Happy Turkey Day!

I’m in Michigan this week, enjoying my mom’s fantastic holiday feast: butternut squash bisque, prime rib (she has an aversion to making turkey), mashed potatoes, scalloped corn, green bean casserole, broccoli and cheese casserole, chocolate peanut butter pie, egg nog pie, coconut cream pie…

The menu choices are classically Midwestern and, unsurprisingly, not organic: the nearest Whole Foods is 70 miles east of my house.

I’d like to think that, if available, I’d always choose the organic option. But I was shocked to find out just how much that costs: 75 percent more (!), according to a recent post on Tara Parker-Pope’s blog, Well. Here’s how she breaks down the price differences (organic versus non-organic) of the typical parts of a Thanksgiving meal:

  • Turkey (20 pounds) $99.80 vs. $23.80
  • Vanilla ice cream (3 quarts) $21.87 vs. $15.98
  • Yams (5 lbs.) $9.95 vs. $3.95
  • Broccoli (2 lbs.) $5.98 vs. $3.98
  • Heavy whipping cream (2 pints) $5.58 vs. $4.00
  • 2 cans of pumpkin filling $5.00 vs. $3.19
  • 1 bag cranberries $4.99 vs. $2.49

Yikes! So is it worth the premium? Apparently, the organic choice is more important for certain foods than others. Parker-Pope cites experts who say that you should definitely go organic for foods that are otherwise heavy with pesticide residues, including: milk; milk products; apples; bell peppers; celery; and strawberries. I’ll be on the lookout for organics in my Michigan grocery store…I hope that if (when) I don’t find them, it doesn’t spoil my appetite.