I walked into King Soopers the other day and I noticed a sign by the non-organic produce (it has probably been there a while but I just noticed it) that said many of the fruits and vegetables were coated with a USDA approved Petroleum or Shellac based wax, for freshness of course! I was horrified, not only are we eating pesticides but lets add some petroleum and shellac to it. I am not feeding this to my child; the question is how do you begin to go organic on a budget? I have been working on moving my household to a more organic one for several years and learning how to do it without spending all my money at Whole Foods otherwise known as Whole Paycheck.

The best and most cost effective way to start is with your fruits and vegetables. The best way of course is to start your own garden, but if you can't do that, go to the farmer's market. Not only is it good to buy organically but it is even better to buy locally and organically. Not only are you supporting small farmers but it cuts down on fuel requirements when our produce has not traveled very far. We have several farmers markets in the area that are getting in their bounty in the months of August and September; many of the farmers are not certified organic but the use organic growing practices. Always ask if they spray pesticides and what do they use for fertilization and weeding.

Not all fruits and vegetables are heavily sprayed with pesticides or if they are; it does not seep into the parts that you are eating. There is a list of F&V's called the Dirty Dozen; these are the items that have the most pesticides and should be at the top of your list when spending extra money on organics. They are as follows:

§ Apples

§ Cherries

§ Grapes imported from Chili

§ Nectarines

§ Peaches

§ Pears

§ Raspberries

§ Strawberries

§ Bell Peppers

§ Celery

§ Potatoes

§ Spinach

I have switched over all of these to organic, and as many others as I can afford especially knowing that the conventional produce has even more additives. For more information on "going green" go to www.localharvest.org this is a resource that can supply organic produce, meat, and dairy co-op information from local farms.