Is Organic food worth the money?

The idea of a small-scale farm using traditional farming practices and no man-made fertilizers or pesticides sounds idlyllic and that’s pretty much what it is at this point - an idyll, as opposed to an ideal. Don’t get me wrong - if organic farming methods could feed 8 billion people, there is no doubt that it should be the only way to do farming, but that’s not the world we live in. Of course, if you can afford organic produce, by all means, enjoy your privilege!

But on a practical level, simply eating more vegetables in your diet makes an order of magnitude more difference to your health than the insignificant incremental difference between organic and non-organic produce. Some folks are rightfully concerned about pesticide residues and that is indeed a problem that we need to address (for now, just wash your vegetables well, the dosage involved is quite small) but it’s best not to assume that all organic is somehow more pristine. “Natural” pesticides are still pesticides and you shouldn’t consume them any more than you should man-made ones.

State regulation of organic practices is also quite weak in India, so If you personally know someone whose farming practices you trust and can afford it, consider buying organic for salads and fruits. However, the distinction is largely lost in cooked dishes where spice flavours dominate the proceedings.

[annsgal]

"Small" vegetables signal NOT OVERRIPE; "Ugly" vegetables signal NOT GMO. Both these are positive traits for fruits and vegetables.

[sachi]

I don't believe that Sri Lanka became bankrupt due to thier organic policies. They already had many financial issues in the country. I don't know about other countries but farming in India is disastrous they cut every tree near by farms. They use pesticides without any pest attack, many farmers die due to these pesticides. It pollutes ground water, list is endless.

[keerthan]

Dad used to sell organic vegetables for a while but stopped it cause it's too expensive. To put it into perspective you could buy 2 to 3x quantity of non organic ones . ( But it's also that much more tastier) so fewer people could afford it, mostly on festive occasions but if he bought it only for festive occasions the farmers would refuse to sell.

The taste difference was more noticable for leafy vegetables and some bhendi, cucumber

[sanjaygudala]

What about downsides of consuming non organic food?
Chemical fertilizers are harmful to the body and soil in long term?

[homely]

Krish ashok sir.. U r the saviour.. People like me who knows nothing.. Not knowledgeable.. Do not know science.. Can learn so much from u.. You are not fake.. You are epitome of trust..i hv seen so many interviews of yours.. No one is like u.. All have agenda.. You are just for the sake of humanity.. God bless you.. This month I will buy ur book.. I am a very simple middle class housewife.. Could not arrange for ur book... But this month I will buy.. Extracts I jv read

[kirtiseth]

I think, the video focused more on taste and not on the harmful chemicals we tend to consume.

[shimmeringswan]

I love organic bananas and blueberries, somehow they are sweeter than conventional. Everytime i buy non organic bananas it tastes like styrofoam

[joydeepmondal]

Hello @krishashok. I love all your videos. The main concern of people here is neither the taste nor the money. Please check the latest news of 500+ masalas getting banned in many foreign countries due to the presence of pesticides causing cancer. People who have clicked on this video wants to know if organic food are good for health and won't cause any harmful disease. People who don't have money for organic foods won't even think of it and this video won't be recommended to them. So health and being disease free is the main concern here. It would be great if you could make a video addressing this. Thank you!

[dip-tree]

Your scientific approach is brilliant. Your channel is so under-rated. You should have had an order of magnitude more subscribers to enjoy the brilliance of "to-the-point" advice.

[sakalam]

I have to record my experience here, krish ashok.
I stopped having yelakki Banana after I got stomach pain twice(soon after consuming them). Needless, I tried ORGANICALLY grown yelakki in bangalore. And no stomach pain!
I changed to organic yelakki not for taste ( regular ones were as tasty)

[CreateSg]

I think the video has come up to be a bit lopsided. The narrative should be have been somewhat like.... In principle, organic is healthier since it doesn't have the ill effects of certain industrial pesticides and fertilizers. Why organic is not practical is a different matter.

[neerajirs]

Organic food is of course healthier. You have very conveniently skipped this most important aspect in your video. Besides, chemical fertilizer and pesticides are not sustainable in the long run as more and more of them are required every season. Besides they also require more and more water. Water level has gone down to alarming level because of heart pesticides/fertilizer use by farmers of Punjab (a very well known concern). For sustainable agriculture we have to become more and more natural. Thus, I completely don't agree with your views.

[egandhivijay]

Organic vegetables if grown in the right manner have higher nutritional density compared to non-organic produce. That's a big thing since they are lot healthier especially for people who consume 1-2 meals per day . They also contain fewer or zero pesticides and hence lot healthier.

[_nilavratbera]

0:58 I would like to clarify here...Some 2-3 years ago there waa news of mass deaths of people from southern states after weeks of investigation the reason found was the overuse of Chemical Fertilizers and pesticide.

[TojiFushigoroWasTaken]

Honestly if anyone is that down bad for organic food stuff just grow it yourself. At a small scale of lets say a terrace garden you can easily tend to insects or diseases your plant might get.

Ive done this several times and its actually pretty rare to lose my produce to insects or diseases....the only times it did happen was when i forgot to water them for a week or forgot to go to the terrace for a week or two lol.

[jbsenthilkumar]

Hi, I’m following your videos, you make thoughtful contents. Please keep doing it.

[joshuacherian]

Most of them start out as organic and then start selling non organic stuff too... The economics of it is king not customer

[devangsingh]

What about healthier? I mean if there's no pesticides, then isn't it more healthier in the long term? Just curious

[akshaypolisetty]

ANYONE with an answer. mind helping me out?
As being broke and hitting gym my goal to find the cheapest protien always boils down to chicken breast.
Is there injected hormones in chicken, is it not healthy to consume daily?

[djddoe]

This is more of a click bait video. While I appreciate the knowledge @krishashok Dispenses, the video doesn’t address the actual reason for consuming organic food. Affordability is a completely different parameter and shouldn’t be brought into an argument that is addressing food safety.