Groceries: Is Organic Food Worth The Money?

Improved Essays
When picking out groceries, you are faced with a choice to make. You can choose organic for more money, or stick with conventional food. Is organic food worth the money? Some experts believe that organic food is better for you, while others believe it is almost the same as conventional food. Organic food is just as healthy as conventional food.

Passage 2 states that “According to Consumer Reports, organic foods and beverages run an average 47% more in price than conventional alternatives.” This means that buying organic food can, on average almost double the price of regular food. Another piece of information states that when Mintel, a market research film did a study, they found surprising information. “Only about 40% of Gen Xers believe

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The final book that really spiked with my interest and stayed with me was Michael Pollan’s “The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals.” In this book, we followed Mr. Pollan as he explained the food that we eat in three parts, two of which we read. In Part 1 of the book I realized that our government has set us up to buy processed food in order to feed into the large companies that continue to control this nation’s economy. Consequently, as it does not care about our citizen individual health, it is my perception that if more people knew this, and if they understood that by buying more organic products, it would cause the demand to go up and the prices down, then they would.…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the modern world today, many people cook and eat organic foods. They do this because they believe that it is better for them, despite the higher price. Robert Paarlberg noticed this when he was writing his article, “Attention Whole Food Shoppers”. While writing this article, he brought up the fact that while this entire process helps local farmers and fight climate change, the global issue of hunger is not solved.…

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The article "Attention to Whole Foods Buyers" by Robert Paarlberg is an article on how organic food is not as "good" for the world as we thought. One of the biggest problems in the world today is hunger among humans around the world. In some countries, it is worse than others because there is not enough food to supply everyone who needs to be fed. While in some countries it is about who can afford the food or even who can get to where the food is because some foods are not in a place where they can go as often as they need to eat.…

    • 624 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    This essay will open people's eyes and make them see why the industrial organic food chain is the best food chain to feed all of america and how important it is to eat organic. The name of this book is called “The Omnivore's Dilemma” and it is by Michael Polland and this book makes the reader really think about what have we really been eating and where does our food come from and the reality of the whole food organization but out of all the food chains the best one to feed our nation is the industrial organic food chain, the reasons why this is, is because it gets away from all of the corn that is basically in all of our foods and also to get away from all the processed foods and fast foods and in this food chain they don't put the bad products…

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Documentary Food Inc

    • 1452 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Documentary Food Inc. examines the current issues with the food industry in American. It shows how we have changed from a need-based form of production and consumption to a want and desire production and consumption base, where the large industry leaders produce as much as possible for as little cost possible. The documentary suggested that the move towards an industrial food system started with McDonalds, and the move that got rid of their waitresses and invented the drive through. This cut costs as every work position was specialized for one purpose. This became a model for every fast food restaurant that followed, leading to the mass demand for standardized food products that led to a concentration of food production into massive farms…

    • 1452 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    While viewing the lecture, this began to strike me as perhaps an aspect of food production that can illustrate inequality. For example, a wealthy individual could perhaps view Michael Pollen’s lecture, gain insight into their regular eating habits, change their eating habits, and perhaps be more selective about where they shop for food and where they eat food. They may even perhaps begin to shop at organic food stores and live a healthier life as a result. However, although Michael Pollen acknowledges that in some instances the cost of organic foods may be coming down, he also does acknowledge that organic or sustainable foods can in general cost significantly more than traditional corn based food products. For those who do not belong to a privileged class and wish to change their eating habits to healthier alternatives such as organic food, this can perhaps prove to be problematic.…

    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Obesity By John Freedman

    • 1377 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Barry Estabrook, author of “Organic Can Feed the World” posted in The Atlantic, brings to the attention of his readers that there is no evidence supporting the notion that organic food cannot feed the world. He believes with the help of “locally farmed” food and a Wholefoods-esque market scattered throughout the once “food deserts”, America can turn around its obesity issue. Estabrook argues that by localizing the production for organic foods the costs of that food will decrease. Regardless if this is true or not, the amount of money, time, and effort to takes to create this elaborate system of organic food stockpiles would be astronomical in comparison to creating healthier fast…

    • 1377 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It is one of the steps to eat responsibly. As customers, we need to start focusing on quality and health, not volume and price. Many will say that the price for organic is too expensive and not worth the cost. Most people prefer anything that cost five dollars to ten. In reality, buying organic food and cooking it yourself will save you a lot of money in the long run.…

    • 590 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up, I was always taught to choose the more expensive version of a food product, as they all claim to be organic, 100% natural and free of artificial preservatives. Labels that read “No toxic pesticides or additives” would appeal to me; making me believe that I was benefiting for the amount of money I spent. Consumers, much like me, who attempt to live healthy lifestyles are now unable to know how much healthier organic food is than regular food. Shopping for produce at my local supermarket will be a a bit more challenging, for I will now question if the price reflects the nutritional value at all. Shapin’s argument thoroughly shows how the use of such pesticides allows us to be retrospectively “safer.”…

    • 834 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Many people debate on whether organic food is actually better for you. Advocates believe organic foods are safer and more nutritious. Although organic sales have been steadily increasing, “many experts say there’s not enough evidence to prove any real advantage to eating organic foods” (“Is Organic”). Much of the organic movement has been driven by social trends and misinformation about health benefits.…

    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “What Are You Buying When You Buy Organic?” by Steven Shapin, Shapin discusses the current trend of people who are migrating to eating organic food only but also moves to dismiss any false connotations of what it truly means to be eating organic products. Shapin brings up the popular assumption that farms that claim to produce organic products are imagined to be a small family-owned business. That was not the case, as evidenced by Shapin’s article, where he pointed out that one of the biggest organic food producers, Earthbound Farm, went from a two-and-a-half-acre farm into a combined 26 thousand acres farming space. In addition, Earthbound Farm has production plants in different parts of the country which conjures up images of a large cooperate operation. (429) To keep up with the world…

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    While working at Whole Foods Market I have seen local or organic products be far cheaper than the conventional products. Also, natural food stores such as Whole Foods or Trader Joes often have huge sales on grass fed beef and free-range chicken. It is wise to look for these deals and take advantage of them. I have seen products at Whole Foods that are cheaper than some at Stop & Shop. Although it is unreasonable for some people to buy all local, it is wise to invest a little more money and help save the environment, yourself, and these local farmers.…

    • 1220 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    According to the World Health Organization, “Every year, one out of six people get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 Americans die from foodborne illnesses.” About 80 percent of all cases of heart disease, strokes and Type 2 diabetes could be prevented if people ate healthier and were more physically active. In the article “Unhappy Meals” by Michael Pollan, the author tries to give advice on how to prevent such illnesses. He argues, how if everyone would “Eat food. Not too much.…

    • 1362 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Organic food at the long run saves you Doctor Visits, Prescription Drugs and other Medical costs. A careful blend of some of these facts has necessitated this compendium to guide you on healthy eating and living. What is the difference between Organic and Non Organic food?…

    • 1101 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Organic Foods: Extraordinary or Average? Should two nearly identical products have different prices and different perceptions of nutritional value? Morgan Bahl, student at Iowa State University, does not think so. In her article “Organic Foods Are Not Better than Conventionally Grown Foods”, she discusses the role organic labels play in the actual quality of the product and the prices paid for these foods. Organic foods, despite having “clean ingredients”, may not be significantly nutritionally different than foods without the organic label.…

    • 1284 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays