Did you know that organic farming can use heavy metals as pesticides? This including sulfates, carbonates, oxides and silicates of copper, zinc, manganese, cobalt, iron and selenium.

A common pseudoscientific claim made by proponents of organic farming is that organic farming does not use pesticides. It is often claimed that organic farming is chemical-free and good for the environment. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Organic farming uses pesticides. In fact, all forms of agriculture uses pesticides. If farmers let pests run amok, they would lose somewhere between 50-80% of their total harvest. A chemical is not something that is inherently bad or dangerous. It is just an umbrella term for all chemical substances, whether good or bad, safe or dangerous. Pesticide residues found in conventional foods are so small that they are almost always below regulatory thresholds and does not produce any harmful effects. Studies touted as showing pesticide residues on conventional foods rarely check for organic pesticides and often do not put the minuscule doses found into the proper biological context.

According to large-scale meta-analyses on life cycle assessment for ~90 food types in ~740 agricultural systems show that organic farming require more land, grow less food, yet have similar levels of greenhouse gas emissions. The evidence indicates that organic farming does not produce better tasting, safer or more nutritious food. Organic farming is a deeply deceptive marketing strategy, not a robust method to avoid pesticides. The organic food movement is also deeply against genetically modified foods.

Let us take a closer look at what pesticides and other chemicals are used in organic farming. Regulatory documents outlining what substances are allowed in the United States comes from the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. The equivalent documents from the European Union comes from EUR-Lex website. This article will focus on the substances allowed in the United States. If used in accordance with regulatory requirements, pesticides used in both conventional and organic farming does not pose a health risk to humans based on the current best available scientific evidence.

In the crushing majority of cases, pesticide residues of food (be it organic, conventional or genetically modified foods) are present in such low concentrations that they do not have any clinically relevant harmful health effects. You should not avoid organic food due to fake fear about pesticide residues on them, but be skeptical of the organic industry due to their pseudoscientific and misleading marketing.

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Pesticides and Other Chemicals Used In Organic Farming (United States)

The relevant regulatory documents are divided into multiple sections. First is the synthetic substances allowed in organic crop production. Then we look at synthetic substances that are used in organic livestock production. Finally, there is a list of non-agricultural substances allowed in organic farming. Because some substances are allowed in multiple categories, some substances occur more than once, but not in the same list. In total, there are almost 150 unique entries in these lists, and those are only the synthetic and non-organic substances allowed. There are likely many, many more organic substances allowed.

Note that there are a large number synthetic and non-organic substances that are allowed in organic farming. This is in stark contrast to organic farming activists who insists that organic farming does not use pesticides or other chemicals.

Synthetic substances allowed for use in organic crop production

Perhaps the most important thing to highlight is that there are many substances that organic proponents do not want you to know are used in organic farming. Did you know that organic farming can use heavy metals as pesticides? The most common ones are the sulfates, carbonates, oxides and silicates of copper, zinc, manganese, cobalt, iron and selenium.

Ethanol

Isopropanol

Calcium hypochlorite

Chlorine dioxide

Hypochlorous acid

Sodium hypochlorite

Copper sulfate

Hydrogen peroxide

Ozone gas

Peracetic acid

Soap-based algicide/demossers

Sodium carbonate peroxyhydrate

Soap-based Herbicides

Newspaper or other recycled paper

Petroleum-based plastic mulch and covers

Biodegradable bio-based mulch film

Ammonium carbonate

Aqueous potassium silicate

Boric acid

Elemental sulfur

Lime sulfur

Sucrose octanoate esters

Ferric phosphate

Copper hydroxide

Copper oxide

Copper oxychloride

Hydrated lime

Potassium bicarbonate

Humic acids

Lignin sulfonate

Magnesium oxide

Magnesium sulfate

Soluble boron products

Zinc sulfates

Zinc carbonates

Zinc oxides

Zinc silicates

Copper carbonates

Copper silicates

Iron sulfates

Iron oxides

Iron carbonates

Iron silicates

Manganese sulfates

Manganese carbonates

Manganese oxides

Manganese silicates

Selenium sulfates

Selenium carbonates

Selenium oxides

Selenium silicates

Cobalt sulfates

Cobalt carbonates

Cobalt oxides

Cobalt silicates

Liquid fish products

Sulfuric acid

Citric acid

Phosphoric acid

Squid byproducts

Sulfurous acid

Ethylene gas

Sodium silicate

Hydrogen chloride

Microcrystalline cheesewax

Synthetic substances allowed for use in organic livestock production.

