Are these leafy greens as healthy as the normal organic ones?

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Permalink Reply by Peter Csere on July 23, 2012 at 1:36am

No. 

The problem with hydroponics is that you have to create a chemical nutrient solution and add it to the water. One cannot expect this manufactured product to have the same excellent mineral profile as composted soil rich in organic matter. It is always exactly the same, and for cost reasons, tends to be what we call an "NPK" fertilizer - i.e. includes nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, but excludes nearly all other nutrients, since a long time ago a scientist discovered that most plants will grow if you only give them NPK and nothing else. 

The article does not say whether they are using a synthetic chemical fertilizer or an organic fertilizer. It also doesn't say whether or not pesticides are used. 

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Permalink Reply by Peter Csere on July 23, 2012 at 1:42am

Oh yeah, reminds me, there's this great "organic" fertilizer - it's not really great nor is it organic. It's called "milorganite" and a lot of people use it on their organic gardens since it's labelled organic. But it's made from sewage sludge, refined and pelletized. So it has chlorine, draino max, birth control, heart medication, bleach, laundry detergent, and any other chemical that goes into the sewer. 

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Permalink Reply by Laura Martins on July 23, 2012 at 1:52pm

oh, how sad is that...  Would be so great if it was just like real organics

but I still think it's a lot better than the greens that come from the tradicional agriculture, aren't they?

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Permalink Reply by Peter Csere on July 26, 2012 at 4:15am

Well, yes and no. It's better in that oodles of pesticides aren't being sprayed onto the ground, but it can also be more energy-intensive thanks to the artificial lights etc that are used. There are pros and cons of each method so it would be hard to absolutely compare them. 

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