4 ms·

Except a lot of data, and stricter rules See: https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/cocktails-of-pesticide-residues-in-conventional-and-organic-farmi#:~:text

by toshk 4y ago

Except a lot of data, and stricter rules See: https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/cocktails-of-pesticide-residues-in-conventional-and-organic-farmi#:~:text=Organic%20soils%20presented%2070%E2%80%9390,soil%20biota%20and%20soil%20health https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/cocktails-of-pestici....

munk-a 4y ago
Your linked source is specific to Europe which tends to have much stronger regulations on pesticides. While the parent didn't state it explicitly I believe their statement was about the US since - yea, in America the organic label doesn't change the volume of pesticides you can use but rules out some of them. The best tactic you can follow in the US is to try and buy imported produce from countries with stricter pesticide laws.
- toshk 4y ago
  Well this is about soil, it might also just be that organic pesticides break down better. I don't know much about the US rules. But I also know here it's popular to say "well just because it's organic, doesn't mean it's without pesticides". But in general the few times I've checked different researches on pesticide residue organic scores consistently better.
Bud 4y ago
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
gandalfian 4y ago
In fairness organic is defined very differently in different countries. Wild fish are not organic in UK but farmed fish can be. Taken literally all food is organic apart from a few mineral supplements like iron tablets.
minsc_and_boo 4y ago
Organic dangerously commits the natural fallacy. Up until very recently, organic included the use of rotenone, which is a 'naturally occurring' poison that causes parkinson's in mammals. Modern synthetic pesticides are far, far from great but they're still better than their natural counterparts.
- biorach 4y ago
  > Modern synthetic pesticides are far, far from great but they're still better than their natural counterparts. Far too much generalisation there. There are thousands of synthetic pesticides, and dozens (hundreds?) of "natural" ones (ranging from gelatine to roteome). A broad brush comparison is useless
  - minsc_and_boo 4y ago
    It's not a pointless comparison when organic farmers used harmful rotenone so much that it had to become banned outright. Needing to ban a 19th century pesticide in the 21st century is not a broad brush, but proof of the growing common misconception that naturally occurring means safer than synthetic - the entire basis of the Organic label.

by toshk 4y ago

munk-a 4y ago

Your linked source is specific to Europe which tends to have much stronger regulations on pesticides. While the parent didn't state it explicitly I believe their statement was about the US since - yea, in America the organic label doesn't change the volume of pesticides you can use but rules out some of them. The best tactic you can follow in the US is to try and buy imported produce from countries with stricter pesticide laws.

toshk 4y ago
Well this is about soil, it might also just be that organic pesticides break down better. I don't know much about the US rules. But I also know here it's popular to say "well just because it's organic, doesn't mean it's without pesticides". But in general the few times I've checked different researches on pesticide residue organic scores consistently better.

Bud 4y ago

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

gandalfian 4y ago

In fairness organic is defined very differently in different countries. Wild fish are not organic in UK but farmed fish can be. Taken literally all food is organic apart from a few mineral supplements like iron tablets.

minsc_and_boo 4y ago

Organic dangerously commits the natural fallacy. Up until very recently, organic included the use of rotenone, which is a 'naturally occurring' poison that causes parkinson's in mammals. Modern synthetic pesticides are far, far from great but they're still better than their natural counterparts.

biorach 4y ago
> Modern synthetic pesticides are far, far from great but they're still better than their natural counterparts. Far too much generalisation there. There are thousands of synthetic pesticides, and dozens (hundreds?) of "natural" ones (ranging from gelatine to roteome). A broad brush comparison is useless
- minsc_and_boo 4y ago
  It's not a pointless comparison when organic farmers used harmful rotenone so much that it had to become banned outright. Needing to ban a 19th century pesticide in the 21st century is not a broad brush, but proof of the growing common misconception that naturally occurring means safer than synthetic - the entire basis of the Organic label.