Although some researchers have concluded that there is no difference in taste between food grown organically and conventionally, many gourmet chefs seek out organic ingredients for their special dishes because they believe the tastes to be more intense. This of course could have to do with the type of soil or other factors. A more important question is whether or not the accumulation of pesticide residues in non-organically grown foods is a real health concern. Studies have never been able to conclusively show a direct correlation between residues in food and a decline in human health, but there are numerous problems in doing any such study. According to an ongoing EPA study of fat samples taken from surgeries and autopsies across the country, we are all loaded with chemical residues.
Similar studies done in other countries all show the same results.
The clearest studies that we have about pesticide residues and disease are those looking at breast cancer in humans. In the last few years there have been a series of studies looking at the level of DDT, DDE, and PCB in women. They have very clearly shown chemical residues of DDT in the serum and fat cells of women, and since we no longer use DDT to spray for mosquitoes, the only known route of exposure to DDT in this country is on foods that we have imported. We still manufacture DDT in the U.S. even though its use has been banned here. We export the DDT to other countries who use it on their produce and then we import their produce with the DDT, hence exposing ourselves and our parrots to its toxicity.