically
One of the most common organic myths that you can now confidently dispel. Is it really unrealistic to believe that everyone in the world should switch to organic food? No. The dream of an earth without aggressive pesticides, factory farming, etc. is nowhere near as unrealistic as skeptics like to make it out to be. Reference is often made to the lower yields of organic farming and the increasing world population, of which too many people are already at risk of hunger.
In the long term, however, changing our nutritional strategy is actually the only way to guarantee our security of supply in the future. Because the exploitation of the earth, the deforestation of rainforests and the use of toxic fertilizers are damaging the planet and thus - due to global warming - also ourselves.
It is important to turn two screws here: food waste and meat consumption. Because these two factors contribute the most to damaging the environment and creating unequal global food supplies. To produce animal feed, for example, huge areas of land are required to grow soy. As a result, large parts of the global rainforest repeatedly fall victim to the meat industry. According to this study , a global supply of organic food would be possible if we consumed a third less meat and threw away around half less food.
Conclusion: A lot of disinformation and a lot of potential
You've probably heard many of the organic myths mentioned here - and perhaps even believed them. Of course, there is a lot more disinformation about organic farming floating around in society and especially on the Internet. Therefore: Don't immediately believe everything you read or are told. Make sure the source is trustworthy and based on scientific studies. And: Educate your friends and family about organic myths so that more word gets out about the great potential this lifestyle has for our planet, our climate and our health.
Organic is also very important to us, which is why our puroras and snack products only contain ingredients from certified organic farming, without additives or preservatives. You can find out more about this in our product range and the company vision , as well as on the website of the “ Austria Suitable for Grandchildren ” association.
