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 Organic Fruit Juices Contain Up To Ten Times More Flavonoids 
Research at Washington State University supported by The Organic Center has led to the first-ever assessment of the bioavailability of the chiral flavonoids hesperetin, naringenin, and eriodictyol -- important antioxidants in citrus fruits and juices.
Organic lemonade had ten-times the total eriocitrin (glycoside form of eriodictyol) compared to conventional lemonade, and the agylcone form had over three-times the level in conventional juice. Organic lime juice also had three-times the level of eriocitrin, compared to conventional lime juice. Organic apple juice had over three times the total hesperidin (glycoside), and almost twice the hesperetin (agylcone form). Organic grapefruit juice had about 20% less total hesperidin (glycoside), but 77% more hesperetin (agylcone). The importance of measuring both the glycoside and agylcone form of flavonoids (and other nutrients) is clear in the grapefruit juice findings. Based on the data for just the glycoside form of hesperidin, it would appear that conventional grapefruit juice contains more of this flavonoid than the organic juice that was tested. But by focusing on the more bioavailable agylcone form, the opposite conclusion would be reached.
Source: J.A. Yanez et al., "Pharmacokinetics of Selceted Chiral Flavonoids: Hesperetin, Naringenin, and Eriodictyol in Rats and their Content in Fruit Juices," Biopharmaceutics & Drug
Disposition, Vol. 29, pp. 63-82, September 2007
Antioxidants Help Combat
Oxidative Stress and Inflammation Associated with Diabetes Organic production increases antioxidant levels by, on average, about 30%, as shown in the Center's
State of Science Review
on antioxidants.
ROS damage to cells, chronic inflammation, and heart disease are among the common and
costly complications of diabetes. A team of scientists in Korea have found that proanthocyanidins,
antioxidants in several fruits and vegetables, substantially reduce the damage caused by ROS and
inflammation in diabetic rats.
Source: B.N. Fink et al., "Dietary Flavonoid Intake and Breast Cancer Survival among Women on
Long Island," Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention, Vol. 16, Number 11, November 2007
Organic Farming Superior to No-till Conventional Production in Building Soil Quality 
A USDA plant physiologist, Dr. John Teasdale, has published an important paper in the Journal of Soil
and Water Conservation entitled "Strategies for Soil Conservation in No-tillage and Organic Farming
Systems" (Nov/Dec 2007, Vol. 62, Number 6). He concludes that:"Results of this research suggest that organic farming systems can provide greater long-term soil improvement than conventional no-tillage systems, despite the use of tillage in organic systems."
The authors concluded that
workers on poultry farms might be an important conduit to the non-farm human population for resistant
bacteria on chicken farms.
Some of the highest values include:
Possible explanations include weather stress, the addition of contaminated distillers grain from
ethanol production plants in cattle rations, and most worrisome, a genetic adaptation of the bacteria
to become more virulent or resistant to the products used to wash carcasses in slaughter plants.
"…the beef industry says it spends $350 million a year to keep harmful pathogens out of the meat it
sells to the public. But even as expenditures keep rising, the industry appears to be losing ground."
The article includes several well-worn broadsides at organic farming and food. The article notes that while organic food "is more popular than ever," seven percent of the world's farmland is now planted to GM crops and that "…genetically modified crops [are] the ultimately anti-organic food."
Also just out -- a study done by a Kansas State University agronomist that reports that Roundup Ready (RR) soybean yields lag behind conventional varieties, still, and that something about the genetic transformation of RR beans impairs manganese metabolism. Plus, evidence continues to mount that the spraying of glyphosate alters soil microbial communities in ways that make manganese less bioavailable to plant roots, and increases the plant's vulnerability to soil borne pathogens. While special manganese fertilization programs can help, yields of RR soybeans are not expected to match conventional yields.
Adverse impacts on manganese uptake and metabolism are serious because this mineral plays a fundamental role in activating about 35 enzymes that lead to the biosynthesis of critical nutrients and regulatory compounds within the plant.
