Note: Marketplace podcasts are meant to be heard, with emphasis, tone and audio elements a transcript can’t capture. Scripts may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting it

SFX: BIRDS TWEETING

SFX: DISTANT LAWN MOWER

RYAN: [JOURNAL ENTRY STYLE] Day 37 of growing catnip, from all-natural seed, for my beloved cat, Skimbleshanks.

SFX: MEOW

SFX: CAT BELL

SFX: CAT PURR

RYAN: [PONTIFICATING JOURNAL  ENTRY]  I’ve found a decent growing location in the parking lot outside the Marketplace office. The view of the highway is…[DRAMATICALLY] [SFX: ANGRY CAR HONKING] unparalleled.  

BRIDGET: [OFF MIC] Hey Ryan, what are you working on over there?

RYAN: Oh, hey Bridget, just working on growing my greens.

SFX MUX: LAUREL AND HARDY ESQUE MUSIC, LIGHT AND HIGH ENERGY

BRIDGET: Greens? Oh, are we using money slang again? I love that! Does this mean you’re  finally putting all the saving-money lessons from our show to good use?? 

RYAN: No, I’m trying to grow a valuable resource that I’ll need in the future.

BRIDGET: You opened a retirement account?? Finally!

RYAN: No, that’s not it, I’m working on an investment I can harvest much sooner than retirement. I’m actually–

BRIDGET: [EXASPERATED] You didn’t try to buy crypto again, did you? We talked about this!

RYAN: That’s not what’s happening here. How should I put this? I’m trying to make a little mint–

BRIDGET: Mint? You’re not trying to forge your own Ryan Coins or something? We can get in big trouble for that.

RYAN: It’s none of that! I’m growing my own catnip for Skimbleshanks!

BRIDGET: Oh! Catnip? Now is that some sort of slang for crypto?

RYAN: [HANDS UP SORT OF SIGH] Noo!

–MILLION BAZILLION THEME–

BRIDGET: Welcome back to Million Bazillion!

RYAN: Where we help dollars make more sense! I’m Ryan!

BRIDGET: And I’m Bridget! And today we’ve got a great question from Cecilia in Pennsylvania . Let’s hear it!

CECILIA TAPE: Why does organic food cost more than regular food?

RYAN: Great question Cecilia, great question. So Bridget, how are we gonna answer this one?

BRIDGET: Cecilia is talking about certified organic, as in, the label that the USDA, that’s the United States Department of Agriculture, gives to foods that were created and grown according to specific rules.

SFX MUX: EXPLAINER MUSIC

RYAN: Oh yes, I know all about it. There are rules saying that farmers have to make environmentally friendly choices, like they need to avoid man-made fertilizers and pesticides, If the farmers and food makers follow the rules, those foods can be sold with that little circle that says like, USDA Organic on the label.

BRIDGET: This certified organic program came about because people were worried about some of the man made chemicals we use or used to use for farming and wanted to make sure they were working to protect the soil and our environment .

RYAN: So that USDA Organic label lets people know when a food was grown a certain way.

BRIDGET: And yep, and most certified organic food will cost more than its non-organic version, Cecilia is totally right.

MUX: STOP

RYAN: But don’t take our word for it! Listeners, next time you’re at the grocery store, look for a sort of rustic sign in the produce section with the word “Organic” scrawled in a puke-green shade. 

BRIDGET: Oh, like at Whole Foods?

RYAN: Yeah. I call it Whole Paycheck.

BRIDGET: Good one.

RYAN: I didn’t come up with it. Then compare the cost of an organic banana to a regular banana. It works in the cereal aisle too. See that price difference!

BRIDGET: But Cecilia already knows the organic label costs more…so why??

RYAN: We’ll peel the layers of this mystery back- like an organic banana……right after this!

–ARK–

KIMBERLY: And now … it’s time for Asking Random Kids Not-So-Random Questions … Today’s question is: Would you rather have a million dollars in coins or a million dollars in candy? Why?

 I would rather have a million dollars in coins because I don't wanna get a cavity. / I would rather have million dollars in coins. 'cause you could donate some, you could buy other stuff with it. / You could use half of it to still buy candy, but you can also buy other stuff like save up or spend it. / I would rather have a million dollars in candy because I could sell the candy for more than I got it. / I’d rather have a million dollars in candy because I love candy.

