National Organic Week Day 2: Why I Buy Only Organically Grown Root Crops

Aotearoa New Zealand's National Organic Week is the largest annual celebration of all things organic - from food, farming, wine, beauty to textiles.... and it is on this week! To celebrate this week, I am posting each day something that is organic related & that we enjoy as a household.
Today, I thought I would share why I only buy organically grown root crops. I highly recommend that if you want to make a significant health difference for your household, look to purchase organically grown root vegetables only, rather than those conventionally grown.
Root vegetables are often listed amongst the 'Dirty Dozen' when it comes to food tested for contamination via pesticides and insecticides used in conventional farming practices. This is not surprising, in that the root system is the first port of call for a plant when it comes to taking in nutrients and water from the surrounding soil. Whatever has gone into the soil will turn up in the chemical makeup of both the plant and its roots.
The roots of any plant will of course not only be taken in what is needed for growth and development of the overall plant, but they are literally sitting and soaking in that very contaminated soil. What a chemical cocktail it could unwittingly be! I simply do not choose to buy root vegetables where there is the potential for a greater concentration of what is essentially poison to be present within or around them.
Living in a rural community with many grower farmers around us, we have seen firsthand just how much spraying does occur, when it comes to conventional market food. Potatoes, carrots, onions are typically on my grocery shopping list and I will only now ever buy organically grown if I have none growing presently in our own organically produced backyard garden.
Likewise kumara (sweet potato) beetroot, parsnip, swede.... anything that is by nature a root vegetable, I will aim to grow them in my own spray-free garden, or I will only purchase them if they are definitely deemed certified organic. Consider making the switch to organically grown root crops. I am very sure you and your loved ones will taste the difference, just like those in my household do!

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