Garlic, Organic or Not
I use a lot of garlic in cooking but just decided to throw out cheap garlic and start buying organic garlic, preferably locally-grown. Trying to save $2 could cost you a lot in health and potential medical costs. This is why.
Cheap Chinese garlic is treated with bleach, dangerous pesticides and grown in sewage water that may contain lead, arsenic and sulfite.
Cheap garlic is imported from China which is No. 1 exporting country for garlic. 80% of the global supply is from China. They are less strict in their regulation on health safety. It is profit-driven. In China, they bleach garlic in order to kill insects, make them look more appealing, prevent sprouting on the store shelves. Natural garlic has dark spots, not so snow-white. Currently, approximately 31% of the US supply of garlic is imported from China.
They are also sprayed with a highly toxic pesticide called methyl bromide. In high does, methyl bromide can cause nervous system and respiratory problems like in lung. It is 60 times more dangerous than chlorine, just to give you an idea of how toxic it is. Acute exposure to methyl bromide could show symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, fainting, apathy, weakness, confusion, speech impairment, visual effects, numbness, twitching, and tremors; in severe cases paralysis and convulsions. The use of methyl bromide is prohibited in most European countries.
Also, when grown in untreated sewage water, they may be contaminated by lead, arsenic and sulfite.
Tempted to buy peeled garlic? Think again.
UK Financial Times reported that the peeled garlic is produced by the forced labor of prisoners in China. These prisoners work 14 hours a day to peel garlic without proper rest. It is even reported that the prisoners get beat up if they don’t participate in the work.
There are several items produced in China you should never eat. Garlic is certainly one of them.
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