Study: Organic strawberries are more nutritious

William Atkins
Wednesday, 08 September 2010 00:16

Science - Biology

A U.S. study has found that organic strawberries are more nutritious than non-organic strawberries – and they help to maintain a healthier soil, too.

 

The article “Fruit and Soil Quality of Organic and Conventional Strawberry Agroecosystems” is published in the journal PloS ONE.

The abstract to their paper states, “Sale of organic foods is one of the fastest growing market segments within the global food industry. People often buy organic food because they believe organic farms produce more nutritious and better tasting food from healthier soils.”

But, are organic strawberries “really” more nutritious and better tasting?

A group of U.S. researchers decided to find out for themselves.

Thus, the researchers examined thirteen organic and thirteen non-organic (conventional) strawberry farms in California – they call the farms: “strawberry agroecosystems."

The researchers selected California as the study site because most of the strawberries farmed commercially in the United States are grown in the state of California.

The research was performed over a two-year period. During this time, the researchers examined various features of the strawberries, such as shelf life, mineral content, and other such properties.

In all, they examined 31 different biological and chemical properties of the soil used to grow the strawberries, along with the nutrition, quality, and taste of the strawberries.

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