local vs. organic

we just paid a visit to the deerfield farmer's market, which was pleasant if spare. lots of flowers and plants, a few bakeries and coffee stands, and only two organic growers out of four different farm stands. i am not counting the fruit people in the mix since they are doing something different than the other farms. with the price of gas these days, i was perplexed as to which farm to choose--one organic grower was quite far out, the other only 20 minutes from our door. however, the non-organic grower said they do use IPM, and to tell the truth they had the best stand with the most variety. i was happy to see some lovely greens and broccoli from the closer farm, we bought a nice bunch of kale and broccoli from the farmer there. the next stand held some tempting summer squash, diego picked a small yellow crookneck and i chose a healthy looking cuke. as we sidled over to the next stand, i noticed their cauliflower was massive, a lovely creamy white, and not a sign of pests. so i asked about their practices and found they had a bit of bad luck trying out an acre of organic produce last season, so they are still using pesticides. for those who have never been on a pennypack farm tour with the former farm educator, a pesticide kills pests. ''cide'' means to kill, think of homocide, suicide, and you will understand where the root of that word comes from. so a pesticide will kill pests...but what many folks don't know, which is the heart of what we call IPM or integrated pest management. in simple terms that a child of ten could follow, we don't consider every bug in the field a pest. some are beneficial insects that actually help keep the unwanted bugs away. like most things in nature, there exists a delicate balance or ecosystem that handles itself mathematically and beautifully at once. of course, the rub comes in where homo sapiens enter, to do what we do so well...mess up the perfectly designed web of relationships between all other living creatures. our lack of awareness about the beneficial insects, about the dangers of mono-culture results in the typical american farm of one crop for acres, rather than a diversified field of rotating, seasonal vegetables that would also attract both types of insects rather than an overwhelming population of pests. the outcome of this lopsided system is pesticides, to rid the farmer of the unwanted bugs that would have had natural predators if there were other different crops growing nearby.
so back to the title of this post, i have been weighing the pros and cons of buying local vs. organic. being a former farm educator and a staunch eco-veggie head according to a certain friend from my college days, i am painfully aware that there are pluses and minuses on both sides for the environment and for our farming future depending on the choices we make. something about the extra contaminants on the more local, non-organic food makes me want to choose organic. for a small distance, say 50 miles, i would choose organic over local. the question becomes more compelling when faced with the choices typically seen at the store for organic produce. most of our produce, especially out of season here in the midwest, is shipped for the typical 1,500 miles or more before making it's appearance on your store shelves. that obviously is part of the reason that many people find buying organic to be daunting, if not impossible, to justify on a budget. however, the fact remains that the non-organic or what the store likes to call conventional produce is typically traveling just as far to reach you. in this case, i think you need to cast a green vote with your greenbacks and choose the organic, distant produce over the non-organic and still likely distant veggies at your local store. buy local, buy organic, and make the choices that will feed your body and soul with pure goodness from the place we all return to one day...the place we enjoy beneath our feet, our beautiful spinning blue ball of earth.