KIMBERLY: That was Ada in Georgia, Cecelia in Colorado, Stella in California, Kai in Florida, Ella in Kentucky. This has been Asking Random Kids Not-So-Random Questions.

— RETURN/PART ONE

SFX: OFFICE NOISES: PHONES RINGING IN DISTANCE, HUM OF FLUORESCENT LIGHTS, OCCASIONAL COPY AND FAX MACHINE SWISH, INDISTINCT CHATTER, LAST FEW MOMENTS OF MARKETPLACE CLOSE MUSIC THROUGH A TINNY SPEAKER.

BRIDGET: And we’re back, at the Marketplace office and studios! Thanks for staying with us! Today we’re going to answer Cecilia’s question about why certified organic foods cost more than non-organic foods.

RYAN: Did you bring your muckin’ boots with you to the office today Bridget? I’m pretty sure we’re going to end up on a farm this episode.

BRIDGET: Don’t jinx us.

STEPHANIE: Hi Bridget and Ryan. I was just wandering through the office and couldn’t help but overhear it sounds like you’ve got an organic food question you need answered?

BRIDGET: Stephanie Hughes, Marketplace senior reporter! Why yes we do!

STEPHANIE: Well, you know, I just finished answering this question for the evening broadcast of Marketplace. In a grown-up-money, news kinda way.

RYAN: [OFF TO SIDE] Uh, Bridget, I think I have another brilliant idea. Instead of going on madcap adventures where we inevitably end up running through sewage–

BRIDGET: That only happened twice–

RYAN: And I strain my neck while people laugh at my bald spot, let’s just get the Marketplace reporters to start doing some of this work! They’re some of the top journalists out there. Let THEM crawl around a dirt field investigating the financial properties of organic dirt!

BRIDGET: Okay, sure! [LOUDER] Hey Stephanie, since you’ve just been reporting on organic foods and why they cost more than non organic foods…please tell us what you’ve learned about why that is!

STEPHANIE: Let me build you a picture with some sound I gathered on this reporting trip.

 [AMBI UP] I was in St. Mary’s County, in southern Maryland

It was a beautiful spring day.

RYAN: I’m liking this already. I feel like I’ve been transported to the farm you visited through the power of ambience!

STEPHANIE: Yeah, that’s the magic of radio reporting.

So anyway, I came here to find out why organic food generally costs more than non organic.

It’s sunny outside, but there’s a light breeze and the air -- it smells like grass.

BRIDGET: Ooh, it sounds nice.

RYAN: Yeah, peaceful. Not a sewer in sight.

STEPHANIE: I’m in a field, I’ve got a sunhat, and I see these tall weeds.

DAVID VO 1: “That’s amaranth. This one we don’t like,”

RYAN: [WHISPERING] What’s Amaranth?

BRIDGET: Uh, it’s…something bad…

STEPHANIE: It’s a weed!. And the guy talking -- his name is David Paulk. He runs this farm with his  wife Jennifer Paulk It’s called Sassafras Creek Farm.

RYAN: Sassafras, by the way, is not a cuss. It sounds a little like a cuss, but it’s not a cuss.

STEPHANIE: Yeah, sassafrass is a kind of tree -- and it’s actually a kind of dirt that’s common in the state of Maryland!

But back to the weed.

DAVID VO 2: “This one will produce a lot of weed-seeds.”

STEPHANIE: The amaranth weed  is living among the shallots-

That’s an onion-y type vegetable, Ryan.

RYAN: I knew that!

STEPHANIE: The Paulks don’t like weeds, because the more weeds in their field, the more it crowds into the shallots’ growing space.

RYAN: Oh I just hate it when that happens!.

STEPHANIE: They have a few ways to tackle those weeds

For example - they can plough them under using a tractor…But --

DAVID PAULK VO 3: “Do the best you can and there’s still going to be hand weeding.”

BRIDGET: Ooh, hand weeding , not my favorite. It takes a long time, you’re out there in the sun. Aren’t there some sort of high powered chemical weed killers  that can help? Why isn’t Farmer David using one of those?

STEPHANIE: Because the Paulks are certified organic farmers.

SFX: FADE OUT THE FARM AMBI

SFX MUX: FADE UP MUSIC

All the crops here – from arugula to zucchini are certified organic by the U-S Department of Agriculture. That means the farmer have to follow rules set out by the agency for how they go about their farming.