"The critical thing is that we manage and plan the transition…A hundred years from now, everyone will be eating what we
today would define as organic food, whether we act or not."
"But what we do now will determine how many will be eating, what state of health will be enjoyed by those future
generations, and whether they will live in a ruined cinder of a world, or one that is in the process of being renewed
and replenished."
"Africa - where four out of five people make their living directly from the land - could see agricultural downturns of
30 percent…"
"You'll have a tripling of world food demand by 2085 because of higher population and bigger economies, and I
would not be surprised to see as much as one-third of today's agricultural land devoted to plants for ethanol…"
quoting William R. Cline, senior fellow, Center for Global Development.
"Spring wheat futures traded on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange cracked the $10.00 per bushel mark…an all-time high."
A question for readers to ponder --
The "Overall Nutritional Quality Index" has been developed by the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center and uses a 1-to100
scale. Hannaford Brothers Company, a Maine grocery chain, will be using the "Guiding Stars" system, which uses one to three
stars.
A third system will soon be unveiled by University of Washington nutritionist Adam Drewnoski, who has published seminal work
on the measurement of food quality. Food manufacturers are also developing their own systems:
Retailers and food industry leaders have voiced concern over the communication challenges that are bound to arise when a
product receives a high score under one system and a low one in another.
A November 6, 2007 letter to Tyson from the USDA said the agency had made a mistake in approving the label and told Tyson to stop using it. The ongoing use of the antimicrobials known as ionophores is at the heart of the dispute over Tyson's label claims. The company argues that ionophores are not antibiotics, despite their antimicrobial activity. USDA has traditionally regarded ionophores as antibiotics.
Seven percent of the U.S. population has diabetes, over 20 million people.
A one gram daily dose of Coccinia indica, a herbal extract from India, brought about a 18 percent reduction in
blood sugar levels in a double-blind, placebo controlled study.
An extract of prickly pear cactus has been consumed regularly in Mexico by persons with diabetes, and has been linked to as much as a
50% reduction in blood sugar levels. Martin Bauer has launched a proprietary line of prickly pear cactus extracts under the
Opundia line.
We have posted a Commentary by Chuck
Benbrook and Alan Greene that responds to an important, provocative article in the November 9th issue of Science
Magazine entitled "An Integrative View of Obesity."
Recent research by the Center explains why organic farming alters not only the level of sugars in many foods, but also the
sugar's structure and biochemistry. Our Commentary raises the question whether these changes in organic food quality might help
prevent or delay the onset of diabetes and other problems of aging, and whether organic food might help some individuals better
manage their blood sugars and weight.
If we are correct in suspecting a positive role for nutrient dense organic food in combating obesity and diabetes, and can prove
it, there will be a sea change in public discussion and appreciation of the benefits of organic food and farming.
A few excerpts from the Benbrook-Greene
Commentary-
"It's time to move beyond simply blaming too much food for these problems. The real problem is surely more complex, and likely
involves too much of the wrong kinds of food, and not enough of the right kinds."
"Excess nitrogen is a fact of life on virtually all intensive, conventional farms… An overload of nitrogen impacts plants in
many of the same ways that excess calories impact humans.
"Over-amped plants grow faster and the fruits and vegetables harvested from them tend to be larger. Fruit size increases
mostly because existing cells become, on average, larger. There also tends to be more space between larger cells, space
devoid of nutrients. These physiological changes lead to nutrient dilution, and cell walls that become stretched, like a
balloon with extra air in it. The more stretched a cell wall, the easier time pathogens have in penetrating it."
"Too much sugar in the blood of human diabetics does many of the same things, and maybe for some of the same reasons. The
long-term impacts on infants and children of elevated sugars in common foods, coupled with reduced nutrient density and flavor,
may be both qualitatively and quantitatively distinct from impacts on adults."
