Organic Production and Food Quality

Robert Blair, DSc, is Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

• Foreword ix1 The Shift to Organic Food 1Background 1Organic regulations 3Consumer perceptions 7Analysis of the topic 9References 102 Consumer Concerns About Food 13The concerns 14Consumer concerns and attitudes 16Food regulations 20Justification for consumer attitudes about the safety of organic and conventional foods 21Range of organic foods 22References 233 Vegetable Produce 25Pest and disease control 25Documented findings on pesticide residues 27Other chemical contaminants 33Other toxic and antinutritional compounds in produce 35Hormones 35Can organic produce cause food poisoning? 36Nutrient concentrations 42Organoleptic quality 51Identification of organic produce 53Food from afar 54Finally: watch which salad veg you eat 55Conclusions 55References 564 Fruit 61Pesticide residues 61Other risks with fruit 68Chemical residues 68Microbial problems 70Mycotoxins 70Cloning and gene-modified fruit 71Nutrient concentrations 72Appearance and organoleptic qualities 83Preserves 86Conclusions 88References 895 Cereal Grains 93Pesticide residues 93Chemical residues 96Other issues relating to grains 97Mycotoxins: are organic grains less safe? 98Gene-modified crops 102Nutritional and organoleptic qualities 103Wheat 104Oats 108Barley 108Conclusions 108References 1096 Meat 111Chemical and pesticide residues 111Organic meat 116Hormones 121Hormone residue levels in meats. Do government agencies monitor for these? 123Developing countries 124Antibiotics 125Bacterial contamination of meat 127Cloning 129Mad-cow disease 131Contaminated beef products implicated 132Gene modification 133Nutritional and organoleptic qualities 135Beef 135Pork 141Poultry 146Fish 150Conclusions 157References 1587 Milk and Milk Products 163The hormone issue 163Raw milk 165Antibiotic residues 167Pesticide and chemical residues 168Nutritional and organoleptic qualities 170Research findings 170Consumer findings 175Conclusions 179References 1808 Eggs 183Cholesterol 184Salmonella and food-poisoning 187Contamination with residues 191Antibiotics 191Chemical residues 192Egg quality 198Research findings 198Consumer findings 203Conclusions 203References 2049 Is Organic Food Safer? 207Residues 207Vegetable produce 207Fruit 208Cereal grains 208Meat 208Milk 209Eggs 209Food poisoning 210Mycotoxins 211Other anti-nutrients 211Nitrate 211Significance of the findings in relation to health 213Other research on food and health 216Health of farmers and farm workers 219Other approaches 221Conclusions 222References 22310 Is Organic Food More Nutritious and “Tasty”? 227Reviews 227Analysis by food group 237Vegetable produce 237Fruit 238Cereal grains 239Meat 239Milk 239Eggs 240Taste 240References 24011 Psychology of Organic Food Choice 243The safety issue 244Nutritional quality and taste 244Environmental issues 248Image 252Conclusions 256References 25612 Conclusions 259Reference 263Appendix 265Index 267

"This comprehensive book is welcome in that it not only covers the quality of crops in separate chapters on vegetables, fruit and cereal grains but it also deals, in equal measure, with the quality of meat, milk products and eggs." (The Biologist, March 2014) “Everyone with a serious interest in the differences between organic and conventional food should have this book on their coffee table or bookshelf, because it is the most comprehensive and objective library of present evidence.”  (Int. J. Environment & Pollution, 1 May 2013)"Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals; general readers." (Choice, 1 December 2012)"This book by Professor Blair is a very valuable analysis of how organic food production affects food quality, and the conclusions and suggestions should be of great interest to all sectors of the food industry, including researchers and producers. Hopefully the book will also benefit consumers by encouraging the media and the food industry to present a more accurate picture of the relative quality of conventional and organic foods." (Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Science, 1 May 2012)"This is a remarkable book . . . Everyone with a serious interest in the differences between organic and conventional food should have this book on their coffee table or bookshelf because it is the most comprehensive and objective library of present evidence." (Prof. John Hodges, Food and Nutrition Sciences)"Dr. Blair's book is a comprehensive and balanced review of the scientific literature related to the organic versus conventional debate. . . . Each chapter provides an unbiased overview of the literature related to a particular food item and lets the reader decide if their preference for or against a particular organic food is supported by research." (Journal of Applied Poultry Research, 1 December 2012) "This unique book gives an objective and thorough view of a major issue in health, nutrition, food quality, the environment and food production systems and is of interest to consumers, farmers, nutritionists, medical specialists, environmentalists and businesses in the food chain." (Journal of Tropical Agricultural Association, Winter 2012)