RYAN: Yep, I knew that.

STEPHANIE: One of the big rules in organic farming is that you’re generally supposed to avoid using synthetic materials on your plants.

BRIDGET: Synthetic, by the way, means, made by people, not nature.

SFX: EXPLAINER MUX OUT BY THIS POINT

SFX: FARM AMBI

STEPHANIE: So for example, the Paulks don’t use any man made  weedkillers to keep those weeds from growing. And they don’t use any man-made bug killers to keep the bugs away. Including the ones that like to eat their crops.

DAVID PAULK VO 4: These are potatoes, and here is an insect that wants to eat it.

STEPHANIE: The insect is the Colorado potato beetle larvae.

They’re shiny and brown.

Jennifer--she starts picking them off the plants. I do, too.

JENNIFER PAULK VO: It’s addicting, yes. LAUGHS / DAVID PAULK VO: “We call them Jabba the Hutt. Typically, what we do is squeeze them. But the problem with that, is it squeezes in your eye, and then it’s kind of unpleasant.”

RYAN: EWWW Bridget. Count me out. I'll go into the sewers for this show but I draw the line at bug juice.

BRIDGET: What?? This sounds so cool!

SFX: FARM AMBI OUT

STEPHANIE: Look - bug picking and weeding is definitely not all done by hand.

RYAN: Oh thank goodness, that was getting really gross.

STEPHANIE: Because they’re following the USDA’s strict rules about growing organically, the Paulks can use bug-killing sprays made from natural ingredients that have been approved for organic farming.

But they don’t use any man made chemicals for weeding or de-bugging or fertilizing like non-certified organic, or conventional farmers can use.

RYAN: Right right, so synthetic bug killer, big no no. Natural bug killer, yes yes. Got it.

So how does that end up making the certified organic vegetables they grow cost more for me, the organic-buying customer with a canvas bag and manbun?

STEPHANIE: Because, those manmade options for weeding and gettin’ rid of bugs that regular farmers can use, cost less than the options that certified organic farmers like the Paulks have.

So instead,  the Paulks have to do things like… use more labor. Labor is a grown up word for “pay a person to do it.”

BRIDGET: Ohhhh. And if I know anything, it’s that paying a person to do something is probably going to cost more than using a machine or just spraying.

STEPHANIE And thanks to weeds or bugs, or sometimes plants getting sick, not everything the Paulks plant in the spring, is gonna make it to the fall harvest, so they have to plan for that:

DAVID POLK VO 6: “You end up having to plant often more to produce the same volume of harvest as a conventional farm would, So the cost of that production has to get reflected in the price.”

BRIDGET: That’s usually true. Whatever it costs someone to make or grow something is going to be part of the price you pay in the end. It costs more for farmers to GROW organic food, so it’s going to cost more for you in the store too.

[EXPLAINER/LISTICAL MUSIC]

STEPHANIE: That’s right.

And there are other things that can make organic farming more expensive. For example, farmers have to pay money each year

SFX: KACHING

To  an inspector who comes by and double checks they’re doing their farming in a way that follows organic rules.

RYAN: Hmmm, so like a vegetable cop.

STEPHANIE: And The Paulks don’t raise livestock like cows and chickens, but if they did, any feed those animals ate would ALSO  need to be certified organic.

SFX: KACHING

And that feed can cost twice as much as non-organic feed

SFX: KACHING KACHING

STEPHANIE [GOING ON, WITH GREATER ENTHUSIASM]:

AND THEN

Let’s say you’re talking about an organic granola bar with chocolate chips.

Every ingredient that goes into that granola bar:

the chocolate

the oats

the brown rice syrup that holds it all together.

SFX: KACHING AFTER EACH INGREDIENT

All of them have  to be certified organic too

SFX: KACHINGS INCREASING IN SPEED

Or the company can’t put that U-S-D-A certified organic label on their food.

It’s this really long complicated process that can stretch across oceans, from country to country, continent to continent!

[END MUSIC]

RYAN: Uh, Stephanie, there’s something I don’t get! Why would a farmer WANT to go through this whole certified organic process? It sounds like a lot of work. If you blindfolded me, I don’t know that I could really tell the difference between an organic granola bar and a non organic granola bar.

