A four year project led by Newcastle University has found that organic produce is better for you than non-organic. The study funded by the European Union, found a general trend showing organic food contained more antioxidants and less fatty acids. The study is yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal and the researchers have admitted that there are some variations. However they do question the stance by many that there is no evidence that organic food is better. Personally, I don’t need science to tell me that naturally grown food is good for you, but in a world that will only believe something until it has been “approved” by science, it is nice to read about these sorts of findings.
Researchers grew fruit, vegetables and reared cattle on adjacent organic and non-organic sites across Europe, including a 725-acre farm attached to Newcastle University. They found levels of antioxidants in milk from organic cattle were between 50 % and 80 % higher than non-organic milk. Organic wheat, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, onions and lettuce had between 20 % and 40 % more nutrients.
Project co-ordinator Professor Carlo Leifert said: “We have shown there are more of certain nutritionally desirable compounds and less of the baddies in organic foods. Our research is now trying to find out where the difference between organic and conventional food comes from. What we’re really interested in is finding out why there is so much variability with respect to the differences. What in the agricultural system gives a higher nutritional content and less of the baddies in the food?” He said he hoped the findings would help farmers in organic to improve the quality of their produce.
Final results of the project are due to be published over the next 12 months and I am sure it is going to create a stir. In fact it wouldn’t surprise me if a major corporation has already started funding research to try and refute the claims.
Jason Andrew
Managing Director
Yum Organics