When you think of organics you might think of a lot of things, but I bet ethics isn't one of them. However, ethics plays a huge role in the organic world. In fact, it is a part of ethical consumerism, which is how we choose to spend our money.
You see, how each and every one of us chooses to spend our money is extremely important. Every dollar in your wallet, your pocket, the jar on top of your refrigerator, and in your bank account is one vote you have in the world of consumerism. You might have hundreds of votes or thousands or maybe you only have dozens or even a few, but you still have votes and you need to cast them wisely.
How are dollars votes? Well, every time you buy a product with your dollars you are saying to the company that made that product that it is OK for them to produce that product and conduct business the way they are doing it.
If they are sourcing out their ingredients in a Fair Trade manner or avoiding sweat shop labor in the production of their products, then you are putting in your vote that this is acceptable. If they are wasting materials in packaging, paying people less than they are worth to produce the product and making immoral or unethical business decisions, you are using your vote to say that's OK. Which would you rather vote for?
Organic is the same. When you buy non-organic you are using your vote to tell companies and farmers that it is OK to grow food with the use of synthetic chemicals and that it is OK to genetically modify foods. When you buy organic you are using your vote to say that organic is best and that you support that.
What about local versus organic. There is much debate as to whether it is better to buy local or organic if you have to choose between the two and there are good arguments either way. Most agree that buying local has a lower overall impact on the environment, but someone I know once pointed out that if we choose local non-organic we are allowing the local farmers to avoid switching over. We make it easy for them to conduct business as usual. If we don't use our money to vote for organics, they will have no reason to ever change their farming practices.
Besides the ethics of it, organics are just plain better for your body, the farmers and their communities, and the earth so when you choose organics you are voting positively in so many ways. Of course, each and every person has the right to cast their vote however they wish.
What I would like to suggest is that you give very careful consideration to how you choose to vote with your dollars. Can you make changes? Do you want to? Only you can decide. And you know what the best part is? We can always change our vote. Even if you have been voting one way for your whole life, you can change and vote another way at any time. You can choose to spend your dollars differently at any moment. That is truly freeing.
He is very vast in environmental management issues and has written many articles on the environment. His website which covers just about everything you would need to know about the environment is located at: http://www.organiclifezone.com/.
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