Organic Living – 5 Things You Can Do in Your Home

Contributed by: Tom D.

As members of a cooperative grocery store that has a strong focus on providing its customers with organic and environmentally friendly products, we are setting an example to the community.  But there are many more things we can do to promote the spirit of the co-op in public and in our homes. Many of you already do some of these things, but we can always do more and encourage others to do the same.  Here’s a short list of 5 things you can do in your home to promote the idea of organic living:

=> Boycott foods that are not organic
Be a label reader and look for the certified organic logos.

=> Learn how to cook from scratch with natural ingredients
Get a good cook book, buy all the ingredients and discover the joy of being your own chef!

=> Eat only organic, grass-fed meat
Non-organic meats are loaded with hormones, antibiotics and other additives you don’t want in your body or the bodies of your loved ones. Grain-fed meats tend now to be fed on genetically modified corn and soybeans, neither of which are organic.

=> Shop with local farmers, at farmers’ markets and, of course, your local co-op
Finding a source you trust, that either farms or supplies the kind of high-quality, fresh and organic foods that you want. Many local farmers are even more stringent than the FDA organic label demands because they value their local customers and survive because of them and their repeat business.

=> Start your own garden; even if it’s small, and grow organic.
It doesn’t take much land to produce a surprising amount of food for a family. Even if you only have enough room to produce a few things, you are ahead of the game.   Produce like lettuce grows easily and takes very little room for the amount produced.  Zucchini is a plant that will grow tons of delicious food in a pretty small space.  Potatoes can be grown in towers which maximizes the yield per square foot of ground, minimizes watering and is easy to do.

The list goes on an on and we can all do something to help ourselves and our communities.

The inspiration for this article came from the “Organic View” newsletter put out by the Organic Consumers Association. You can keep up to date with developments in the organic world at their website, http://www.organicconsumers.org/