STEPHANIE: Well, first of all, because there's a market for it.

There are people who are willing to pay more money for organic food. There’s no firm evidence that organically grown food is more nutritious but some people do think they can taste the difference if they are blind folded.

RYAN: OFF MIC: Pfft. We’ll just see about that!

STEPHANIE:  And there are rules today to make sure that our food is safe to eat, organic or not. But there have been times in the past when we realized that certain things we did with farming including some bug sprays and weed killers and fertilizers we used actually weren’t so good for our health or the environment. And some people are willing to pay extra to be more cautious about what goes into the food that they eat. So it’s a business opportunity.

RYAN: I knew it, farmers seeing dollar signs, wanting to stuff their overalls with cash!

STEPHANIE: And also, some farmers, like the Paulks believe that this type of farming is better for the environment and better for their own health. It’s the type of farming they want to do anyway.

Also, I think that some organic farmers just like the CHALLENGE OF IT

Basically, they don’t have all the tools available to them that a conventional farmer has, like the man-made weed and bug killers.

So, while they’ll start with the research, and what they KNOW works. They will also just  try stuff and see what happens.

I talked with an agricultural economist who calls them the magicians and mad scientists of the farming world

RYAN: [INTEREST PIQUED] Oh? Mad scientist you say?

SFX: LIGHTENING ZAP/FUZZ AND THUNDER CLAP

BRIDGET: Yeah, like Frankenstein. Who was, in fact, the doctor, not the monster.

SFX: MAYBE FADE UP OFFICE AMBI FROM EARLIER

RYAN: I know that!

STEPHANIE: So, are you guys all set with the answer to your question? I’ve gotta go bungee jump off the top of the Federal Reserve for a story about transitory deflation.

BRIDGET: Wow. Well, thank you Stephanie, we really appreciate it.

RYAN: Yeah, good luck! It’s so cool to be a public radio journalist.

SFX: MOTORCYCLE ROAR

RYAN: Wow, you don’t often see people who can ride a motorcycle  just on the back wheel like that.

BRIDGET: Business reporters. They’re a wild breed.

RYAN: Hey, Bridget, all this gives me an idea.

BRIDGET: Uh oh. [SUSPICIOUSLY] I mean, say more?

RYAN: Well we’ve answered Cecilia’s question, but the answer has sparked another question. Why isn’t EVERYTHING just grown organically? It sounds like it’s better for the environment, and more fun for the farmers!

BRIDGET: Okay… so there’s an idea in here?

SFX: FUN ADVENTURE HIJINKS MUSIC

RYAN: I think we should buy a farm, and try to grow everything organically, and then make a bunch of money selling our organic produce because, you heard Stephanie, it’s a growing market!

BRIDGET: Uh…I don’t know about buying a farm, what do we, two podcasters, know about farming? Did you hear the part where Stephanie said certified organic farming is super difficult??

RYAN: Pish posh, Bridget! Maybe we don’t need to BUY a farm, but we can at least BORROW a farm. We’re going to become farmers, everyone! On a real farm! And ! on that farm we’ll be growing food E-I-E-I-O, when we come back! After this!

–MIDROLL–

SFX: MILLION BAZILLION TRUMPET STING

SFX: GENTLE MOOs

SFX: CHICKENS

RYAN: And we’re back! On a farm!

BRIDGET: But NOT a farm we bought! We’re just visiting this one, like we’re borrowing a little corner of this farm, for a little while.

RYAN: Right right. And today we’re answering Cecilia’s question, about why organic food costs more than non organic food. And we’ve learned it’s because  farmers and foodmakers have to follow very specific rules when it comes to growing and making certified organic food, to get that little green label. And following the rules costs them more, so that price is passed on to the customers.

BRIDGET: Right and we got that answer with the help of Marketplace reporter, Stephanie Hughes. Yay us! We could be done now!

RYAN: Not on my watch! We’re going above and beyond! Now we’re going to become… farmers! We might even win an award for farmers, Outstanding in Their Field..

BRIDGET: Look, Ryan, I realize I wasn’t incredibly supportive of your efforts to grow catnip for Skimbleshanks earlier. I’m really sorry about that. Are you SURE we need to do this farming thing?

