Grist | What does "organic" actually mean? @Grist | Uploaded November 2015 | Updated October 2024, 1 day ago.
When you decide whether or not to buy organic food you are a lot like a school administrator trying to decide if you should have students wear uniforms. Or at least that’s the case we’re making here. Most of the controversies over organic rules are about the strictness of this dress code: Does everyone have to dress in Oxford sub fusc (think Harry-Potter-style formal dinners), or are farmers allowed to pair their metaphorical blazers with undershirts and socks of their own? The key here is that the organic rules mostly apply to the tools farmers are allowed to use — rather than the outcomes they achieve.
Of course there’s far more to the story than we can get into here. For more see the longer explanation we’ve done here.
Help us caption & translate this video!
amara.org/v/QTKu
When you decide whether or not to buy organic food you are a lot like a school administrator trying to decide if you should have students wear uniforms. Or at least that’s the case we’re making here. Most of the controversies over organic rules are about the strictness of this dress code: Does everyone have to dress in Oxford sub fusc (think Harry-Potter-style formal dinners), or are farmers allowed to pair their metaphorical blazers with undershirts and socks of their own? The key here is that the organic rules mostly apply to the tools farmers are allowed to use — rather than the outcomes they achieve.
Of course there’s far more to the story than we can get into here. For more see the longer explanation we’ve done here.
Help us caption & translate this video!
amara.org/v/QTKu
