I don't really approve of tear-jerky things like this--I mean, is it like it would be okay to kill species if they weren't sweet and cute and songbirdy? Like, we can use all the pesticides we want as long as the only victims are toads and cockroaches? Either it's ethical or it's not, people. C'mon.
Still, here's today's article about how to shop so that your shopping doesn't "kill a songbird."
I mean, really. Do we need to get all Harper Lee on the environment? Apparently so.
The main facts I take from it:
1)As you think about where to shop, remember that many developing countries don't have rigorous limits on chemical use. So if you buy things from those countries, you and the birds will be healthier if you buy those goods fair trade (family farmers usually use more traditional, earth-friendly methods).
2)Bananas are one of the highest pesticide requiring foods, according to this. So while the thick peel might protect you, and thus keep bananas off most "top foods to buy organic" lists, they have a high environmental cost.
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3 comments:
I buy bananas organic and fair trade, even though I practically have to sell a kidney to afford them. The human rights abuses associated with banana farming made me too guilty to keep buying the cheap kind, sadly.
I agree that its too bad we place such higher value on the songbirds than the bugs (or say the forests than the swamps, which probably fill a more vital role, especially with the way we contaminate our water supplies). However, atleast we value something. If we can stimulate an emotional response for the birds, there's probably a whole ecosystem around them to be rescued.
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