Organic farming is also involved in livestock production. Thus, the production of meat in an organic system also uses pesticides and other chemicals. This is a necessity because otherwise any farming or livestock production would not work because they would be swamped with pathogens and dirty tools.

Ethanol

Isopropanol

Aspirin

Atropine

Butorphanol

Activated charcoal

Calcium borogluconate

Calcium propionate

Chlorhexidine

Calcium hypochlorite.

Chlorine dioxide.

Hypochlorous acid

Sodium hypochlorite

Flunixin

Glucose

Glycerin

Hydrogen peroxide.

Iodine.

Kaolin pectin

Magnesium hydroxide

Magnesium sulfate

Mineral oil

Injectable supplements of trace minerals

Oxytocin

Parasiticides

Fenbendazole

Moxidectin

Peroxyacetic/peracetic acid

hosphoric acid

Poloxalene

Propylene glycol

Sodium chlorite

Tolazoline

Xylazine

Copper sulfate

Elemental sulfur

Formic acid

Iodine.

Lidocaine

Lime

Mineral oil

Procaine

Sodium chlorite

Sucrose octanoate esters

Zinc sulfate

DL-Methionine

Non-agricultural (non-organic) substances allowed in organic products

Perhaps the best refutation of the falsehoods typically associated with organic farming is to point out that organic farming involve the use of non-organic substances.

Agar-agar

Attapulgite

Bentonite

Calcium carbonate

Calcium chloride

Calcium sulfate

Carrageenan

Diatomaceous earth

High-acyl gellan gum

Glucono delta-lactone

Kaolin

L-Malic acid

Magnesium sulfate

Microorganisms

Perlite

Potassium chloride

Potassium iodide

Sodium bicarbonate

Sodium carbonate

Tartaric acid

Waxes

Alginates

Alginic acid

Ammonium bicarbonate

Ammonium carbonate

Ascorbic acid

Calcium citrate

Calcium hydroxide

Calcium phosphates

Carbon dioxide

Cellulose

Glycerides

Ozone

Peracetic acid/Peroxyacetic acid

Phosphoric acid

Potassium carbonate

Potassium citrate

Potassium hydroxide

Potassium lactate

Potassium phosphate

Silicon dioxide

Sodium acid pyrophosphate

Sodium citrate

Sodium hydroxide

Sodium lactate

Sodium phosphates

Sulfur dioxide

Tocopherols

Xanthan gum

Conclusion

It is a pseudoscientific falsehood to claim that organic farming does not use pesticides. Organic farming uses a lot of different pesticides, including compounds that include heavy metals such as copper, zinc, manganese, selenium and iron. In addition to pesticides, there are dozens and dozens of other chemicals that are allowed in organic farming for a wide range of purposes. There is no aspect of organic farming that is free of chemicals. This is true for crop production, livestock production and general organic farming practices. Perhaps most ironically, even synthetic, non-agricultural and non-organic substances are allowed in organic farming. Thus, scientific reality offers a stark contrast to organic advertisement and misinformation.

When organic farming activists tell you that organic farming does not use pesticides or chemicals, the are trying to deceive you. If you like organic foods, go ahead and continue to buy and eat it. If you are skeptical of the claims made by the organic industry and online organic activists and feel you do not want to pay more money for less food, go ahead and skip it.

Are the chemicals used in organic farming present as pesticide residues on food in concentrations that are dangerous to eat? In the crushing majority of cases, the answer is absolutely no. The same is true for conventional or genetically modified foods as well. The goal of this post is not to fearmonger about chemicals, but to expose the charlatans that insist that organic foods are free of chemicals or claim that organic farming do not use pesticides.