Everybody loves strawberries. At least everybody I know. They’re an absolute favorite food in our house. Luckily, we are fortunate enough to have access to, and can afford organic strawberries. For those who are not so lucky, sadly, the dangers are many. First and foremost, a toxic pesticide called methyl iodide is used to grow our favorite berry, and according to John Froines of UCLA, it is “one of the most toxic chemicals on earth.”
Methyl idiodide is a gas pesticide that is injected into soil, it is not on our actual berries. The problem? Methyl iodide is:
- highly toxic and reactive
- a well known carcinogen
- linked to late term miscarriages
- a source of ground water and soil contamination
- able to contaminate neighboring properties via pesticide drift
- especially toxic to workers in the fields
Do people really need to be poisoned so that I can have strawberries for dessert? I say no. Thinking of a corporation touching nature’s bounty is most disturbing indeed, which is why I am begging Arysta (the largest pesticide company in the world) to: keep your hands off our strawberries! Since this company is in the business of selling poison, I highly doubt they will listen to my plea.
Thankfully, one of my favorite organizations, PAN, has come to the rescue, filing a petition with the EPA to ban the use of this scary pesticide nationwide. EPA is considering public comment until April 30th. What can you do? Just head over to PAN’s website and sign the online petition. This chemical is too toxic to be used safely as a soil fumigant pesticide, and has no place in our country’s agriculture.
By the way, conventionally grown strawberries come with a mouth watering dose of 53 additional pesticides. However, you can take heart in the fact that there are many amazing companies such as Swanton Farms that are doing it right –growing beautiful strawberries without ANY chemical assistance from corporate America.
We grow strawberries in our sunny front yard. The stunning photo above (taken by the incredible Annabelle Breakey) is from my forthcoming book Gluten-Free Cupcakes (coming out in less than 3 weeks –um, not sure what they’re thinking, but it’s on sale for pre-order for only $9.03 right now). Most importantly though, remember to protect nature’s bounty by protecting our strawberries!
glutenfreeforgood says
I couldn’t agree more! It’s so sad that much of our food system is in the hands of people who don’t care about our health or the health of the planet. It drives me nuts. That’s why it’s so important to support our local organic farmers.
Oh, and yes, that photo is gorgeous! Just made your carrot cupcakes and they’re divine. I also pre-ordered your new cookbook (SO reasonably priced) and am looking forward to making some treats.
Great post!
Cheryl says
Thanks, Elana. And just a shout out for frozen organic strawberries for days when organic aren’t available or too much $
Shirley @ gfe says
Simply stunning, Elana! I got your cookbook yesterday and I’ve already made a batch of cupcakes today. I waited an hour for them to cool (following directions for once) and they are fabulous! Will share my review soon. :-) What an absolute bargain your new cookbook is on Amazon right now! Those will be some lucky folks who preorder it at this price. ;-)
Thanks for the info on the pesticides. It’s really so incredibly disturbing. Every time I use our bees’ honey (and I used it in your cupcake recipe vs agave), I think of how a very large part of their decline is due to pesticides. The effects are just devastating on so many levels. Yesterday at my grocery store, organic bananas were the same price as other bananas, so I hope folks who don’t buy organic due to the price will keep doing a price check and even if the price is more, I hope they’ll consider if the savings are worth it. Sometimes the difference in price is small, but the benefits are, of course, huge.
Off to sign the petition. Thanks, Elana! xo,
Shirley
Brandon says
Thank you for sharing this Elana. I am starting strawberry and blueberry bushes in my yard to have access to organically and locally grown low-sugar fruits. So far they’re coming along nicely!
Claudia Williams says
Thanks for letting us know. I really hate pesticides (and GMO) in my produce!
Karen says
Sorry to double post but I forgot to ask – who in the Denver/Boulder area sells Swanton Farms strawberries, so I can keep an eye out for them?
Karen says
I’ve heard there are petitions in CA about this. Jerry Brown’s supposed to be a big proponent of the environment so I hope he is able to pass something that bans this horrible chemical, especially as CA is one of the biggest producers of strawberries.
Thank you for posting about the petition Elana. I plan to sign it as soon as I’m done here. It’s beyond me how anyone can think it’s okay to expose people to this and claim to have a conscience. How do these people sleep at night?
Claire says
Thanks for this! I wonder if they grow strawberries and other fruit the same way in Europe? Do you know? I always feel like the fruit here is more natural…but I don’t know. Aww man, Elana, I wish I was your photographer for your recipes!! What BEAUTIFUL food! I love photographing food. :) Is this cupcake and almond flour our coconut flour one?
Katie says
This is a huge, huge issue in California right now. My husband’s organization, Pesticide Watch, (who works a lot with PAN), is working on this in California (http://www.pesticidewatch.org/).
Thanks for this post!
Katie @ Nourishing Flourishing says
I cannot wait for the cookbook; this looks beautiful! Also, I just have to say that I am so grateful you share information like this, Elana. It’s vital to get the facts out there — most people just take it for granted because they actually trust these companies and those who oversee them… I wish that we lived in a time when that was realistic, but unfortunately things have changed immensely in the past 100 years of agriculture and the food business.
Thank you again for your work in this effort!