Why eat organic?

Choosing certified organic foods in Quebec ensures a diet filled with freshness, flavour and nutrients, while supporting local farmers, who have decided to cultivate the land without using pesticides, synthetic fertilizers or genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Discover all the advantages to putting organic food on your plate!

Eating organic products is important:

1. For enjoyment, above all!

For the taste

Local, organic fruits and vegetables offer a quality and freshness that pleases our taste buds. They are grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides and are harvested when mature. As for animals, free-range farming yields firm, flavourful meat. Organic products express a wide range of tastes, aromas and textures specific to their varieties and their farmsteads, in addition to containing a high nutritive value especially when consumed fresh.

For discovery

Explore the diversity of organic products through a subscription to an organic basket. This will give you the opportunity to eat an assortment of foods, including heritage vegetables and new varieties which are not always available commercially. In addition, you create a direct link with the farmer working to feed you! All of this is for your utmost enjoyment and for that of future generations.

2. Because it is a healthy choice

Eating organic products reduces your exposure to pesticide residues which pose a significant risk to health, particularly among children. It is also shown that six to nine times less pesticides are found in children’s urine when they eat mainly organic food (1). In addition, organic agriculture also helps to protect the health of workers and agricultural households. In fact, studies show a link between increased cancer risks and the exposure to pesticides and herbicides (2).

3. To support the local economy

Every dollar spent in buying organic products from Quebec is invested in our economy and in our rural communities; it provides livelihoods to local farmers who are committed to healthy production practices. It is important to support people who cultivate differently so that this sector of agriculture further grows. As of 2013 in Quebec, there were 1316 certified organic businesses (farms, processors, distributors, retailers, etc.), whereas 10 years ago, there were 945. This is a sign that consumers are changing the world, one meal at a time (3)!

4. For a positive social impact

Organic production is based on core values that many of you share. At the heart of it is the well-being of people and the planet and the adoption of practices that contribute to promoting the well-being of future generations. Furthermore, as shown in reports by the UN on climate change, the most crucial social issue for the future of our society is the environment. Organic farming reduces fossil fuel consumption by 45%, in contrast to conventional farming; it, therefore, greatly aids in combatting climate change (4).

5. Because it is an environmental choice

Organic agriculture is based on the health and vitality of soil. The production practices associated with it preserve soil fertility and biodiversity which limits erosion: the primary source of soil degradation on the planet (5). Chemical fertilizers, on the contrary, can pollute groundwater while pesticides affect natural predators and pollinating insects (bees, butterflies, etc.) which are essential to the reproduction of plants and, therefore, to agriculture as a whole. In Quebec, according to the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and the Fight against Climate Change, the quality of watercourses is often poor: concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus remain high and pesticides are detected in worrisome concentrations (6). By choosing organic food, you are contributing to a healthier environment on many different levels. .

References :

(1) Curl, C., Fenske, R., Elgethun., K., 2002, « Organophosphorus pesticide exposure of urban and suburban pre-school children with organic and conventional diets », Environmental Health Perspectives.
(2) Sanborn et. al.,2012, « Systematic Review of Pesticide Health Effects », Ontario College of Family Physicians.
(3) Conseil des appellations réservées et des termes valorisants (CARTV). Communication personnelle entre Caroline Dupuis d’Équiterre M. Yves Gélinas du CARTV. Le 16 septembre 2013.
(4) Rodale Institute, « The Farming System Trial »
(5) Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’agriculture et l’alimentation (FAO), 2002, « Organic Agriculture, Environment and Food Security » 
(6) Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et des Parcs), 2012, « Portrait de la qualité des eaux de surface au Québec 1999-2008 », Québec, Direction du suivi de l’état de l’environnement.