Another example of ordinary food, and "organic."

[Archae]

Yesterday at my local grocery, they had two brands of eggs for sale.

Both a store brand.

One the usual, $2 for 18 eggs.

Ok...

"Organic," was $4 a dozen.

Eggs are eggs!

[whatthehey]

1. But Mabel had such a fine time walking around the commune with Colin

Not to minimize horrific factory farm conditions with Portlandia references, but that's the driving force behind both cost and marketing. Some will pay it. Most won't. In this case it's not really about the food but the production.

[HuckleB]

8. Perceived production.

Unfortunately, the marketing labels aren't exactly truthful.

[Gormy Cuss]

2. Enjoy you cheap eggs

(certified organic producers do not use battery cages, although that doesn't mean they live in humane circumstances else-wise.)

[trotsky]

3. Yeah "organic" on eggs might mean nothing.

"Cage-free" is another misleading term. You could cram 1000 chickens in a room and call them "cage-free" while feeding them terrible food.

But I'm more than willing to pay a premium for "free range" or "pasture-foraging/pasture-raised" chicken eggs though. They result in a much better egg.

[Archae]

4. The sad part is...

Like "organic" and "cage-free" like you mention, the other terms could be meaningless as well.

"Free range" could be a lot on someone's farm where the 1,000 chickens are confined to, but outside.

The only way to know exactly what eggs are, is to see them being laid. Unfortunately.

[CreekDog]

5. $2 for 18 eggs?

I guess pigeon eggs are cheaper.

[HuckleB]

6. Chicken breasts at Fred Meyer.

Regular old chicken breasts = $1.99 pound. Organic chicken breasts = $5.99 a pound.

[Fronkonsteen]

7. I'll pay more for the product of humanely cared-for livestock (organic, free-range)

Ultimately, it's healthier for everyone.

[ProfessorGAC]

10. That's Not Organic

Your sentiment is a fine one, but that doesn't make the product organic. The conditions may be more humane, but that has nothing to do with organic. Free range is free range. Organic is organic. Otherwise you're mixing apples and hammers.

[Fronkonsteen]

12. Most organic eggs I see are either labelled free range, or at least 'cage free'

Granted, one condition (organic, free range) does not guaranty the other, but they are frequently connected. Either one by itself is a welcome improvement. I would also argue that free range is inherently more 'organic' even if it doesn't meet the regulatory definition.

[ProfessorGAC]

13. I Know

Color me as skeptical on some of this, though. I'm not sure that the definitions are firm enough to convince me that those products labeled that way are anything other than marketing.

Sort of like sulfate free shampoos that still have sulfates in them. They don't have alkyl sulfates (sodium lauryl sulfate) but do have ether sulfates (sodium laureth sulfate) in them. Granted the latter are milder and don't sting the eyes if you gets suds in them as much, but chemically it's still a sulfate. The fine point of chemistry is used only for marketing and doesn't mean much. (BTW: there are some sulfate free formulas that actually don't have sulfates. I just don't buy those because they're weaker cleaning agents.)

[Fronkonsteen]

15. I'm concerned about misleading labeling, too

I bought some 'fresh made' tortilla chips from the supermarket the other day, ate most of them, and only then saw that the tortillas they were made from were preserved with a full range of parabens. Parabens in tortillas? WTF!

Have you tried doing without shampoo? I stopped using any kind of hair care product a while back, and my hair is the best it's ever been.

[ProfessorGAC]

17. Sorry, Not Buying The No Shampoo Thing

I know quite a lot about surface chemistry and how surfactants work. There is no substitute, in my mind, with something that hits critical micellar state and is still mild to the hair and skin.

Soap is a BAD replacement because it has almost zero hard water tolerance. (Think bathtub ring! That's the calcium replacement ions falling out of solution. Nearly completely insoluble in water so that stuff stays on the skin and hair too!)

Water isn't "wet enough" naturally to remove oily residues from the skin and hair.

On your tortilla thing: that does seem odd. I know parabens metabolize rather easily in the body, but it does seem silly for something in a sealed bag that then will be gone in less than a week to need a preservative.

[Orrex]

9. Further reading

Here's a breathtakingly beautifully written and insightful article from way back 2009.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

11. my hippy ass trades trades medibles to my friends in exchange for their eggs

I buy cheap eggs at the store, but would get the slightly better 'organic' if i could afford them.

[womanofthehills]

14. Eggs are not eggs

When you buy cheap eggs you are supporting inhumane conditions for chickens. It's not hard to find eggs from local farmers.

I have my own chickens who forage outside, eat only organic grains and lots of scrap organic vegetables. They are super healthy and I have no problem putting their raw eggs in a smoothie.

With the new studies coming out saying chicken eggs have much more glyphosate than fruits and vegetables, I'm glad I raise my own.

[Archae]

16. You yourself are talking about the ideal, as compared to reality.

That reality can be (like I said above,) "free range" chickens that are cooped up in a lot, outside.

Maybe just as crowded as your last picture, just that it's outside as opposed to inside.

Marketers can get away with all sorts of shit like this.

[firebrand80]

18. I tried to raise a free range chicken

It got ran over by a Pontiac Bonneville

[firebrand80]

19. I'm heavily in favor of organic labeling, and GMO hysteria

Hopefully it brings down the price of regular food

[Javaman]

20. I get my eggs from the local farmers market.

they are 5 dollars a dozen and worth every single penny.

I have been to his farm and see how he raises his chickens.

they don't get grain feed, they aren't housed en masse, and they are treated very humanly. they are part of rotating farming system once practiced by all farmers but had gone out of tradition for the expediency of modern mass producing factory farming.

rather than try an explain the process, here is a link...

http://www.polyfacefarms.com/principles/

[Doremus]

22. We have a national park nearby that leases out its farmland

I've seen the farmers employ the rotating system with chickens and pigs.

So much better for the livestock, people and the planet.

[Shandris]

21. My eggs are labelled 'Expired 2012'. Mainly because I am fortunate enough to have...

...local chicken farmers who sell fresh eggs, so long as you bring your own carton (which is an old one from, you guessed it, 2012! ). I'd highly recommend to those not in big cities to take a drive through your local countryside and look. The individuals I purchase from don't advertise more than a small sign in their yard. I literally drove by it as an accident (wrong turn). Three years on, there are all sorts of tiny 'businesses' (not really, but more like personal side-businesses) out in the countryside that I've found by word of mouth and signs in yards.

Of course, they're not inspected and stamped 'Safe according to people who are neither responsible nor concerned about you' (that I know of; there might be some odd small chicken farmer regulation I'm unaware of). You can determine for yourself if the 'risk' is worth it. If anyone has an idea (or knowledge about situations like this) for city dwellers, that'd be helpful. I'm not a big city person, a small stint in Indianapolis notwithstanding.

If you can't source your food, it likely isn't food. Not in this world, not anymore.

[Humanist_Activist]

23. Makes even less sense for things that are chemically identical, like sugar.

And the organic label doesn't mean that its healthier, or that its free of pesticides and/or herbicides.