THE "BIO BOOM"

People are now more aware of health than ever before, and this is making them change their consumption patterns. People tend to avoid what they consider harmful, and that has pushed the emergence of "bio products".

Nowadays, bio fruits and vegetables are not only available in specialized retailers like Bio c’Bon & Actus, NaturaSì, or Veritas but also in big supermarkets such as Carrefour, Lidl, or Aldi. 

On one side, some people believe that by eating organic food, they are eating a better product which is unexposed to pesticides or chemicals. Nevertheless, there is no clear study that guarantees a higher nutritional value for organic food compared to conventional food. Moreover, according to the EU regulation, organic food cannot use artificial fertilizers and pesticides, which does not mean they are free from them. Organic farming uses pesticides but from natural origins. Something important is that just because a chemical residue is found in a food commodity, does not mean the food is unsafe, as the final implication will depend on the level of toxicity of the additive. 

Despite that, we must remember that all fruits and vegetables go through the same high quality and safety standards regulated by EU authorities. The director of the European Food Safety Agency stated that “organic is neither safe nor more nutritious”, which does not mean it is worse, but it is not better, or at least, there is no clear evidence. 

On the other side, eco or bio is often considered environmentally friendly. In general terms, we could agree on that since organic farming promotes crop rotations, which takes care of soil quality and improves local biodiversity. Moreover, not using artificial pesticides reduces the energy used to produce them and may reduce nitrogen and phosphorus runoff that are very harmful to maritime creatures. There is, however, an important inconvenience; studies show that organic farming produces on average 25% less than conventional agriculture. In other terms; organic farming needs more good quality land to obtain similar amounts of production, being less efficient. This could force the use of natural ecosystems which could be more important than any plantation, especially in high biodiversity areas.  

The idea behind these differentiated products consists of offering the clients a product that is supposed to be healthier, more natural, and more ethical. However, up to this point, two main conclusions can be drawn; organic food is neither healthier nor safer for human health, and its final implications for the environment are not clear.

Sources: Europa Press, BBC, Greenpeace & ABC.