Q: I have read about the need to switch over to organic food from the current pesticide infested food. Is organic food really pesticide free? Is the brown rice good for health? How do we know for sure that the organic stores really sell organic food only? What do we have to ask to ensure this?

A:Organic certification is the public’s assurance that products have been grown and handled according to strict procedures without persistent toxic chemical inputs. When you see that a product has been Certified Organic by a reputed agency- government approved you can be rest assured that the product, its ingredients and the manufacturer have gone through a thorough investigation. Well-balanced soils grow strong healthy plants that taste great. Try an organic orange or tomato for a sweet and juicy flavour, which tastes better than the non-organic foods. Many pesticides were registered long before extensive research linked these chemicals to cancer and other diseases. Now, 60% of all herbicides (weed killers), 90% of all fungicides (mould killers), and 30% of all insecticides (insect killers) can potentially cause cancer. Organic farming keeps harmful chemicals and pesticides out of the food we eat and beverages we drink. It also prohibits the use of antibiotics in animal feed, which are routinely used in conventional farming and is known to create dangerous antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Organic farms also benefit the farm workers who have high exposure to chemicals and synthetic pesticides. The process that produces brown rice removes only the outermost layer, the hull, of the rice kernel and is the least damaging to its nutritional value. The complete milling and polishing that converts brown rice into white rice destroys 67% of the vitamin B3, 80% of the vitamin B1, 90% of the vitamin B6, half of the manganese, half of the phosphorus, 60% of the iron, and all of the dietary fibre and essential fatty acids. Brown rice is not a commonly allergenic food and is not known to contain measurable amounts of goitrogens, oxalates, or purines. In fact, the hypoallergenic (low-allergy) nature of whole grain, organic brown rice makes it a commonly recommended grain alternative.