With bug spray or without bug spray?
@PatZAnthony (14752)
Charlotte, North Carolina
January 23, 2017 5:27pm CST
When shopping for food, do you look for vegetables and fruits that are not sprayed with pesticides? Some don't seem to be concerned.
We avoid foods that contain bug spray as much as we can for various reasons. Fortunately, many of the items we want are available in local stores here.
Bananas, coconuts, and avocados have somewhat protective skins, and buying organic might not be as necessary as foods such as blueberries or apples.
Sometimes what we might want is not available, so we skip it. There is always something else that can take the place of what is not in stores or grown here.
22 people like this
23 responses
@AbbyGreenhill (45496)
• United States
23 Jan 17
I often wonder if the bug spray free is really true
2 people like this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
23 Jan 17
The people we usually buy from (3 families in different areas) all raise bees, so we know they don't use bug spray. When in a grocery store, the organic is supposed to be marked with the code (starting with 9) that tells us it is certified. But, in this world, no telling what happens with grocery store items.
@AbbyGreenhill (45496)
• United States
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony The produce section at Ingles where we shop is tiny and most stuff is old..their organic section is about the size of my laptop.
Oh- check your title
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
@AbbyGreenhill Ingles here has a very small section for organic too. Fortunately, the growers with greenhouses have most of what we need.
@JamesHxstatic (29257)
• Eugene, Oregon
24 Jan 17
We buy the organic a lot here and there many local organic farms. I did read once that bananas skins absorbed a lot of the plentiful insecticides that are used in growing them.
2 people like this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
We read that too, yet other reports claim these would not be as bad as apples, strawberries and a few other things.
It is a battle some of us have to deal with.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@JamesHxstatic Yes, the info can be confusing. We say bug spray b/c apparently some don't realize that is what pesticides are.
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@JamesHxstatic (29257)
• Eugene, Oregon
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony Yes, and there is a lot of confusing info out there.
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@WorkAtHomeGal (229)
• Canada
24 Jan 17
Well seeing as I was grown up on a mini farm I know the love of having ones OWN food. My dad uses fertilizer on his stuff and rarely ever has to use a pesticide as it depends on the bug situation. Knowing this makes me more happy to eat from my parents garden every year. I don't buy much from other countries either, I try to buy local grown.
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@WorkAtHomeGal (229)
• Canada
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony I hear you. I am in a renting situation so I cannot have a garden here :(. But I help my dad and he lets me have whatever I want from there as he does the whole family.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
We buy local as much as we can, as in, the guy down the street. Hopefully our garden will be big enough this year to supply most of our needs.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@WorkAtHomeGal Here we can get what we want from others, so really don't have to grown anything.
In fact, it might be a better deal for us to just get from local farmers.
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
Easy to find here if one looks. Many don't get how dangerous bug spray is! Wish pesticide was banned everywhere.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@LadyDuck It is sad that some don't consider where their food is grown or what it contains.
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@LadyDuck (459079)
• Switzerland
25 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony I have noticed that many people do not even check if what they buy is organic or the origin of the products. It's crazy.
1 person likes this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
25 Jan 17
All of these should be washed, but some think everything is safe. Ick.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@DianneN Yes, it is a Big ick! And people feed such things to children.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@JudyEv Someone recently said here that even bananas have a porous skin, so these should not be purchased with bug spray!
Here several stores offer organic bananas too, so we can still have these.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
Wondered who would spot that error in the title!
With some veggies and fruits like strawberries, the bug spray is absorbed quickly and can't be washed away.
After some serious allergy issues (one person having their throat swell) we decided years ago, no bug spray for us if we can avoid it.
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@JudyEv (326128)
• Rockingham, Australia
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony I hadn't thought about the spray being absorbed. Good to know especially if you have specific allergies.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
Maybe soon everything will be without bug spray again, like it once was.
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@Shellyann36 (11385)
• United States
1 Feb 17
I do try to buy organic produce but it is too expensive at times.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
1 Feb 17
Here a pound of carrots is just under $1
A large bag of celery is $2.50 and spinach is about the same.
Cabbage $1 a head
Bananas are 50 cents.
We only buy the inexpensive items.
@besweet (9861)
• Ireland
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony They are very good with gardening and the vegetables they send me are always tastier that the ones from the market.
The soil and the climate helps a lot here, it's not easy to do the same in other countries.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
25 Jan 17
@besweet Yes, the soil can make a huge difference.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
23 Jan 17
Growing our own is certainly the best thing! It is really the only way we can be sure.
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@epiffanie (11326)
• Australia
24 Jan 17
there are now stores that sell only organic produce in our area so we have choices too ...
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
The stores here offering just organic are very expensive. However, local growers offer good prices.
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@Hate2Iron (15730)
• Canada
1 Feb 17
Definitely prefer veggies that haven't been sprayed. We definitely try to go organic.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
1 Feb 17
@Hate2Iron
So many think eating food sprayed with poison won't be harmful. No clue why anyone would think that.
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
25 Jan 17
We still do things the way our grandparents did. No bug spray for me please.
@missjessicadawn (3286)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I prefer fruits and vegetables without the spray and I will pay extra for that.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
Many of us will pay the extra to assure we are not ingesting the carcinogens in bug sprays. Some don't realize how harmful these are.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
@missjessicadawn
There was a time when foods were not so randomly sprayed and people felt safe. Things have really changed.
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@missjessicadawn (3286)
• United States
24 Jan 17
@PatZAnthony That's true. I'd rather pay the extra so I know I'm safe. :-)
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@AranciataRoss (322)
• United States
29 Jan 17
I just read some about this today so it's interesting to see this topic again. Basically, if I'm going to eat the skin, I buy organic. I've alleviated some of that by growing what I can on my own in pots on my balcony.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
29 Jan 17
Many in our area grow as much as they can. This helps us avoid the poisons in the bug sprays as much as we can.
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I grow many items that we eat now, as have a greenhouse. We do have a lot of produce stands and stores with organic like Whole Foods. I try to buy organic and many times it depends on which fruit I'm considering now. Blueberries are one I grow many bushes in my back year.
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@scarlet_woman (23465)
• United States
24 Jan 17
i would prefer none..but some stores around here don't tell you..
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
Here, the truth must be told. But, all of that could change at any time.
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@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I also wash my fruits and veggies though I know that is not really enough, the price of organic is rather prohibitive.
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
26 Jan 17
We find the prices to be reasonable here. Glad some have what we did not grow!
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
Washing is important, but when thin skinned things, like strawberries or apples, are eaten, the bug spray is in there.
Some we know only buy the veggies and fruit with thick skins.
@FayeHazel (40246)
• United States
24 Jan 17
I wash before I use, but if the choice were clearly marked I think I would prefer without
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@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
30 Jan 17
The produce marked with a 9 at the beginning are the ones without bug spray.
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Jan 17
It is a huge problem for many, especially those with cancer or allergies to bug spray. There should be a law against spraying harmful things on our food!
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