Poison on our plate

chemicals in food

Did you know that less than 1% of the insecticides that are used while farming actually impact the insect itself? The rest of the 99% impacts us. It is absorbed by the fruit or vegetable, the soil, and the air around the plant that’s treated, and therefore goes into our bodies. Now imagine what this 99% is capable of doing if just 1% kills bad bugs.

There are several research reports that have been done in India alone that discuss the impact of eating pesticide laden food. And this episode of Satyamev Jayate did a fabulous job of comparing pesticide dependent conventional farming vs. Organic farming, in its entirety. A host of speakers talk about the pros and cons, and whether Organic farming can be an economic reality (busting the myth that the yields from Organic farming are too low to be sustainable and a practical option for farmers).

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A more alarming part of the video talks about a train running between Bhatinda and Bikaner being referred to as the ‘Cancer Train’ by locals – because of the huge number of people that regularly travel from the city to a charitable Cancer hospital in Bikaner. The cause of the high rates of Cancer, the advent of factory farming in Punjab during the Green Revolution which introduced pesticide intensive farming to the state. It also features farmers talking about feeding their own families food that they produce Organically, while sending the pesticide laden produce to the ‘market’, which is regular consumers. Watch the video if you have an hour to spare sometime, it’s extremely powerful.

Organic farming or ‘Jaivik’ farming is not a new phenomenon. In fact, India is one of the largest exporters of Organic food to the U.S. and experts attribute the high prices of Organic foods in the U.S. to the demand supply gap, and the dependency on imports!

So whether you’re a health conscious, environmentally responsible OR are the first to adopt global trends, Organic foods should be on top of the list for you.

We found this super Ted Talk by Ramanjaneyulu GV tiled Poison On Our Plate by the Founder of the Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Hyderabad. It gives you a great starting point to start thinking of going the Organic way.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Also Read: Grow your Gardens, Pesticide Free

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