{"id":28362,"date":"2020-12-09T00:01:22","date_gmt":"2020-12-09T04:01:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/?p=28362"},"modified":"2020-12-09T10:10:59","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T14:10:59","slug":"its-beginning-to-look-a-lot-like-an-organic-christmastree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2020\/12\/its-beginning-to-look-a-lot-like-an-organic-christmastree\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like an Organic Christmas\u2026Tree?"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

(Beyond Pesticides<\/em>, December 9, 2020) For consumers, the holiday season is full of complicated choices, including the conundrum of how to find the perfect Christmas tree. The most important part of selecting a tree is not its size and shape, but rather finding one that will pose the least risk to the health of your family, pets, and the environment. Thus, the safest holiday choice for you, and yours, is purchasing an organic tree as opposed to one that is artificial or grown using harsh chemical methods. However, the organic tree industry is still fairly novel, therefore following these helpful tips can ensure you purchase a beautiful organic tree and dispose of it in a responsible way to begin the New Year.<\/p>\r\n

Why Buy Organic?<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

Christmas is one of the\u00a0most celebrated<\/a>\u00a0holidays in the United States, with Christmas trees accompanying the celebration of the holiday season. On average, Americans purchase\u00a025 to 30 million<\/a>\u00a0Christmas trees annually, with 2020 showing an almost 30 percent increase in sales. However, organic Christmas trees, which follow the same\u00a0U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) organic standards<\/a>\u00a0as agricultural crops, make up\u00a0only 1%<\/a>\u00a0of all Christmas tree purchases. Fortunately, public awareness regarding the need for more ecologically friendly, organic products is growing, along with the demand for more organic tree production.<\/p>\r\n

Organic trees are a remarkable improvement from conventionally grown and artificial trees, in several ways. Conventionally grown Christmas trees use toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers for years before harvesting. According to\u00a0the Center for Biological Diversity<\/a>, eight pesticides make up 85 percent of all uses on Christmas trees: chlorothalonil, atrazine, simazine, glyphosate, hexazinone, carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, and dimethoate. These chemicals have\u00a0numerous adverse health effects<\/a>, including cancer, hormonal (endocrine) disruption, neurotoxicity, organ damage, reproductive\/birth defects, asthma, and more. Furthermore,\u00a0North Carolina State University<\/a>\u00a0finds a majority of conventional Christmas tree farms in North Carolina use the prevalent weedkiller\u00a0glyphosate<\/a>\u00a0(Roundup<\/em>), and the insecticide\u00a0bifenthrin<\/a>\u00a0to treat 97.5 and 42.9 percent of all tree acres, respectively. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies glyphosate as \u201cprobably carcinogenic to humans.\u201d<\/p>\r\n

Pine needles and bark can harbor pesticide residues that are not only toxic to humans but pets as well. The most widely used pesticide in Christmas tree production, glyphosate, is systemic and plant roots and leaves absorb the chemical into the vascular system. These chemicals can leach out in sap (guttation) and contaminate tree water, thus exposing curious children and pets to toxic chemicals if playing around the tree or, in the case of animals, drinking the water.<\/p>\r\n

Many people have the misconception that artificial trees may be an eco-friendly alternative to conventionally grown trees. However, artificial trees can be equally bad for the environment, pets, and children\u2019s health as their conventional chemically grown counterparts. Most artificial Christmas trees are made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC), synthetic plastic. PVC can contain toxic additives, like phthalates (hormone disruptor), cadmium, organotin, and lead to stabilizing\u00a0certain products<\/a>, and WHO classifies it as a \u201cknown human carcinogen.\u201d Because of the flammable nature of artificial trees, many companies apply flame retardants which cause reproductive toxicity, neurological toxicity, endocrine disruption, and cancer. Moreover, artificial Christmas tree labels warn individuals to avoid inhaling or eating any bits of toxic dust that may fall from the branches.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Find a Christmas Tree <\/strong><\/p>\r\n

If you would prefer to go pesticide-free this holiday, purchase your organic tree as soon as possible\u2014because of limited supplies they tend to sell out quickly. As of 2020, there are only\u00a047<\/a>\u00a0organic Christmas tree farms in the U.S. but, with the growing interest in organic agriculture, it is safe to assume that this number will grow in the future.<\/p>\r\n

Here are some online resources to help you find some organic trees in your area:<\/p>\r\n