[dribnet]

I don't think you read the article - the metals were the direct result of fertilizer which would not be allowed in organic farming. The catch is that the fertilizer (coal ash) was used to grow corn and soybean animal feed (which cows can't even digest properly, but that's another story...) and then the manure of those cows went to organic farms - so the purported vector of attack was indirect.

I'm no cheerleader of organics and think it's foolish that GMOs are by definition non-organic. However, I buy them when I can primarily because of my concerns with pesticide and fertilizer overuse.

[evjan]

I'm not sure that's how I understood the article. Did you see the part that said "This proved kale’s powers as a hyperaccumulator, but it disproved, or at least shook, his belief that coal ash was the culprit."

[dmschulman]

The catch is that the fertilizer (coal ash) was used to grow corn and soybean animal feed (which cows can't even digest properly, but that's another story...) and then the manure of those cows went to organic farms - so the purported vector of attack was indirect.

That's exactly my point though, organic farming is not a closed system no matter how much the public might desire to believe it is. There are some tenants of growing organics but it's not standardized nor systematic. I believe it is potentially deceiving in the worse cases. Of course the issue at hand is not organic farming but instead cruciferous veggies such as kale and broccoli but I only mention the idea because it's an integral part of Hubbard's "perfect storm":

"Now, Hubbard had what he often calls “a perfect storm”: contaminated vegetables, misleadingly pushed on the public as nutritious—and clean—leading to misdiagnosed ailments. “Where does this list end?” he wrote in one of his numerous messages emphasizing these points. “There is undoubtedly a series of similar perfect storms at work in other heavy metals and our food supply, including infant/baby foods, pet foods, and beyond.”"

[swsieber]

But if everyone grew "organic" food, then it would be moot point. A full organic system is a better than a full non-organic system. So while current organic food might be contaminated through side channels, making more of our food production 'organic' would be be beneficial - not because organic food is great nutritionally in and of itself, but because having more of it benefits the food system.

That said, I don't eat much organic food. However, this article has made me want to eat more organic food.

[cholantesh]

But organic agri necessarily uses _more_ pesticide and fertilizer. It's the only way their crop yields can match their GM analogues.