Five Good Reasons To Eat Organic
Dale Orr of Churchtown Farm shares his opinion on why we should eat organic.
As Ireland's Premier Award Winning Organic Meat Retailer he may know a thing or two.
For health
On average organic fruit & veg contain higher levels of Vitamin C, essential minerals and cancer fighting oxidants. Grass fed organic beef will be richer in omega 3 fatty acids and Conjugated Linoelic Acid (CLA) than cereal fed beef. Grass fed beef contains more than four times more Vitamin E than cereal produced beef.*
No Nasty Additives
Organic foods are regulated very heavily by Certification bodies who limit the use of food additives as ingredients in organic foods. For example, the Soil Association has banned the use of hydrogenated fat, aspartame(artificial sweetener) and Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) in organic foods.
No Pesticides
Over 300 chemical pesticides are routinely used in conventional farming. Residues of these pesticides are often present in non-organic foods.
Animal Welfare
No system of farming has higher levels of animal welfare than organic farms working to Soil Association Standards. At Churchtown Farm, they keep their animals in small family groups. Animals have freedom to move and are outside roaming freely for the majority of the year.
Good for wildlife and the environment
Organic farming is better for wildlife. There is no pollution from use of chemical fertilisers,pesticides and fungicides and organic farms have been shown to produce less Carbon Dioxide - the main global warming gas.
(* High levels of Omega 3's in the diet may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, ADHD, depression, Alzheimer's disease and autoimmune diseases. Diets with high levels of CLA's have been shown to reduce both the incidence of cancers and suppress the growths of existing cancers. Vitamin E is linked with lowering risk of heart disease and cancer and this potent antioxidant may have anti ageing properties.)
Churchtown Farm
Churchtown Farm is a mixed organic farm located just outside the seaside village of Strangford, on the shores of Strangford Lough, in an area of outstanding natural beauty.
The farm shop opened in April 2005 and since then has proudly received many awards and accolades - a testament to the high quality of their meat.
Yet it didn't stop with the opening of a farm shop.
Churchtown Farm are driven to produce the finest quality meat and products available, and striving to make them available to the ever-growing ethically and organically-minded consumer.
As a testament to this, they launched their website in November 2007 and now supply their finest gourmet meat to customers throughout the whole of UK and Ireland.
Fresh, quality products delivered from their farm to your door.
To make their products even more accessible to local customers, they can be found at the vibrant St Georges Food & Speciality Market in Belfast every Saturday.
In order to expand the range of products and bring you a wider choice, in 2009 they built an Organic Smokehouse.
The new smoked product range will include delicious Hickory Smoked Organic Bacon; wonderfully aromatic Oak Smoked Salmon; Maple Smoked Leg of Lamb (roast dinners have never been so tasty) and Organic Pastrami (that famous favourite of New York delis).
Order online @ www.churchtownfarmorganicproduce.com
Churchtown Farm Livestock
Churchtown Farm has four bulls and selectively breed their cattle to produce an animal that will grow and thrive on a diet of clovers and grasses.
Animal welfare is extremely important. Cattle are kept in small family groups, and have access to vitamin and mineral supplements to ensure they have a strong immune system and stay healthy.
The sheep are pure bred Lleyn, a welsh breed that has its breeding origins in the south of Ireland. This breed is ideally adapted to thriving on an organic farm. They have a naturally high worm tolerance and so do not need to be given any veterinary medicines to treat this condition.
The pigs are Tamworth, the only pig breed with an Irish ancestry. The Tamworth pig was created when Sir Robert Peel interbred his existing pig herd with pigs known as ‘Irish Grazers’ that Peel had encountered in Ireland in 1809. These pigs are perfectly adapted to organic farming as they are very hardy, able to withstand harsh outdoor weather conditions and will successfully grow on a forage based ration of clovers, grasses, wheat, oats and peas.
Churchtown Farm are constantly making considerable efforts to improve and evolve.
By selectively breeding all their animals to produce cattle, lambs and pigs that thrive on a clover grass based diet, they ensure the animals are reared in a natural, healthy, stress-free environment, and they use old traditional breeds with a reputation for meat quality that can be enjoyed by customers throughout the UK & Ireland.
If you would like any further information about Churchtown Farm and their products please visit: www.churchtownfarmorganicproduce.com
