The economy of groceries is shifting again. In a sign that consumers want to maintain healthier diets, organic foods are being launched into the spotlight. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but right alongside the apples, pears, and citrus fruits at your local grocery store are organic options for the same selections, which usually cost a few cents more per pound.
In the deli and meats section, you’ll see organic meat and free-range organic chicken showing up more and more often. Even, unbelievably, potato chips are offering organic options — a true sign that the new reality of organic foods is upon us.
What are organic foods, exactly? To be called “organic” a food must pass many regulations mandated by the government, and it must be produced without using most kinds of pesticides.
For decades, farmers and produce companies have been blasting their goods with pesticides to ward off insects. They gave little credence to the health detriments of their actions, and nobody really cared up until DEET — a dangerous pesticide — was banned by the FDA during the last decade.
Now, organic foods have moved in and offered consumers a safe, alternative option where their health is clearly a priority. But that’s not all: studies have found that organic foods have higher levels of many important nutrients than non-organic foods do. These include selenium, chromium, calcium, and magnesium. They also have far fewer heavy metals than organic foods do.
Overall, organic seems to be the healthier and safer choice, although this remains a highly contentious issue among food experts. However, some of the big companies are buying it.
One big sign that organic is the new mainstream food choice comes via Wal-Mart, which is currently doubling its selection of organic foods. This means that manufacturers will be producing more and you can expect to see big food labels — such as Sarah Lee Corp. and Hillshire Farm — start rolling out organic options.
For instance, Ragu launched an organic pasta sauce last year and is considering putting out more of the same product. Frito-Lay has created an organic line of snacks called “Wild Oats.” And Kraft has created an entirely new arm of their company called “Back to Nature” that is entirely organic. So it’s quite possible that when you see an organic brand name, it is actually part of a much larger company that is putting a lot of money into organic foods.
They probably have recognized that organic sales are picking up, with major food companies and traditional grocery stores stepping up their organic content. According to the Organic Trade Association, food sales have grown an average of 20% a year since 1990. In 2003 (the most recent data), sales topped $10.4 billion.
Make no mistake about it — the popularity of organic foods is not a passing fad. The first sign of the changing times comes when multi-million-dollar companies (with profit always being their bottom line) start investing deeply into something new.
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Tags: Diets, health tips, healthy foods
