Posts Tagged organic product
Organic Vs Natural – What is the Difference?
This is a question I have asked myself a number of times and I finally have taken the time to find the answer. My understanding is that organic refers to how food is grown whereas natural refers to how food is made/produced or processed. Of course this is an over simplified definition so I’ll break it down further.
Organic and organic certification as defined by the National Organic Program (NOP) is:
Organic certification is a certification process for producers of organic foods and other organic agricultural products. In general, any business directly involved in food production can be certified, including seed suppliers, farmers, food processors, retailers and restaurants. Requirements vary from country to country, and generally involve a set of production standards for growing, storage, processing, packaging and shipping that include:
- Avoidance of most synthetic chemical inputs (e.g. fertilizer, pesticides, antibiotics, food additives, etc), genetically modified organisms, irradiation, and the use of sewage sludge;
- Use of farmland that has been free from chemicals for a number of years (often, three or more);
- Keeping detailed written production and sales records (audit trail);
- Maintaining strict physical separation of organic products from non-certified products;
- Undergoing periodic on-site inspections.
In some countries, certification is overseen by the government, and commercial use of the term organic is legally restricted. Certified organic producers are also subject to the same agricultural, food safety and other government regulations that apply to non-certified producers.
The NOP covers fresh and processed agricultural food products, including crops and livestock. It does not cover non-food products that may be sold as organic, including natural fibers (eg: organic cotton), and health and beauty products (eg: organic shampoo).
So, it is certainly a good idea to buy organic whenever possible. Not only are you putting something safe into your body, you are supporting a more sustainable approach to farming.
Natural foods are foods that do not contain artificial ingredients and are minimally processed. They do not consist of ingredients such as refined sugars, refined flours, milled grains, hydrogenated oils, artificial sweeteners, artificial food colors, or artificial flavorings. You may find that some products will fall into both classifications which is all the better. But worst case, if you can’t buy organic, try to by natural.
As hard as it is to accept, it can tend to be expensive to fill your refrigerator and cabinets with organic and natural products. It makes me angry to be standing in line at the supermarket and the person ahead of me has a cart full of processed foods with preservatives and refined ingredients and their total is half of mine. Keeping in mind that my cart is only half full with fresh fruit and veggies, whole grain bread and pasta, organic milk etc.
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What is Biotechnology
The UN Convention on Biological Diversity states, “Biotechnology is any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use”. The OECD (the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development) defines biotechnology as “…the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of materials by biological agents”. Thus, “Biotechnology” basically means using biology as the basis for a technology that is applied to research and product development in areas such as agriculture, food science, and medicine.
The Academic Standards for Science and Technology defines Biotechnology as the ways that humans apply biological concepts to produce products and provide services. This is very true if we consider a section of biotechnology in which the directed manipulation of organisms is used for the product of organic products such as beer, milk products, food etc.
Biotechnology had already been performed long before the term itself was coined, though on a very basic level. For example, man had already learnt the method of fermenting fruit juices to concoct alcoholic beverages during the period around 6000 BC. However, it was considered more of an art then. Biotechnology became a real science only about two decades ago when genes were found to contain information that would enable the synthesis of specific proteins. This was in the 1970s, when new advances in the field of molecular biology enabled scientists to easily transfer DNA – the chemical building blocks that specify the characteristics of living organisms – between more distantly related organisms.
Then in the mid-eighties and early-nineties, it was confirmed that the transformation or modification of the genetic structure of plants and animals was very possible. The introduction of “Transgenic” animals and plants also led to more resistance to disease and increased the rate of productivity etc. Modern biotechnology is also now more often than not associated with the use of genetically altered microorganisms such as E. coli or yeast for the production of substances like insulin or antibiotics. New innovative biotechnology application such as plant-made pharmaceuticals has also now been developed.
Sub-fields in Biotechnology:
Red Biotechnology is the use of genetically altered microorganisms for the production of substances like insulin, antibiotics, vitamins, vaccines and proteins for medical use, and is thus related to medical processes. Genomic manipulation is also an example of Red Biotechnology.
Biomanufacturing or White Biotechnology is emerging field within modern biotechnology which involves the designing of organisms such as moulds, yeasts or bacteria, and enzymes to produce certain useful chemicals, and is related to the industrial sector. It is also known as Grey Biotechnology.
Green Biotechnology or agricultural Biotechnology, like the name suggests, is the area of biotechnology involving applications to agriculture. This basically involves the genetic manipulation of plants and animals in order to create more productive, environmentally friendly, disease resistant species. An example of traditional agricultural biotechnology is the development of disease-resistant wheat varieties by cross-breeding different wheat types until the desired disease resistance variety is achieved.
Tags: agricultur, agricultural, agricultural biotechnology, agriculture, biology, biotech, biotechnology, chemicals, green biotechnology, living organisms, manufacturing, organic, organic product, organic products, organisms, plants, red biotechnology, scientists, species, what is biotechnology, white biotechnologyRelated posts