If it were not for pesticides and fungicides, there would be a much larger “dead zone” consisting of hundreds of rows of gravestones of young and middle-aged people who fell prey to infections and even yenne machle caused by pests and fungus. I live in the developing world, and I know what real “organic” produce looks like. It is reminiscent of the euphemism “organic fertilizer,” which is what primitive farmers use and which attracts disease-causing organisms. I throw out half of what I buy, unless I go to a store that does the sorting for me.
Organic certification is worth the same as the bogus hechsherim that crop up now in EY among lefties who want to protest the rabbanut and fool customers at the same time. Both an organic apple tree and a regular one are often treated with the same sulfur-based chemicals. They come from the ground (der erd) and they wash off easily, so smart farmers who use sulfur pesticides get away with calling their fruit organic – and the organic associations accept it as same. Same deal with other organic pest controls – everyone uses beneficial bacteria to control agricultural pests now.