I recently bought several plums advertised as organic.  I would say, that indeed, this one was!  The little worm inside was the proof.  I can hear you say, "Well if that's what you get with organic foods, then I'll stick with conventional foods."  So why is organic better, you say?  Hopefully this post will address this question.

Normally the pesticide would have killed this little critter, but this was an organic plum, and pesticides are not allowed in organic farming.  Now, no one wants to bite into a plum to find a worm, however.  But on the bright side, I know that the farm that produced this plum was probably in compliance with the organic regulations.

There was no way that I could tell that this plum had a worm in it because this particular critter will burrow its way through the stem opening so that the entry way is just not visible on the outside, but the inside is completely inedible.  The critter is called the plum sawfly.  "In spring the sawfly emerges from the soil and lays eggs on the blossom of plum trees. When the plums begin to develop the little caterpillars eat their way into the center of the plum and feed off it as the plum develops.

Plum Sawfly is difficult to control using organic methods, the only one being available is a pheromone trap but it really only traps a few of them.

The chemical deltamethrin sprayed when the blossom is falling off will definitely help control sawfly."  To that fact, I must ask, "Do I want to also ingest this chemical?"

But I hear you ask, "why bother with purchasing organic products anyway?  They are just more expensive, and there might be worms in them."  True, but here are some facts that I have learned from Hawthorn University when it comes to organic foods:

Conventional crops are grown with conventional synthetic fertilizer, which contains three nutrients - phosphorous, potassium and nitrogen.  Farmers use this because it makes the plants dark green, they have stronger stalks, and it gives the appearance of being healthier.  But what about so many other nutrients that we need besides the three in the synthetic fertilizers?   Crop rotation is usually not implemented either, and so the soil used to raise these crops is really deplete of so many nutrients.  The plant cannot draw up the nutrients into the food unless the nutrients are in the soil to begin with.  

By contrast, organic farmers cannot use conventional synthetic fertilizers, but they must use organic rich soil, full of many nutrients, and they also usually implement crop rotation, both of which impart a greater quantity of nutrients in the foods.  Remember, if the nutrients are present in the soil, then the nutrients can be pulled up into the plants.  Many studies have proven that organic foods contain greater quantities of nutrients than conventionally grown foods.  Find out about one such study over a 2 year period from the Journal of Applied Nutrition posted on Organic Consumers Association which says that the organically grown food averaged 63% higher in calcium, 78% higher in chromium, 73% higher in iron, 118% higher in magnesium, 178% higher in molybednum, 91% higher in phosphorous, 125% higher in potassium and 60% higher in zinc.

Here is a good short read from "Eating Well" on the mechanism by which organic foods contain more nutrients.

Sadly, our farming techniques have focused on producing pest resistant higher yields more rapidly, and nutrient richness has been put on the back burner.

So what is it - no worm with less nutrient, or the occasional worm with more nutrients?

Sources:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Organic/organicstudy.cfm
http://www.gardenfocused.co.uk/fruitarticles/plums/pest-disease.php

One of the healthy snacks that I shared at my recent nutrition class was "Seed and Nut Granola."   Several of the students wanted the recipe, so I am posting it here.
This is a good snack for anyone with celiac or gluten intolerance.  I think that what makes this granola special is the buckwheat.  Buckwheat is not a grain, it is a seed derived from a flowering plant with a excellent source of manganese and a good source of magnesium.  I like to use buckwheat from To Your Health Sprouted Flour since I know this has been cleaned, sprouted, and ready to eat.  I won't be getting any dust along with my buckwheat.  Products from this company are delivered to the Auburn-Opelika area once per month through the Auburn Food Club or can be ordered directly from the company.  Sometimes they offer free shipping.

Mix the following into a bowl:

1 cup unsalted shelled sunflower seed
1 cup unsalted pumpkin seed
1 cup whole buckwheat 
1 cup coconut flakes
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/3 cup chopped crystalized ginger (optional)
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Stir together the following and then add to the dry mixture above:

1/2 cup maple syrup (grade B is less refined than grade A and can be purchased through our Auburn Food Buying Club)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Spread on 12 x 16 baking pan lined with parchment paper.  Tamp down with back of broad spoon.  Bake in convection oven on 225 for 2 hours and then lower the temperature to 200 for 2 more hours.  Take out and let cool.  If less maple syrup is desired, then cut down a little and add a full dropper of liquid stevia.

 Click here for another fabulous no bake grain free breakfast cereal 

How about a nice cup of Herbal Tea?  Why yes, thank you.  And that's exactly what my newest class members enjoyed yesterday as we kicked off a series of classes to be held once a month at various locations in Auburn, Alabama.  Along with tea, snacks of Gluten Free Granola and Molasses Cookies were also enjoyed.  These snacks contained very little added sweeteners.  

Seems like I cannot remember to take pictures.  I make it to class with a camera, but remembering to take it out and use it is a different matter.  So you'll have to take my word for it, as there was an impressive turnout with 29 in attendance.  Seems like there is a growing desire to become healthier by more and more people.  

Many topics were discussed as we plotted our "Points to Ponder" in making wise food choices.  I especially liked how the class really participated in this discussion.  

The class members have given me a long list of topics they would like to see taught, so we may be at this for a while to come.  If you'd like to join in, check out the schedule, then let me know.   The classes are free, but please let me know you will be joining, since we need to set up for the proper number of chairs each month.