Beware of Organic Produce- Scary

Yesterday while shopping in the supermarket, I picked up the package of roasted chestnuts that I saw  was labeled USDA organic. As I continued to shop, I began to wonder which country my roasted chestnuts were from.- I was shocked when I read on the back that they were USDA organic from China. CHINA?????? 

I was confused. I know that this highly polluted country has a poor record when it comes to offering healthy products, especially food. Ordinarily, I would not ever consider buying any food or produce that came from a country as polluted as China. However, since it was USDA organic, I gave it some thought.

I wondered, " Is it possible to be organic from China? " 

I bought the roasted chestnuts because they were very inexpensive and I needed them for a chestnut mushroom soup I wanted to post. Maybe the price of the product should have been my clue. The package was only $2.19 as opposed to another brand in a jar that was like $14 from the USA and not organic. The ones I bought were organic and only $2.19 !!!

I decided to research organic produce from China. This is what I found out. 

Yes, produce can be grown organically in China. However, since there is so much pollution in China, there is concern that the rain supply and the rivers contain a heavy amount of lead and other toxins that get into the soil and on the plants. In addition, much of the water used to water the crops is from polluted highly polluted rivers. 

Here is a quote I took from a website called the True Activist: 

"Even if “organically grown” food from China was in fact that, the quality of the water used in the production of food intended for export is so contaminated that a person could fall ill just by handling it. Much of China’s industrial-scale agriculture is found along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers, both of which are extremely polluted. This is because thousands upon thousands of Chinese factories also line these same rivers, adding their chemical waste to the same water used to irrigate the country’s food supply."

Read More: http://www.trueactivist.com/organic-food-from-china-found-to-be-highly-contaminated/

Another article from a website called Natural News says, 

"Organic farming in a clean environment produces clean, organic foods. But organic farming in a polluted environment produces contaminated organic foods. And China is one of the most polluted chemical cesspools on the planet."

In addition, one company said that they purchased from China and the sample they were sent was organic but that the actual full supply they received didn't meet the same standards when tested. So the company didn't feel the supplies were trust worthy. 

Personally from what I've researched, I will not buy USDA approved organic products from China. I will return or discard my roasted chestnuts that I just purchased- 

But it got me thinking. How often do I really check to see which country a product comes from? 

I trust USDA organic and never before ever looked to see where it was actually from. 

So- I started checking and I found out my gluten free rice crackers were from Poland or Czec Republic!!!!! Who even knew- I wonder about their standards but also wonder about the effects in their soil from the Chernobyl disaster. - I did a little research and yes it's possible that 30 years later there could still be radiation in the soil- oy!!

All I can say is read your labels very carefully and KNOW where you food is coming from. 

I will from now on.. This was an eye opener for me!

What do you think? How do you feel about it?

please comment.... 

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