Family is not Green or Organically inclined at all

[chalbond]

I am really just a beginner in all things green and organic but I am trying hard to learn and research. Can someone help me find a good rebuttal to this article that my brother in law sent me?

http://www.babiesonline.com/articles/green/organicdisadvantages.asp

My husband's family is very southern and i know they think i am crazy. I would like to at least have educated answers and arguments to everything they throw at me. Especially because we have a baby and I don't want them feeding her garbage when they watch her. 

[2lilsweetfoxes]

I don't know if I can rebut that article.  Cost is a big deterrent--and is the number one reason my family has not gone organic.  Also, locally grown conventional foods can be less environmentally harsh than organic foods grown far away and flown/trucked/and shipped in.  Locally grown organic is the best, of course.

Also, there is no standard as to what organic really means.  How often does your family see your child?  If it is a rare every few years, then I'd just relax on the whole thing while she's there and if they give her a Twinkie, don't fret about it.  If it is daily (such as you are using them for daycare), then, you might want to discuss with them what you'd like her to eat--and if they can't abide by that, then avoid mealtimes and bring snacks for her (and maybe everyone so they see you aren't eating weird rabbit food).  I follow the 90/10 rule--as long as the diet is 90 percent healthy, I don't fret about the other 10 percent (as long as no allergens are involved).

How old is your child?  At some point, she's just going to help herself to whatever her cousins are having...as long as there are no allergies, are you going to stop her when she swipes a (conventional Duncan Hines with canned frosting) cupcake at a birthday party?

[MeepyCat]

I can't necessarily rebut the article either.  Certainly, I cannot rebut the statement that organic foods (and anything with the word "organic" on the label) are more expensive.  It's a lot more work to farm organically than it is to use industrial pesticides and herbicides, and that has to be factored into the cost.  Additionally, organic is a hot marketing trend right now - just having the word on the label jacks the price.  One of the things your BIL may be trying to say with this article is that your extended family can't necessarily afford to lay in all-organic everything for your visits.

I also think that the article is correct about the environmental impacts.  Ideally, we'd be able to get locally produced organic food, but the fact is, most of the organic foods available to most of us have crazy food miles on them. 

You do not have to rebut this article.  You can just carry on.  Alternatively, you can tell your BIL that you don't choose organics because they're trendy, but because they're healthier (although, again, that's debatable).

While it's fine to have high nutritional standards for your baby, I would caution you that referring to conventionally produced foods as "garbage" will go over very badly.  And I agree with the PP that some moderation is a good idea.  It's easy to enforce dietary ideals on a baby, but once they're walking on their own, it's much harder.  If there are no food allergies, I think you'd save yourself a lot of aggravation by sticking to your standards at home, and letting them go at Grandma's house.  The alternative is a ton of running around after your child, repeating "no, no honey, don't eat that," for hours, while the other kids chow down on Cheez Curls and Hawaiian Punch and your own kid develops the conviction that these things are the awesomest ever, and she'd better sneak some to make sure she doesn't miss out.

[bodhitree]

It sounds like possibly the real problem is that you feel like you're on the defensive because they don't agree with your choices. You really don't have to convince them that you're right, nor do you have to debate them. You can simply say, "This is what we're choosing to do for our family at this point in time." Then change the subject to something less contentious. They can go ahead and think that you're crazy, and you can go ahead and do what you want to do.

[elmh23]

I agree with the article 100% and I am green and organically inclined.

Cost is the number 1 reason we do not eat more organic foods.  I can't afford it.

Shipping is a problem.  I could get locally grown apples that are not organic or ships some from Washington.  I'd rather eat the local ones.

I think it is somewhat of a fad.  Everyone jumps on the hot new way to eat right until the new one comes out.  

[lucifugous]

Well I certainly haven't experienced that organic foods are shipped further. It could really go either way, but it's definitely a ridiculous statement that "non-organic foods are grown locally." Obviously not in the specific case the pp mentioned, but for the most part the people I know who value organic are also those who tend to buy local when they can. They go hand in hand because organic farming IS about sustainability.

On the first and third points, I agree to some extent, but I think the article is just sort of dumpy. lol.

I definitely think the third point is highly valid when dealing with skincare or cleaning products because there isn't a single standard of labeling for those things but to me it's all about minimalism, diy, and when you do buy something from a store shelf, reading the ingredients.

[serenbat]

I simply would not bother wasting my time with someone that reads as article that does not quote facts (for that matter any references) and think they are real facts.

COST- not really- IF you were only buying all organics at a mainstream grocery store-perhaps but that is even a stretch (many have their own in-house brands of organics at far less) many companies do give coupons for organic items - you can simply google this for a response and show this based on the stores near you

not to mention locally non-certified foods, I spend far less on organic produce then on regular supermarket and this also goes for meats. You need to learn how to find and how to buy and the costs go way down. 

co-opts, food drops, long distance buying trips, bulk buying, growing your own, buying local non-certified, etc

ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY - contact Rodale www.rodaleinstitute.org they have been around since 1947 and they can help you show this is far from true

First you need to understand (or if you are trying to make a point) ORGANIC is a new term, the practice of organic farming is far from new- many farmers are non-certified and are in-fact organic and always have been- again are you dealing with corporate farming or smaller? 

FAD - hardly, the term ORGANIC is NEW< the use is not

many examples exist of this - www.motherearthnews.com (since the 1970's) they have been promoting this- but they are just one of many that have been, it goes back very far

In my area (PA) for many this is far from NEW, I deal with over a dozen farmers that we buy items from (nuts, honey, veggies, fruit, eggs, milk, meats and fish) most have been farming over 60 + years this way-nothing new, many are generation farms that go back over 150 years just in this country and are totally organic

I buy very little organic at the grocery store (simply no need to do so)

you need to look into your own area and you will find there are sources of local organic -

www.pickyourown.org/index.htm#states

www.localharvest.org

www.westonaprice.org/find-a-local-chapter.html