A British review of 162 studies (spanning a half-century) came to the conclusion a year ago that there was no evidence of any nutritional differences between organic whole foods and conventionally grown ones. The review spurred much debate in the scientific world and left a great many health-conscious shoppers wondering if the organic versus conventional argument was even relevant.
At the time, we pointed out that the British review never took into account how conventional whole foods may or may not be affected by their exposure to pesticides, leaving great room for doubt. Our skepticism was more than justified, based on this recent study comparing three varieties of commercial strawberries grown in California on 13 organic and 13 conventional fields for nutritional value, taste and quality as well as soil DNA and biological and chemical soil properties over two years.
Long story short, organic strawberries and the fields in which they were grown were equal to or better than conventionally grown fruits and fields in almost every way. For example, on the fruit side, organic strawberries lasted a half-day longer than conventional strawberries, a surprise to some experts who assumed chemically treated conventional varieties would repel mold longer. Organic berries contained greater concentrations of ascorbic acid and phenolic compounds and higher antioxidant activity. And, they tasted better too.
The organic soils in which those strawberries grew were also superior to conventional fields in key biological and chemical properties, including micronutrients, enzymes, nitrogen and microbial biomass, and possessed a greater number of genes and more genetic diversity. (Watch a video about this study with lead researcher Dr. John Reganold, a soil scientist at Washington State University University.)
Maybe, it's time to take the Environmental Working Group's latest lists of the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 fruits and vegetables with you next time to the grocery store…
PLoS One September 1, 2010 Free Full Text Study
PhysORG.com September 1, 2010
The Seattle Times September 2, 2010