RYAN: Apology accepted, Bridget. And yes, I’m sure we have to do this farming thing. Here’s the game. [SFX: GREEN ACRES ESQUE MUSIC] I’ve done all the research and I’m going to grow everything in my plot according to USDA’s Certified Organic rules. And you’ll be over there, in the plot down yonder, following conventional farming methods. You’ll have access to more efficient synthetic chemical sprays, but I’ve got love and a green thumb. Not to mention the wiles and creativity of the mad-scientist farmers who keep our stores flush with organic produce.

(SFX: END MUSIC)

BRIDGET: Well everything I know about farming of any type suggests that it’s really hard and not a little risky, it takes patience and determination and luck. But… I guess if we can host a podcast, we can be farmers?

RYAN: That’s the spirit!  Now me, I’m going all in on cucumbers. My dreams are nothing too elaborate. Just grow bushels and bushels of extra warty cucumbers, make millions in the organic cucumber market, and retire at 35.

BRIDGET: Aren’t you already older than 35?

RYAN: Yes.

BRIDGET:  Interesting choice. I guess I’ll try to grow  some cucumbers too then? Alright, let’s do this.

(MUSIC: ROUSING, RUSTIC CLASSICAL)

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: [JOURNAL ENTRY STYLE] Day 1 of the Million Bazillion Organic farm experiment. I’m embarking on a new frontier, following totally certified organic practices.. The seeds for success have been sown.

BRIDGET: Yeah, and in my non organic farm, we did the same, so we’re off to a good start!

RYAN: I did have to buy a few extra seeds so I could plant a few extra rows, knowing that I’ll inevitably lose a few to pesky bugs or weeds. But I feel confident everything will go perfectly from here on out.

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 12 of the Million Bazillion organic farm experiment. To fit in with the other so called “mad scientist farmers” of the organic farming world, I’ve concocted my own fertilizer of pea mash, and extra strong vinegar, plus I’m adding my own secret ingredient, baking soda–

BRIDGET [OFF MIC] Wait, Ryan! You can’t mix baking soda and vinegar like that!

SFX EXPLOSION

RYAN: I’m ok!

BRIDGET: I’m just gonna dump some synthetic chemical fertilizer on my cucumbers. Since I’m not doing organic, I’m allowed to use it to make my lil’ plants grow faster! It is an extra cost, but I think worth it.

RYAN: Suit yourself, Bridget. I’ll be using this organic compost I’ve mixed up from the Marketplace waste facility. It’s mostly shredded Million Bazillion scripts printed on organic paper and old coffee grounds, my cucumbers will love it!

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

BRIDGET: Day 25 of the Million Bazillion conventional farming experiment. I’ve got a ton of cucumbers growing and they look…gooood.

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 27 of Million Bazillion’s organic farming experiment. The cucumbers are growing great but unfortunately, so are the weeds. I can’t use any sort of super effective synthetic weed killer. So tomorrow  I’ll release.. the horn worms!

(SFX: SQUISHY INSECT EATING SOUNDS)

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 33, the horn worms were a terrible idea, they’re eating everything in sight! I’ve lost dozens of cucumber plants! But I have a solution. Chickens!

(SFX: CHICKENS)

 RYAN: Day 49 Wow, we have a lot of chickens. At least they’re eating the horn worms!

BRIDGET: Oh, are you having a horn worm problem? I saw a few of those a few weeks ago and just zapped ‘em with my bug spray. Only lost 2 plants. I think I might go see a movie now, they’re playing The Tree of the Wooden Clogs at the Limmly Theater mini-IMAX , you want to come?

RYAN: No,  I actually need to stay here and keep pulling some more weeds that have sprouted since the chickens ate all the horn worms. I might have to pay someone to help me!

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: [BELEAGUERED] Day 55…the chickens seem to have unionized. They’ve demanded I get them a pair of pet rabbits for companionship and amusement. I’ve also hired one of the Marketplace interns to help me pull weeds. But they keep running off, saying “this is literally not my job, I’ve been hired to do a different job.”

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 61. I’ve started growing carrots to feed the now growing family of rabbits. It’s an added and unexpected expense. But they sure do keep the chickens entertained!

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 68, we now have 87 chickens, 16 rabbits and… four cucumbers. Has anyone seen the price of eggs lately? Can we make any money off ‘em?

