New 2023-2024 Study by the Environmental Working Group has come in with startling results when it comes to food safety and the produce you purchase. In their study they examined Produce from both Organic and Conventional Farmers that show residues that are potentially dangerous are found on a minimum of 75% of Organic Produce and 95% of Conventionally Farmed Produce. Some of the products used can cause reproductive harm in humans.
This is pretty alarming especially for the Organic Produce because consumers seek out and pay more for these products with the assumption that they are grown without using these products.
Unfortunately tests do show that most of our common produce purchases will arrive with pesticides and fungicides that can harm you. Washing should remove most of the danger but unless every item you consume is tested how are you to know if your washing has been effective. That doesn’t even consider the fact that farmers are suppose to be washing and removing these residues or the fact that some produce naturally absorb liquids extremely easily like strawberries, grapes, cherries and lettuce, spinach and other produce.
The 12 worst on their list are said to have a 95% positive test rate.
Strawberries, Spinach, Kale, Collard and Mustard greens, Grapes, Peaches, Pears, Nectarines, Apples, Bell and Hot peppers, Cherries, Blueberries, Green beans.
Many of these things you can grow yourself pretty easily but others such as fruit from trees are very difficult and take years before they produce fruit. You might want to replace some of those fruits in your diet with ones you can produce easily in a single season.
Can You Grow Enough Fresh Produce To Feed Your Family?
Unfortunately fresh produce can only be grown in warmer temperatures. Produce seems to like temperatures between 60F and 85F and for most people our homes are located in areas where weather conditions are like this for only a short part of the year. Additionally harvest is only for a short period of time. This reduces our ability to grow our own foods which can’t be preserved and stored for up to a year when the next harvest arrives.
However you can produce a good amount of produce that can be eaten fresh and others that can be preserved for about a year using a variety of storage methods. So this means you might not be able to have fresh carrots and strawberries but you can have canned carrots an strawberry preserves. You might even preserve the same item in different ways to be used in different ways later on.
What Methods Of Preserving Are Possible For The Home Grower?
This is very important to understand not all methods of food preservation work well in home kitchen setups. Commercial food preservation happens under strict conditions that have been developed over many decades. Although you can mimic some of these methods at home with reasonable results you will never have the same results as a commercial operation.
Canning is a very common way to preserve your foods but it has to be performed in very strict ways. The amount of acidity and the time and heat used must be controlled or the food will be under processed which can lead to bacteria growth or it can be over processed which can lead to food that is unappetizing. And for the most part pressure canning is a necessity as apposed to water bath canning which can not deliver results for most foods.
Freezing is also a very easy way to preserve food but there are drawbacks. If you lose power even for a short time the food can be lost. If you package the food even appropriately you will eventually have damage due to freezing which makes the food unappetizing.
Dehydration is a possibility but most people under process dehydrated foods which leads to bacteria growth. Rehydration is just as important and never results in product as perfect as fresh in the end.
There are other methods of food preservation and we will introduce them in our HowTo Guides but it is important to understand no method of food preservation is possible for a variety of fresh produce. You can’t freeze a lettuce salad but maybe you could make a salad with other produce that is still appetizing or maybe you cook a soup or stew and leave the lettuce for spring, summer and fall.
What Are Other Considerations When You Are Growing Your Food Supply?
In addition to preserving you should also look into extending your growing and harvest periods. Installing a green house can allow you to grow food earlier and later in the season.
You might also want to extend your garden by planting items that you normally haven’t before. This means you are less dependent on outside sources that you can’t control. Even if you only eat fresh produce from spring to summer at least that is a good portion of the year where you are producing your own food.
Micro Gardening is possible for many people even people in apartments. You may not be able to grow a lemon tree in your living room but maybe you can grow greens year round under artificial grow lights.
Final Note
Nothing is perfect but if you don’t attempt anything then you won’t have any results you can depend on.
If you can’t grow your own food then try to source it from someone that has the same values as you do. Do they grow organic food and go well beyond the basic rules to be considered organic.
Any produce that you buy at a store you should always wash before eating. Take whatever precautions available to reduce your exposure. Nothing is perfect but doing something is better than nothing.