Dr. Oz tackled the popular question of, “Should I be buying organic foods?”
My position on organic foods is quite simple: If I had a Dr. Oz or Oprah food budget, I’d buy everything organic. It’s true that organic foods are not purchased exclusively by the very rich or else it wouldn’t be a billion dollar industry. There are lots of regular people with regular incomes who have made the lifestyle choice of buying organic foods. I have made that choice, whenever possible and affordable, and some items that I’ve been buying organic for a decade now like milk, yogurt, eggs and butter are not cheap by any standard but I feel are worth it for my health. When it comes to produce, if there is a sale on organic products, I’ll jump at the occasion and there are certain conventional products, like berries, I will no longer eat if I cannot buy them organic. If I could only buy organic meats I would, but most are too expensive and hard to find so I do buy grain feed meats because they are affordable and they can easily be purchased at most grocery stores. No matter your goal when buying organic, there are ways to save money.
Libba Letton, spokesperson for Whole Foods Market, suggests the following:
• Buy your items in season. Even organic food is going to be priced cheaper when it's in season, and this advice applies whether you're buying conventionally or organically grown produce.
• Talk to the staff in the produce department of your local grocery store. Ask where the produce comes from, if it's in season and if you can sample it. Make sure you're spending on something worth it.
• Buy things in bulk. At Whole Foods, customers who buy in volume are offered up to a 10 percent discount.
• Buy only as much as you need. Food bought in large portions often goes to waste. If your store offers a bulk bin option, you can take as much or as little as you need which also means less packaging.
• Make your grocery list and stick to it.
• Compare organic-to-organic prices. In stores where there are less organic items, those items tend to be much more expensive.
Here are Dr. Oz’s 3 simple rules for when you should spend your green to go green and when to save your cash with conventional foods.
1. Thin Skins
Go organic: apples, peaches, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, grapes, pears, nectarines, peppers, celery, potatoes, and carrots
Save your cash: avocados, eggplants, pineapples, bananas, corn, kiwi, mangoes, papaya, sweet peas, oranges, grapefruit, and squash
2. Leafy Greens
Go organic: all lettuces and greens such as kale, collards, mustard, swiss chard, and spinach
Save your cash: broccoli, cabbage, asparagus, cauliflower, eggplant, melons, and sweet potatoes
3. Milk Products
Go organic: milk, yogurt, and cheese
Save your cash: fish and other seafood (USDA has no guidelines for certifying organic seafood)
