Disclaimer: Everything I'm writing here is my opinion and is worth exactly that. Not everyone will agree and luckily, there is room in the world for more than one opinion. I am writing this to clarify my thoughts - not for debate. I will never tell you that my way is "The Right Way", only that it works for me.

Yesterday on Facebook, I posted a poll about whether or not it was okay to use genetically modified food to solve food shortage issues and it sparked a debate between a couple friends of mine. The debate dovetails nicely in to a discussion Biscodo and I had several nights ago about why conventional farmers and organic farmers will likely never peacefully coexist. I've been pondering why exactly I hold the opinions that I hold and, surprisingly, the answer is somewhat of a mystic one. I believe that Mother Nature knows best and that food is better for you the less human intervention it has had. The other part of my answer is more scientific: Human beings evolved because of a delicate balance of (among other things) food sources. If we start playing with the genetics of those foods, we are doing ourselves (as a human race) no favors.

I also believe that all species are better off eating a species-appropriate diet (thus why I spend hours every week working on meat for my pet carnivores). Growing cows and feeding corn because it's cheap & plentiful (and government subsidized) is wrong, as is the administration of the antibiotics they must be prescribed to account for the diet's complications & insufficiencies. Cows that have been fed a diet that their bodies are not designed to handle and that have been shot full of antibiotics cannot possibly be as healthy for human consumption as those that live otherwise. I don't like what antibiotics do to my body when I need them for illness, I damn sure don't want to get them vicariously through my food.

I understand that "Popular Media" has probably been unfair to conventional farmers and painted them all as monsters undeservingly. There are probably way more conventional farmers whose animals are not lying in their own feces than conversely. I understand that many, many families & communities rely on conventional farming methods for their livelihood and I do not begrudge them their living. I try to buy organic from the "Dirty Dozen" list, and otherwise if it's available and cost effective. I will probably always rely on conventional farmers for some of my food and I'm glad they are there.


Most of all, I think we are better off for having this conversation.