Yes, it makes sense, intuitively, that crops grown without pesticides should be better for us. It's appealing, politically, to think that food grown the old-fashioned way, by rotating crops and nurturing the soil naturally, would be superior to food that is mass-produced and chemically-saturated.
Many people feel that way. Sales of organic food and beverages have grown from $1 billion in 1990 to well over $20 billion this year, according to the Organic Trade Association, an industry group.
But the unfortunate truth is that, from a hard-nosed science point of view, it's still unclear how much better, if at all, organic food is for human health.
"Organic," for the record, means food grown without most conventional pesticides or fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients, according to the US Department of Agriculture's website (usda.gov). To carry the "organic" seal, a product must be certified by a federally accredited agent as having been produced according federal regulations. Small farmers are exempt.
Prepared food made with organic ingredients also tends to be processed more gently, with fewer chemical additives, said Charles Benbrook, an agricultural economist who is chief scientist at the Organic Center. The nonprofit research group is based in Boulder, Colo., and supported by individuals and the organic food industry.
But the word organic has not been designated as an official "health claim" by the government. Such a designation is used only when there is evidence of significant health benefits - and so far, that evidence is lacking for organic food.
It's clear, however, that conventionally grown food has remnants of pesticides on it. A 2002 study in the journal "Food Additives and Contaminants" showed there are more pesticide residues on conventional than organically grown food, even after the food is washed and prepared. There's also clear evidence that pesticides can get into people, a major reason Environmental Protection Agency regulations exist to keep farm workers from entering recently sprayed fields.
