-Lanc*»ter Farming, Saturday, March 8, 1975 22 Questions and Answers on Health Foods Whnt's the story on health foods'' As their popularity has increased, so have the questions about them. What exactly arc health foods and where do they come from? Do they cosl more than the standard fare and are they actually better for you’ Arc there legal checks on health food claims.’ It’s tough to come up with solid answers. The rise of health foods was so sudden that research on the subject lags behind public interest. There is either scant in formation or outright disagreement on health .'oods' definition, cost, and quality, and on regulation by the Government. Health foods have been on the market for decades, but at this time it is still hard to find a working definition for the term “health food,” or a good estimate of the size of the market. “Everybody eats food for their health,” says one food specialist with the USDA’s Economic Research Service. “You wouldn’t intentionally eat anything that isn’t healthy, would you?” He would prefer less general terms, like “natural” or “organic,” but even then you run into definition problems. Within the health food industry, “natural” pertains to foods that have no ad ditives. “Organic” is more precise-it refers to foods TERRE HILL SILOS TRI-RIB CONCRETE STAVE SILOS - t. >«>■-» ■-f » 're I T 111, „t I, v > fHi r-. - ‘. ’ More Quality More Strength More Economy Silos Silo Unloaders TERRE HILL SILO CO., DC. Terre Hill, Pa. 17581 Phone 215-445-6736 Quality & Service Since 1927 that not only have no ad ditives, but arc also grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Congress and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have tried for years to draft legislation to set standards for the labeling of organic foods, but they've been slowed by controversy over what the term really means. Some food industry people fear that a federally ap proved "organic" label on a food item might imply superiority, which, they stress, is not necessarily the case. For better or worse, there is no question that health food sales have soared in the past decade. USDA ob servers estimate that the market has jumped about 100 percent in 10 years. But the health food market is still too small, they say, to warrant extensive study. How small? Again, definition is an added problem. If health food sales include those by the many new vitamin stores, the industry claims about S percent of the total food market. Disregarding vitamins, guesses drop to 1 to 3 per cent. Some USDA observers think that the health food surge is leveling off. They cite the rising cost of foods in general,- saying that con sumers can’t afford the higher price of health foods. A spokesman for the Bunk Feeders Liquid Manure Tanks Hodalc I’rcss in Penn- estimates that including the sylvania, a leader in the part-timers there are about health food Industry, 10.000 organic farmers, disagrees. He asserts that Organic farmers use only the popularity of health foods natural, rather than will continue to mount. He chemical, fertilizers. They says that farmers arc fin- believe this yields healthier, ding less expensive ways to tastier crops. The farmers grow organically, so organic say they jire finding natural food prices will not rise as pesticides that arc less rapidly as regular foods. dangerous, more effective, He estimates that there and less costly than syn are between 3,000 to 3,500 thetic ones. health food stores in the U.S., As an alternative to DDT but that the vast majority and other chemical specialize in vitamins "with pesticides, organic farmers some food on the side.” But recommend the use of he adds that the number of beneficial insects to prey on stores selling only natural harmful ones, insect traps, and organic foods is on the interplanting, and insect upswing. diseases. For the most part, these For example, sprinkling stores get their products the powder of the “milky from small farmers who spore disease” in the ground raise all their food near crops is said to be a safe organically--or claim to. and effective way of com- Some big farmers do some bating Japanese beetles, organic farming on the side. Introduction of certain The man from Rodale pest-eating insects is MARCH DIVIDEND CHECKS and PREMIUM GUTS. Think forage for livestock! The high price of grain is making hay and silage more and more valuable as energy sources for your livestock. Be sure you're getting the most of these valuable crops from your fields. Use Sperry New Holland equipment -- the best way to handle forage! ORDER NOW Sperry New Holland pays a dividend check to purchasers before March 31 of selected Sperry New Holland Haying and Forage Equipment Free finance terms until use season A premium of an Electronic Calculator, AM-FM Radio, or Electric Drill to pur chaser of Grinder-Mixer or Manure Spreader before March 15. A.B.C. Groff, Inc. 110 S Railroad Ave New Holland, PA 354-4191 Roy A. Brubaker 700 Woodcrest Ave Litttz, PA 626-7766 Let one of these Sperry New Holland dealers show you how to make the most of your forage crops: Contact one of these Sperry New Holland regarded as considerably effective. I-adybugs, for example, arc voracious caters of aphids. And the praying mantis will gobble down just about any harmful insect. Some organic fanners use insect traps that are as simple as a hanging cup of molasses and glue, or as sophisticated us electric lights that attract and electrocute night-flyers. Though natural pesticides may cost less than chemica types, natural fertilizer is generally more expensivt than the chemicals. This, and the higher production costs of a farmer dealing in small quantities, drives up the cost of organic foods. A special science advisor to the Secretary of USDA reported last April that health food prices were ranging from one-third to 2 times higher than regular SEE BELOW* Dealers for details C. E. Wiley & Son, Inc. Sperry New Holland, the pioneer in automatic twine-tie balers, offers a complete line of haying equipment to fit your needs. From mower conditioners, rakes and balers to our exclusive automatic bate wagon, Sperry -New Holland leads the way in hay! Sperry New Holland has five different forage harvesters to fit any silage or haylage operation. Choose from three pull-type, a tractor-mounted or a self propelled harvester to get the most from your forage crops! HOLLAND L. H. Brubaker 350 Strasburg Pike Lancaster, PA 397-5179 101 S Lime St Quarryville, PA 786-2895 supermarket foods. She has doubts about the relative value of organic foods. "Crops produced with the help of chemical fertilizer: arc equal nutritionally to crops produced by the •organic’ means.” she believes. She reasons that it makes no difference whether a fertilizer is organic or chemical since all elements essential to plant growth enter in the inorganic form. She says of organically grown foods; "There is nothing intrinsically safe about nature." She cautions that "safe use of pesticides is a must." According to her, the risk from -bacterial con tamination of foods is worse than the risk of consuming pesticide residues or food additives. Determining whether food (Continued on Page 23|
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