In article ,
"DogDiesel" wrote:

It dawned on me over a week ago. That I'm really enthused about gardening
this year. . I was stewing on that fact. As to why. And I hate the yard
work, the weeding, bugs, being in the sun. I haven't been this enthused
since I was about 6 years old when they used to sell those seed kits in
school. I don't remember those going well either. Last year was a mild
success. A lot was learned. The main plot did very well. But I let the
little plot get overrun with weeds.

And it finally dawned on me that what food I did get . Was really really
tasty. And that is what I'm looking forward too. I've been eating
grocery store roma tomatoes , and iceberg lettuce so long that I forgot what
veggies were supposed to taste like. As a matter of fact it was the
lettuce, eggplant, and tomatoes that got me good. People were asking for my
stuff. I was on a Thai curry kick last year and eggplant worked out well.

Is food taste what it is all about.

Diesel.

And then there is

http://www.ewg.org/news/how-eat-fewer-pesticides-0

How to Eat Fewer Pesticides

Epicurious, Staff
Published November 6, 2006
Next time you're at the supermarket debating whether to pay more for a
pint of organic strawberries than you do for your lunch - or deciding if
you should choose that wilted organic celery over the crisp green
conventional stalks - you might want to refer to the Environmental
Working Group's new wallet-size Shoppers' Guide. The not-for-profit
group lists the "Dirty Dozen" (the 12 fruits and veggies that are the
most contaminated with pesticides) and the "Cleanest 12" (those that
generally have the lowest amounts of pesticides).
There have been some ratings revisions since the last Guide came out in
October 2003. For instance, carrots are off the "bad" list now but
lettuce is on it. Cauliflower has fallen from grace but cabbage has made
the cut and is now on the "good list." Here are the full lists.

The "Dirty Dozen" (starting with the worst)

* peaches
* apples
* sweet bell peppers
* celery
* nectarines
* strawberries
* cherries
* pears
* grapes (imported)
* spinach
* lettuce
* potatoes

The "Cleanest 12" (starting with the best)

* onions
* avocados
* sweet corn (frozen)
* pineapples
* mangoes
* asparagus
* sweet peas (frozen)
* kiwi fruit
* bananas
* cabbage
* broccoli
* papaya

To come up with its rankings, the Environmental Working Group looked at
the results of close to 43,000 tests for pesticides on produce by the
U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration. A computer analysis by the EWG found that consumers
could reduce their pesticide exposure by nearly 90 percent by avoiding
the most contaminated fruits and vegetables and eating the least
contaminated instead. People who eat the "Dirty Dozen" will be exposed
to an average of 15 different pesticides per day, says Richard Wiles,
executive director of the Environmental Working Group, while eating from
the "Cleanest 12" means you'll be exposed to less than two pesticides
per day. So if produce from the "Dirty Dozen" is on your menu, it makes
sense from a health standpoint to choose organic.

Of course, health concerns aren't the only reasons people choose organic
foods. It takes an enormous amount of fuel to make synthetic
fertilizers, explains Wiles. "Conventional agriculture is very energy
inefficient," he says.

On the other hand, costly and polluting fuel is required to transport
both conventional and organic fruit and vegetables from farms to grocery
stores - produce is often shipped to the U.S. from as far away as New
Zealand. So does this mean you're better off eating a locally grown
nonorganic apple than an organic one from the other side of the world?
Perhaps the solution, Wiles says, is to encourage local farmers to start
growing organic crops. For example, begin by asking farmers whether they
used pesticides on their apples, Wiles advises. "The more that local
production can be moved toward organic, the better," he says.

Meanwhile, even if you can't always afford or find organic produce,
there are steps you can take to get rid of some of the pesticides on
conventional produce. Since washing reduces pesticides by anywhere from
one third to one half, thoroughly scrub and rinse everything, even
produce that will be peeled. Then consider making yourself a
pesticide-reduced dinner tonight. How does a menu of Guacamole, Tropical
Fruit Salsa, and Cilantro-Lime Chicken Fajitas with Grilled Onions sound?
To download a copy of the Shopper's Guide, visit http://www.foodnews.org.
--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYIC0eZYEtI
http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2011/3/7/michael_moore
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZkDikRLQrw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyE5wjc4XOw