Organic is Great Until it’s Too Organic

Every Wednesday morning during the summer there is a little farmers’ market that operates out of the parking lot that I park in at work.  It’s called the KCK Farmers’ Market.  The farmer’s market is in an inner city neighborhood that doesn’t have a grocery store nearby.  It’s great that residents of that community can get fresh vegetables without traveling far which may be a challenge for some.  And government food assistance coupons are accepted.

https://www.facebook.com/kckfarmersmarket/

I recently learned that the sellers are also a part of the community.  I was wondering how far they traveled to participate in the market.  Most of them are Muslim Somali women and a few very well mannered children, Southeast Asian and African American farmers that grow their crops locally.  I think that the market is a win – win for everyone involved so I like to support them.

I don’t buy organic food at super markets because it is more expensive and I have no way of knowing if it’s organic or not.  I’m also not sure if the difference is something worth the extra money.  Some years back I jumped on the organic food band wagon but quit after it started taking a toll on my bank account.  It was back to pesticide laced veggies for me.  The prices at the KCK Farmers market are comparable to non organic food at the super market.

Last week I bought some red potatoes and a bell pepper at the market.  The pepper was a great fresh snack.  I was completely satisfied.  I cut up the potatoes this morning to cook with chicken breasts and I was in for a bit of a surprise.  Half of my potatoes were a bit rotten in the center.  I was kind of freaked out.  I’m not actually sure my red potatoes were spoiled.  I don’t know what I was seeing exactly because I’ve lived my life in a bubble with genetically modified and chemically altered fruits and vegetables that have been sorted for super market showtime.

I wasn’t comfortable with the brownish gray soft spots in my potatoes so I threw half of them away.  The potatoes were probably edible but still.  I had enough potatoes which met my standards to prepare with my chicken and have a hearty side portion.  I was making too much for one meal anyway.  I was planning on having left overs.

So I said all of that to say that there are benefits and drawbacks to everything.  The chemicals may cause you cancer and an early death but while you’re alive you will have pretty fruit with a longer shelf life.  Organic food is pure and raw.  But I, like most people am not quite prepared for pure and raw.  It’s not what most of us are use to in these United States where absolutely everything is manufactured in one way or another.

There isn’t much of a point to this post.  I just thought that my experience with organic, locally grown red potatoes was an interesting learning experience.  I will continue to support the KCK Farmers’ Market.  I may even buy more red potatoes there because I absolutely love red potatoes.  The KCK Farmers’ Market is a great asset to Wyandotte County Kansas that benefits many people in the area.  If you’re ever in the area please support this enterprise.

http://www.kckfarmersmarket.com/contact-us.html