Our family took a tour of an organic dairy.  They had some chicks there that were the same age as those that are processed in the chicken plants all around us.  These “normal” chicks were about the size of a softball - not exactly ready for the dinner plate.  Taking this tour really got me thinking about going organic with my family’s menu.

Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as you would think.  We don’t live in a large city and my father-in-law will treat anything growing around the property (I’ve tried to reason with him, but he’s old school).  Because of the recent drought, even the local farmer’s market is bare.

So I thought I’d buy “organic” at the local grocery store.  I did some research online, and thought I was prepared.  I was wrong.  There are so many labels that say as little as possible or nothing at all that it was a nightmare.  I ended up getting a couple of apples and some chicken breasts, but I know these weren’t “natural chickens.”  I’m not even completely sure what natural is.

Now, I flip flop back and forth between the value of organic compared to the importance of variety.  If the industry would make the labels easier and more uniform AND would make the costs a bit less then I might reconsider my organic lifestyle.