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

BRIDGET: Day 70. My cucumber harvest proved so successful, I might move onto sweet potatoes, I might even leave the whole podcasting life behind me and devote myself to growing jumbo-sized produce with the aid of every synthetic chemical fertilizer, bug killer, and weed killer on the market! I might even win an award for Farmer Outstanding in My Field. (CHUCKLES) Just like Ryan said. I wonder how he’s doing.

(CUT MUSIC)

(SFX: WINDSWEPT DESOLATION)

SFX: ROOSTER CROW

RYAN: Day 75. Hungry and cold out here. I ate one of the cucumbers for sustenance. Leaving only three. Forecast for the week shows… dustbowl. Trying to stay positive, but it’s been a challenge to be honest.

(SFX: CAR PULLS UP)

IN QUICK SUCCESSION: LOUD CAR DRIVING/ENGINE OFF/ LAYERED UNDER INSPECTOR LINE: CAR DOOR/FOOTSTEPS

INSPECTOR: Hello, I’m here to inspect your farm to make sure you’re following the USDA rules for organic certification. I’ve come to take a look at your cucumbers.

RYAN: Oh, right this way, ma’am. Take a look at my farm. On my farm, I’ve grown three fully organic cucumbers, E-I-E-I-O.

SFX MUSIC STING (like 2 seconds, to show passage of time)

INSPECTOR: Well, I’ve had a look around. Looks like you did everything right. And you’ve paid the inspection fee. I think you’ve earned this.

SFX: GLEAMING SOUND

RYAN: My USDA Organic Label! You don’t know how much this means to me!

INSPECTOR: Alright then, see you again next year.

RYAN: …. Uh, before you go…do you have a candy bar or anything in your car I can eat?

INSPECTOR: Uh, you wouldn’t want it, it’s not organic.

–FUN SEG JOKE/WOULD YOU RATHER–

SFX: LIGHT CROWD

SFX: SINGLE GUITAR PLAYING MUSIC IN BACKGROUND

SFX: BELL CLANG FROM TIME TO TIME

RYAN: Okay, we’re back, and ready to take stock of our farm experiment.

BRIDGET: Yeah, it’s a good thing this farmer’s market happens every week outside the Marketplace office! It’s the perfect spot to sell all these cucumbers we grew! You know, I was really skeptical about all this but I think it turned out well. I ended up with 49 cucumbers! I had to spend money on some weedkiller and bug spray, and fertilizer but I was able to do it all myself, and not hire anyone. The cucumbers are not organic, but [CRUNCH] they taste pretty good. I can’t sell them for as much as my organic competitors though. So not as much work and money up front, but not as much of a payoff in the end.

RYAN: Aren’t you forgetting something?

BRIDGET: Oh, right well…some of the bug spray I used ended up, uh, killing off all the area bees. And bees are super-important to helping different plants to grow. AWKWARD COUGH. It’s uh, not my proudest moment but we’re working with the local conservation group to try to uh, fix that.  But uh, what about you, Ryan?

RYAN: Well Bridget, I’m exhausted. I’ve managed to grow a total of three cucumbers but after totalling everything I’ve spent, I need to sell these cucumbers for $27 apiece just to break even!

MARKET CUSTOMER 1: I’m in the market for some cucumbers. Oooh, is this cucumber organic?

RYAN: All the way! See my green USDA Organic label?

MARKET CUSTOMER 2: Cucumbers you say? I need some of those! How much are these [pauses before continuing] organic ones going for?

RYAN: Oh, these are each going for, ahem, 27 dollars per cucumber.

MARKET CUSTOMER 2: 27 dollars! That’s pretty pricey! I think the stand next to you is selling them for 99 cents each?

BRIDGET: Yep, that’s me, not organic, but still delicious!

MARKET CUSTOMER 2: I’ll go with those, thanks though

MARKET CUSTOMER 1: Wow, $27, that’s…a lot.

RYAN: Before you decide, I have something I want to say. I started this farming journey because our listener Cecilia wanted to know why organic food costs more than non-organic food. Cecilia, as a one-time organic farmer myself, I can say, organic farming is so much work. Farmers who want to put that Certified Organic label on their foods need to follow a specific set of rules created by the USDA. I hope that by learning from my example, you know now that every time you see that organic label, that represents the sweat and tears, the hopes and dreams, of an organic farmer out there. It may not be as easy as conventional farming–

BRIDGET–which is also a lot of work, not easy, let’s be clear–

RYAN: Yes, well, organic farming takes more human sweat, more money, and without the use of tools like synthetic weed and bug killers,  maybe even more creativity than conventional farming. And for that, we pay a few extra cents or dollars at the grocery store.