"These are among the reasons why scientists need to look more deeply at qualitative changes in food, especially sugar levels and
forms. That deeper look might identify relatively simple ways to help people stabilize their blood sugars and weight, short of
major life-style changes and drug interventions. A growing body of evidence points to consumption of nutrient-dense organic
fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices as one such simple intervention which deserves a fresh look as part of a truly integrated
approach to health promotion."
Chuck will also participate in a workshop entitled "Organic Food and Nutritional Value: Current Research on the Benefits of
Organic Eating."
Dr. Benbrook has also been invited to present at a session Thursday afternoon, January 24th from 4:00 to
5:30 p.m. entitled "Strategies for Dealing with Food Safety and Environmental Protection." This session
will focus on efforts to address E. coli O157 and related food safety challenges in the Salinas Valley and
other intensively farmed regions of California. Chuck will draw on the
"Unfinished Business" Critical
Issue Report in his presentation.
Core Truths includes facinating research about why:
The Organic Center is pleased to announce our new on-line fundraising program - Become a Friend of The Organic Center
We can now accept secure on-line donations with both yearly and monthly giving options. We also have wonderful gifts to say thank you for your support – including a free one-year subscription to Organic Gardening magazine, organic t-shirt, organic tote bag, our book, Core Truths and Dr. Alan Greene’s new book, Raising Baby Green. We have many ways to say thank you for supporting our work.
The Organic Center announces new fundraising program featuring Jerry Garcia artwork
A new fundraising initiative to benefit the scientific research mission of The Organic Center features a series of prints from Jerry Garcia original artwork. The series, "In the Garden," is made possible through the generosity of filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia. Five series of high-quality Giclee' prints featuring the artwork of Jerry Garcia will be offered for sale over the next three years through The Organic Center website, www.organic-center.org.
Each series will include four to six prints made from original artwork created by Garcia, the late lead guitarist for the Grateful Dead.
The first series of prints, "In the Garden," is now available and includes five prints, each priced at $250. The full series is offered at $1,000. The series includes such works as "Snail Garden," "Another Butterfly," "Beehive," "Banyan Tree II," and "Butterfly Study." Images of the prints can be viewed above with more information available on the Center's website.
"The Scoop," is an electronic newsletter published monthly by The Organic Center.
For a free subscription, visit www.organic-center.org.
© 2007, The Organic Center. All rights reserved. Permission for reproduction of these materials for educational
purposes will be granted by contacting The Organic Center at info@organic-center.org.
Editor: Chuck Benbrook, Ph.D., Chief Scientist, The Organic Center
The Organic Center
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Dr. Neal Davies leads the research team at WSU. Using sensitive techniques, they measured the levels of three flavonoids and their enantiomers in conventional and organic fruit and tomato juices, and for the first time ever, quantified both the glycoside (molecule with attached sugars) and agylcone (molecule stripped of sugars) forms of the enantiomers of these three flavonoids.
There is help on the way for organic tree-fruit growers, thanks to a new program of research that will be
carried out by the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF). The $450,000 program will last three years,
the first proposals are due December 17th. Program details are set forth in a November 16 
Livestock producers in the U.S. saved an estimated $35 billion in feed costs between 1997 and 2005 as a result of
below-cost-of-production feedgrains. Crop farmers have been able to produce below-cost grains because of subsidies
paid through the USDA commodity programs.
The Organic Center is sponsoring a workshop at EcoFarm, January 23-26, 2008, on the impacts of high yields
and production levels on plant and animal health, food nutritional quality, and food safety. Presenters
will include Chuck Benbrook and Klaas Martens.
Core Truths is a groundbreaking compilation of the most current research on organic agriculture. This highly readable and graphically stunning
108-page coffee table book documents the verifiable health and environmental benefits of organic products
Individuals can support the scientific work of
The Organic Center by:
Backed by the world's leading
scientists, physicians and scholars, The
Organic Center is committed to two goals.