Ecology
Do you consider your health, your family's health and the health of the soil which affects plants and the animals that eat those plants? Are the cattle fed with feed when they could have good fodder and grass? Are they pumped with antibiotics to put on weight? What pollutants does the fish on your plate contain and if it was farmed what did it eat, and how much room did it have to swim? What is truly in the food we are eating? What pollutants are in the products we nourish our skin with? What toxic cocktails are our children exposed to each day?
Environment
Do you think about the waterways? Or how agricultural run-off from intensive spraying could destroy a beautiful coral reef? Do you recycle? Or consider the heavily cleared land and sheep dips filled with chemicals that scar the landscape? Do you care about the destruction of the environment from plastic bags, or how packaging becomes landfill? Perhaps it worries you how many artificial pesticides are used to spray cotton? Consider how many food miles your shopping traveled before you took it home, was it grown in one place, flown to another, manufactured and shipped to yet another, only to return to where it started? Consider how much fuel polluted our air before your groceries were neatly unpacked in your pantry.
Energy
What type of energy does your household use? your car? think ! Efficient use of sustainable energy and greenhouse gas emissions.
Ethics
Was the product you purchased made in a sweatshop, were the workers given fair wages? Did the farmer of the coffee beans in your latte receive a good price? Or consider your superannuation company; what does it invest in? Is it another company that makes big products from exploiting others? Ethics are not just about social justice; they are about moral choices, which affect your, me and our planet. How have the animals been treated? Were hens couped up in little cages, bred and grown to be the perfect size to fit the supermarket shelves, or were they given a wholesome life?
Economy
Are you buying international organics that help support the global growth of organics? What is the true price of cheap food? Does demanding cheaper food really cost the earth and drive small family farms to sell up? Why do the food artisans, the producers of the fine cheeses, milk, meat and breads on our table earn so little compared to the companies that make "junk food" and have enormous profit margins?
Emotional
How do you feel? How do you feel about what you are buying? Feeling good about what and how you purchase is important. Knowing you have spent your hard earned cash on goods that support health and wellbeing for you, your family and community can transform your day. Buying from stores that share your values and cares can be satisfying.
Enjoy
The great tastes of freshly picked local produce, or organically reared chooks and animals. Invite your family and friends to sit around a table to share good wholesome foods.
There is no one answer to the questions above, no one label, not a tick or mark or association that can guarantee, endorse or authenticate. However, there are a number of reliable marks, certification groups and web pages that can guide you.
We learn and educate together, there are no right answers, only the right questions.