Science points to superiority of organic strawberries
Strawberries garnered special attention this year as Arysta
LifeScience, a global pesticide corporation, aggressively
promoted the chemical methyl iodide for use in California’s
strawberry industry. It was dubbed “one of the most toxic
chemicals on earth” by Dr. Join Froines, chair of the state's
Scientific Review Committee for the pesticide. Pesticide Action
Network, partners and tens of thousands of Californians rallied
to keep methyl iodide out of agriculture. The Department of
Pesticide Regulation is expected to issue a final decision on
registering the new fumigant in the coming months. Public
opinion aligns firmly against use of the chemical. New science
on the superiority of strawberries grown organically – without
methyl iodide – bolsters the case. Researchers at Washington
State University compared organic and industrial berries over
five years, and published their results last month in the
prestigious journal PLoS ONE, in an article titled, “Frui