Tag Archives: Environment

10 Reasons why you should buy ORGANIC food!

Organic food may be a little more expensive than conventional products produced by industrial agriculture, but paying that little extra money is far worth it, and it may even be cheaper in the long run.

Let’s take a look at 10 reasons why buying organic is a smarter option:

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1-It’s better for your HEALTH

Conventional fruits and vegetables are sprayed with massive amounts of pesticides and other toxic synthetic chemicals that have been proven to be linked to cancer, damage of the nervous system and other serious illnesses.

“It has been observed that their long-term, low-dose exposure are increasingly linked to human health effects such as immune-suppression, hormone disruption, diminished intelligence, reproductive abnormalities, and cancer”.

What would you rather do, pay a little extra money for organic products, or pay medical bills for cancer or fertility treatments?

2-It’s better for preserving WILDLIFE

Pesticides are responsible for killing birds, amphibians, fish and bees (among other animals).

Rachel Carson was a pioneer in researching pesticide impact on wildlife, showing some of its dangerous consequences ( a major decline in bird population).

3-It’s better for our WATER supply

Pesticides enter surface and ground water primarily as runoff from pesticide treated crops.

Approximately 50% of the U.S. population obtains its drinking water from groundwater sources and as much as 95% of the population in agricultural areas uses groundwater as its source of drinking water.

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4-It’s better for the SOIL

Synthetic chemicals (such as herbicides and pesticides) not only kill the pests, but also kill the microbes living in the soil. Without microbes working in the soil (eg. nitrogen fixing) plants are unable to take from the nutrients they need from the soil.

Unhealthy soil looses its hability to grow plants which leads to erosion and desertification.

organic_farmers15-It’s better for small FARMERS

Large industrial agro-business are the major pesticide consumer. The usually use large plots of land and plant only one herbicide and pesticide resistant crop to produce maxium yield at minimum cost.

They only seek the largest economic gain with no consideration for the environment, local communities or consumer’s health.

Local and small farmers who own a plot of land want and need to take care of it using the smarter and better long-term practices that will also provide them with a stable income.

6-It’s better for local RURAL communities.

Industrial agro-business are usually not local, if they destroy the soil or water supply they just move to another area and exploit it all over again.

They usually bring their workers with them and don’t create many new jobs in the community.

7-It promotes sustainable agricultural RESEARCH

If we invest in organic foods, we are promoting new environmentally friendly agricultural practices.

8-Organic products TASTE much better!

The shinny “fake” industrial apples may look better, but the organic apples taste soo much better, just try them!

9-Organic farming promotes BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity in farm lands is shrinking fast due to modern plant-breeding programs and GMO’s (Genetically modified organisms) which increase the productivity and economic gain of industrial farm operations-these crops respond better to industrial agricultural methods such as monocrops (only one kind of crop in a large plot of land) and heavy use of fertilizers.

These GM crops can invade organic farms, since their seeds can travel long distances, and easily replace the “weaker” non genetically modified crops.

10-Organic produce has more NUTRIENTS.

Organic products contain higher amounts of nutrients and antioxidants that are essential parts of our diet.

“Organic milk contains 80%  more antioxidants -substances which reduce the risk of tumors and life threatening diseases- and organic produce have at least 20% more antioxidants than conventional fruits and vegetables”

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Organic farming is the future, are you gonna be part of it?

If  your supermaket doesn’t provide organic produce there are usually organic farmers cooperatives that may sell products in your area.

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Lessons from the Golden Toad

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We will no longer be able to see the beautiful and unique golden toad (Bufo periglenes).

It was once abundant in the Monteverde cloud forest, a Costa Rica region where it was endemic (it only existed there), but no one has seen one since 1989, being therefore listed as an extinct species.

Scientists believe that the golden toad was driven to extinction by global warming.

Monteverde is a cloud forest, and the whole ecosystem depends on frequent formation of clouds and mist. The mist frequency has declined dramatically because of the warming of the oceans and the atmosphere.

The rise in temperatures and higher mist formation in the forest have also triggered disease outbreaks (such as the chytrid fungi) that infects the moist skins of frogs, toads and salamanders.


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The golden toad is just one species among thousands that go extinct every year.

Biodiversity is being irreversibly destroyed by human activities at an unprecedented rate. Scientists estimate there are 10 to 30 million plant and animal species on the planet, most of them unidentified. Each year at least 50,000 species disappear.

Many scientists have argued that the current rate of extinction is approaching to when a gigantic meteorite struck the earth 65 million years ago, causing a dramatic climate change that led to mass extinction.

Frogs, toads and in gerenal all amphibians are extremely sensitive indicators of environmental changes, as the uptake of oxygen and water through their skin can increase concentrations of pollutants.

They are so sensitive to changes in the environment that scientists have compared them to a canary in a coal mine.

In coal mines a poisonous coal gas is released from the earth during mining operations, which is a risk to the workers.

Coal miners used canaries to warn the miners of imminent danger since canaries are more sensitive to toxic fumes and will die of exposure before a human. If the canary that they carried in the cage died, it meant that it was time to get out!

And this is exactly what many species like the golden toad are trying to tell us, it’s time to stop!!

Time to stop polluting our environment and change our unsustainable life style.

Not only the survival of millions of animal and plant species are at stake, but also life for humans on earth.

Let’s listen to the golden toad and change before its too late.


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