DID YOU KNOW: the truth behind the size of your produce

Your gigantic non-organic produce tastes bland, doesn't it? It's about to make a lot of sense...

Organic Produce: plants grown without the use of (synthetic) fertilizers, fungicides or inorganic fertilizers and prepared without the use of preservatives. - David A. Bender, Professor of Nutritional Biochemistry

The truth about the opponents, organic produce and "conventional produce" is that the larger the fruit or vegetable, the more ground the nutrients have to cover. The same goes for flavour.

In an NBC news article written by Sarah Burns, it is explained that the farming industry's desire for bigger and faster growing crops is what has led to large yield, huge sizes and uniform shapes. But the very things that increase speed, decreases produce's ability to absorb nutrients from the soil, sun and water.

"By avoiding synthetic fertilizers, organic farmers put more stress on plants, and when plants stress, they protect themselves by producing photochemicals". - Alyson Mitchell PhD.

Organic produce are slower growing compared to their opponent and have a lower yield, leading to a high nutrient content. "Plants have a finite amount of nutrients they can pass on to their fruit and vegetables, so if the produce is smaller, then its level of nutrients will be more concentrated". - Donald Davis, PhD.

Example:
An organic apple orchard contains a specific amount of apple trees. Each side of the tree is exposed to a different amount of sunlight, each patch of soil holds a variety of nutrients, and each tree absorbs the water it is fed differently. These components all effect EACH apple's flavour and nutritional content.

Non-organic apple orchard: each tree is synthetically fertilized, leading to a larger yield and size, less flavor and nutritional content per apple.

So next time you think, "WOW Cauliflower, you HUGE", know that bigger does not mean better.

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