Aquidneck Island Opens its Arms to Organic Foods

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NEWPORT, R.I. – A television audience was fascinated by the new biological warfare

that lit up the night sky on their screens. These nights brought many returning soldiers home with the highly debated Gulf War Syndrome including John Wood, manager of Harvest Natural Foods in Newport. Struck with chronic fatigue and headaches, Wood went to a doctor where his lifestyle was forever changed.

Imagine having to give up smoking, coffee, alcohol, soap and more. At 21, Wood

thought the doctor was crazy. “All of these things would compromise my ability to improve my health…to eliminate all those things from my diet and then look for alternatives that didn’t contain synthetics was a frightening concept,” Wood said.

For the next 15 years, Wood slowly turned to a more natural, organic lifestyle. Four

years ago, Wood took the job as manager at Harvest Natural Foods and has been helping

customers with their food choices.

In these four years, Wood has seen everyone from aging Americans to people with health

concerns like himself turning to organic food resulting in steady sales growth rates for his store.

Wood has seen his sales increase from $900,000 in 2001 to $1.6 million in 2005.

“The reason more and more people are going organic is one word: health.

And, I truly believe that,” Wood said.

Nationwide, the number of Americans buying organic food has sky-rocketed with sales

jumping 11 percent in the past two years, according to the Progressive Grocer Magazine.

In 2005, the magazine reported that 65 percent of Americans tried organic foods.

According to the CNBC, organic sales are increasing from 17 percent to 20 percent a

year. Organic sales are projected at $32 billion by 2009 as supermarkets adapt to the industry and offer organic food everyday.

Wood said many people shop at his store because they are confident the employees will know about the products because it is their lifestyle.

According to Wood, studies show that organic milk has higher levels of Omega-3 and

CLA and is one of the store’s popular items. “Food can bring on healing,” Wood said. “When we start to understand that, we start to question why we have to add all that other stuff into it before

it gets to us.”

Nicole Vitello, self-employed farmer and owner of Manic Organic in Portsmouth, knows

about keeping ‘stuff’ out of food. Vitello’s 10-acre farm is free of pesticides, chemicals, and genetically modified seeds. Practicing stewardship, she only sprays dish soap to rid her plants of

pests.

According to Vitello, RI, until recently, had the highest percentage of people

buying directly from farms.

In her seventh year, Vitello’s sales have increased from $10,000 to $100,000. Vitello offers customers an array of vegetables including the usual tomatoes and lettuce and novelty items like artichokes. Vitello sells at weekly farmers markets, 15 restaurants and her Community Supported Agriculture program

Vitello’s customers find her CSA program like opening a treasure chest. In the program, consumers subscribe to a weekly fresh vegetable package for 21 weeks. Her program grew from 25 to 150 members in four years just by word of mouth.

“I charge a premium for the produce that I grow, but we also spend a lot of time and

energy making sure that the produce is beautiful…washed, packed, clean and fresh, ” Vitello said. “These are things that have really allowed the business to grow because there is integrity

behind our product.”

Complementing the colorful painting of the Owl and the Pussycat baking pies behind her,

Vitello explains some customers say organic has forced them back into their kitchens bringing their family together. She believes events like 9/11 made people want simpler pleasures closer to home that make them feel good. This need for local social interaction has brought her more customers.

“The farmer is the new rock star,” Vitello said. “I think that the organic thing is going to go out of vogue, but I don’t think the local thing will…they get personalized service. People are looking for a more humanizing experience…our customers are people to us, and we know them.”

Dr. Jameson Chace, assistant professor of biology at Salve Regina Univeristy, gives local farmers like Vitello business during the year. “We buy all organic food in my house and..I’ll often pick out an insect that’s in there and try and convince my daughter that’s a good thing…this

is one thing that is a sign that there is no pesticides on the food,” Chace said.

Chace appreciates how organic farmers approach the environment by not polluting the earth. He says pesticides and other chemicals seeping into ground water is the big issue. More pesticides are being applied in residential back yards than in agriculture causing more close-to-

home problems.

According to Chace, pesticides grabbed people’s attention because animals were

dropping dead in people’s backyards back in 1972 with DDT.

“If pesticides had been applied in a more judicious manner back then, we wouldn’t be

talking about it now…We were spreading it wholesale everywhere,” Chace said. “It’s all the press.”

Dr. Steven Symington, assistant professor of biology at Salve Regina, agrees with Chace

that studies show nitrates in the water supply cause problems like Blue Baby Syndrome.

“I think fertilizers in general are much more devastating thanpesticides…Pesticides

become the bad guys, not saying they’re not, but there’s worst guys out there,” said Symington, “Genetically modified organisms…are probably the scariest thing that we could actually do as a

society.”

But pesticides also can have positives results by reducing the spread of vector born diseases, according to Symington.

Health wise, Symington says most known cancers are due to lifestyle choices and are not chemically induced. He believes the general public is well aware of implications pesticides have

on their health.

According to the Progressive Grocer, organic foods are becoming more main stream. More than half the people questioned agree that organics are better for their health and the

environment.

Along with these reasons, the organic movement is getting passed down to a whole new generation. People are teaching their children to make the same healthy choices. “I think that they eat more fruits and vegetables than adults,” Symington said.