If you haven’t yet heard, Wednesdays are our Guest Blogger Series day! It’s a day where Matt and I get a bit of a mid-week break while getting to share with you some of our favorite online bloggers. And for their hard work, they get the benefit of your readership – we encourage you to please show all of them your support by visiting their blog and social media links at the end of this post!
Today we are very please to welcome Alex Boake, the talented illustrator whose captivating work can be seen in her blog and in Practical Paleo. We were very happy to host her a little while back in a previous guest post that featured the most adorable drawings of vegetables with boots I’ve ever seen. I honestly feel like you owe it to yourself to visit the Boake Blog and check out her work. This week, she discusses the importance of eating organic in honor of Organic Week in Canada!
It’s Organic Week right now, up in Canada, where I live! Yes, it’s a week long celebration with the intent of informing people about the benefits of organic food, farming and products. It’s organized by Canadian Organic Growers and the Canada Organic Trade Association.
Now, I think organic produce is a great thing, so I’m totally behind this event! By definition, organic production is a system of farming that maintains and replenishes soil fertility and soil life without the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers. This means that they’re not allowed to use chemical pesticides, antibiotics, synthetic hormones, genetic engineering, sewage sludge, cloning of animals, and excess processing of foods, artificial ingredients, preservatives, or irradiation. I don’t want any of that nonsense involved with my food production!
In an ideal world, ALL produce would be organic. However, it’s not, and it’s good to be aware of where it’s most important to make the call on where to go organic, and where it’s okay to go for conventionally produced fruits and vegetables. We are all on a bit of a budget, I’m sure, so that’s where The Dirty Dozen and The Clean Fifteen come into play. These two lists can help you decide which grocery items you should buy in organic forms. I’ve done up two fun graphics that illustrate the two categories!
Now, you’re probably asking, “I thought you said that it was the Clean Fifteen…how come there are Fourteen on your list, Alex?” Well, my friends, I’m not going to get into the whole GMO debate, but the original list includes Sweet Corn as safe to buy conventionally. Now, with all the recent developments and information coming to the surface regarding the dangers of Genetically Modified corn, I think it would be prudent to avoid conventional corn and to consume only organic, heirloom varieties, if you do choose to include it in your diet.
I wish everyone a great Organic Week! Just remember, an organic apple a day keeps the doctor away! ; )
If you like my illustrations, and want to see more, and if you’d like to see some of my delicious recipes, check out my blog!
If you’d like more information on Organic Week, check out their website!
Alex Boake is the extremely talented mind behind AlexBoake.com. Go check out her illustrations and visit her Spreadshirt Shop!
