Being BOLD for Beginners!

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Did you know that farmers in the United States use more than 700 million pounds of pesticides on their crops each year? Did you know that many of these pesticides are unsafe for humans and can cause respiratory problems, neurological problems, and reproductive problems? Did you know that pesticides affect millions of peoples’ drinking water in the Chesapeake Bay region – OUR HOME! -- alone?

So, how can you help fight against the use of pesticides and improve your health, as well as the health of the local environment? Be BOLD!

Let’s start with the basics. What does it mean to eat locally-grown, organic food? If a food is labeled organic, does that mean it was grown on a local farm? If a food is locally grown, does that mean it’s also organic? Well, not necessarily.

In order for food to be certified organic, it must be processed according to some very strict standards set up by the United States’ government. If the food is a fruit or vegetable, this means that farmers cannot spray it with any man-made chemicals (including dangerous pesticides, fungicides, or insecticides). Farmers also cannot use seeds that contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to help protect against certain pests. In the same sense, for a meat or diary product to be certified organic, farmers cannot feed antibiotics or artificial growth hormones to the animals from which those products are produced.

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So, how do you know which foods have been certified organic and are free of all of those nasty chemicals? That’s simple. Just look for the official USDA Organic label (pictured here) on the foods you want to buy. If the label isn’t there, that food has not been certified organic by the government and the standards under which it was produced may be questionable.

But, just because that apple you’re eating had a USDA Organic label on its skin doesn’t mean that it was grown in a Baltimore County, Carroll County, or even a Frederick County orchard. Many people assume that eating organic food is the same thing as eating locally-grown food. It’s not. That organic apple could have come from an orchard in Europe, South America, or Asia! Where that apple was grown has nothing to do with the way it was grown.

Eating food grown on local farms not only helps decrease the amount of gas (and pollution) needed to get your food from the farm to your plate, but also increases the quality of the food you eat. You’ll notice meals prepared with ingredients bought at local farmers’ markets taste better and fresher than meals prepared with the same ingredients bought at the grocery store.

Now you have the basics and know what you need to do, go ahead and be BOLD! Prepare at least one of your meals each day using locally-grown, organic ingredients. Your body (and the environment) will thank you!