Very often people ask us if paying the extra money for organic produce is worth it. We do our best to explain the benefits, and of course we know that images, pictures, and stories are more powerful than mere data, so we try to use those as much as possible.
Many of you know that Kelli and I spent the better part of 2011 traveling internationally. One of the highlights of our time in Costa Rica was a visit to an organic cacao plantation. The head cultivator there was a veteran of industrial agriculture, having spent 30 years growing bananas for Dole.
Hearing about his experiences and feeling his passion, as well as just having a great time being around him, lead to us calling him Senor Organic (Mr. Organic, just in case you weren’t sure). He was a simple, age-worn, toothless Costa Rican. But his excitement for what he was doing and his desire to change the the industrial system for everyone’s benefit heightened our commitment to buying organic more than any doctor or journalist has ever done.
What touched us to the core were his stories of attending to his friends’ sick beds, watching colleagues deal with strange skin diseases, some dying of cancer, or living short, sickly lives. Kelli still can’t even look at the conventional bananas in the store.
Yes, we firmly believe that paying extra for organic is worth it. The nutrition facts are not even disputable anymore. But that’s just the beginning. It is better for you, it is better for the people who grow our food, it is better for the soil, and it is better for everyone and everything that lives downstream (that’s all of us).
We wish everyone could meet Senor Organic and understand how our food choices affect the growers. Obviously that’s not possible, so it’s fun to come across other stories and pictures we can share. Last week we came across a fun youtube video that teaches an organic lesson in fun, interesting, simple terms. This young girl is so convincing that in my eyes she’s earned the name Miss Organic. 🙂 Simple, powerful, duplicateable information. These are the types of images that deepen our conviction.
Check it out!
