Going organic

Back in 2004 we visited Kampala, Uganda for the First Organic Coffee Conference conducted by IFOAM, International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements. I was amazed by the dedication of these organic farmers from all over the world. Almost 20 years later, here we are still growing organic coffee and everything that grows around it. When you visit organic farms and eat the sweet produce right from where they grow, it is a life-changing experience. We did this in Bukidnon some years ago when we picked our own salad and all our host brought was a bottle of olive oil and some salt.

This is why we espouse organic ways in farming vegetables and fruits. Because you eat them raw you get to taste the natural sweetness of each fruit or salad greens. Even our lowly pechay is sweeter when grown organically. As they say, once you try it, you will never go back to chemically-laden commercial vegetables. Your sinigang will never taste the same again, once you switch to organic.

But why is it taking almost 20 years for people to embrace organic farming as a standard? Well, there are many reasons:

Commercial. People want pretty vegetables so the use of pesticides and chemical inputs are needed to achieve the perfection buyers are so used to.

Big agri. We are told that organic is expensive to grow so they came up with lower standards that allow some pesticides and some chemicals. In other words, these are acceptable standards because the manufacturer pushed government to say so.

Ignorance. People are made to believe that organic and anything grown in soil is dirtier that those grown in clean antiseptic solutions.

So, how do we correct this seemingly wrong notion about organic? You need to do a taste test.

Once you try organic, there is no turning back. At least, that is what happened to me. And to control our food cost at the cafés we used to run, we grew our own lettuce and arugula. The best bet is to also know other organic practitioners. And the list is growing everyday.

Before I started growing vegetables, we took lessons in natural farming and we sent our people to train in organic farms as far as Negros Occidental. Today, we have a consultant who comes to teach organic ways to our staff. It is an ongoing learning experience. But like I said, there will be no turning back once you have tasted the difference.

This is why we started to collect more organic essentials to resell, too. Through the help of a partner, Naturland (www.naturland.de), they point us to certified farmer associations from where we can get a steady supply of organic goods.

When I was last at their 40th anniversary celebration in Berlin we got to meet organic producers of milk, chocolates, coffee and other essentials. From the Philippines they brought virgin coconut oil (VCO), turmeric tea, muscovado sugar and soon, rice and other everyday staples. So, it’s right here, under our noses yet we have not appreciated what we have as is the case with every good product our country could be proud of. We first have to be the ones to try it and promote it.

Why bother about organic vs commercial or conventional agricultural products anyway? Because it’s good for you and it is good for the environment. It is the most sustainable way of producing food, by the way. But we are trekking uphill, a battle vs naysayers who talk against going organic. They claim it is more expensive to produce, while others claim certification is expensive, etc.

When the student is ready, the teacher will come. When you are ready to think about good health and the price of growing food naturally, you will also choose organic. But a question pops up: How do you know it’s organic? Know your farmer. Or know your producer. Or know your retailer. Too hard to do? Then look for the seal like Naturland’s or another certifying body.

You may want to start your conversion into organic by conducting casual taste tests in your household. Buy some from the organic market and buy commercial produce from the wet market or the supermarket. You will surely taste the difference. Our taste is shaped by what we get used to as normal and ordinary. Or maybe we should practice mindful eating to really taste which vegetable is sweeter. You need to train your taste buds.

Though Covid has eclipsed other diseases the past three years, it may be helpful to be conscious about lifestyle diseases again – cancer, hypertension and heart disease. And these are all affected by what we eat. Now that the markets have opened, we may find time to attend to our daily dietary needs. We now have a choice of what to buy, unlike the past years when we did not have much choice except online shopping.

Practice mindful eating and mindful tasting, too. Going organic is one way to arrest possible illness brought about by dietary habits. To eat healthy is to ward off other diseases and to stay strong to not get Covid or not get it again soon.

So before we claim that going organic is expensive, think again. It may be the way to go so you can stay healthy and live a little longer. But one has to be conscious that we are doing it for a reason or for a few good reasons: to stay healthy, to help the environment and to eat well the way Nature intended us to eat.