BRIDGET: Yeah. And you know, there are reasons families will buy organic food and there are reasons they don’t. If it makes your family feel better to eat organic, and you can afford it, that’s cool! Some people say it tastes better, that probably depends. For some families, the extra cost might not be worth it, and that’s cool too. But remember, at the end of the day, just make sure you’re eating as much of your fruits and veggies as you can, okay?

RYAN: Well said. You know Bridget, I count my time as an organic farmer well spent, when I see the smiles on the eyes of the children who enjoy a certified organic vegetable during snack time.

[BEAT]

SFX: SINGLE PERSON CLAPPING ENTHUSIASTICALLY

MARKET CUSTOMER 1: Well I think 27 dollars is a little pricey and some might say bordering on the absurd but that speech sold me! I like that they were grown using organic practices AND it’s being sold by a guy with a man bun. I’ll take them all! I’m making some pickles and these will be perfect.

SFX: COINS ON TABLE

SFX: PLASTIC BAG RUSTLING

RYAN: Alright, here you go, have a good one. Thanks for the sale! Bye now!

OVERLAPPING: BRIDGET: Happy pickling!

MARKET CUSTOMER 1: Thanks!

RYAN: Wow Bridget. Now all my cucumbers are gone, and just like that, my organic farming career has come to a close. [WISTFUL] Seems like a whole lot of work for something, that in the end, was over all too soon.

BRIDGET: Oh, yeah, I get it buddy.  [TONE SHIFT] But, what’s that over there? All your pots of catnap you were growing? They look, great.

RYAN: Oh, yes, I never let a day pass without tending this, my most precious crop for dear Skimbleshanks. 

BRIDGET: Well, let’s see if we can get Skimbleshanks to smile for us, come on Skimbleshanks, give us a smile!

SKIMBLESHANKS: HISS!

–MILLION BAZILLION THEME–

Credits

BRIDGET: Alright, that’s it for *this episode of Million Bazillion! Thanks for listening!  If you want to keep learn more about why things cost what they do, from organic to store brand items, and more,  check out the tipsheet for THIS episode, you can find that at our website, Marketplace dot org/million or sign up for our newsletter to get tipsheets delivered straight to your inbox.

RyAN: If you have a good idea for an episode or a money question, especially if they don’t involve muckin’ boots or sewers, please send them to us through our website, marketplace dot org slash million.

BRIDGET:  We want to thank David and Jennifer Paulk at Sassafras Creek Farm in St. Mary’s County Maryland.

RYAN: And an extra special thank you to Ted  Jaenicke, a professor of agricultural  economics at Penn State University, who answered MANY of our questions  about the past, present, and possible future of organic farming.

BRIDGET: Million Bazillion is brought to you by Marketplace, from American Public Media. This episode was written and hosted by me, Bridget Bodnar and Ryan Perez, with additional writing and reporting from Marketplace’s Stephanie Hughes!

RYAN:This episode had some additional voicing from Hayley Hershman, Charlton Thorp, and Bekah Wineman.

BRIDGET: Million Bazillion is edited by Jasmine Romero and this episode was produced by Courtney Bergsieker, Minju Park, and Zoha Malik. Marissa Cabrera is our senior producer.

RYAN: Armando Serrano sound designed this episode with help from Nina Torres.

Bekah Wineman did the mixing.

Our theme music was created by Wonderly.

Bridget Bodnar is also the director of podcasts at Marketplace.

Francesca Levy is the Executive Director of Digital.

Neal Scarbrough is the VP and General Manager.

BRIDGET: Million Bazillion is funded in part by the Sy Syms Foundation, partnering with organizations and people working for a better and more just future since 1985. And special thanks to The Ranzetta Family Charitable Fund and Next Gen Personal Finance for providing the start-up funding for this podcast, and continuing to support Marketplace in our work to make younger audiences smarter about the economy.

RYAN: If Million Bazillion is helping your family have important conversations about money, consider making a one-time donation today at marketplace-dot-org-slash-givemillion, and thanks for your support.