Recently, there has been debate over whether organic and natural products are healthier alternatives to commercial products. Since this debate began, there are now grocery stores dedicated to offering essentially all-natural or organic products. Various examples of these grocery stores include Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Safeway, and Super Target. Skeptics of this argument suggest that the natural and organic food industries are all marketing ploys aimed at consumers looking for healthier food choices. The final question we need to ask to get to the bottom of this debate is: are organic and natural foods actually more beneficial or is it just a marketing hoax? First of all, we need to define in detail what organic products, natural products are, and how they differ. For a product or product to be classified organic, it must meet USDA organic food requirements. To meet these USDA requirements, organic crops must be produced without conventional pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, bioengineering, and ionizing radiation. (Organic Production and Organic Food Information) Organically raised farm animals must have access to the outdoors for grazing. If a food carries the "USDA organic" label, it contains at least 95% organic ingredients and a government-approved expert has inspected the farm where it was produced to ensure the farmer meets the requirements of the label. USDA. (Organic production and organic food information) The natural food guidelines are much more lenient when it comes to regulations, especially compared to organic regulations. All foods containing natural flavors, sweeteners, or other plant-based substances can be labeled as natural. (Stated by the American Society for Nut......middle of article......fact from USA Today, "no significant difference in the vitamin content of organic and conventional fruits and vegetables, when l We look at vitamins A, C and E. Worse still, the two types of food were similar. Cowen's analysis that organic and commercial products are not nutritionally different was correct. wrong to say that the organic product is just a commercial product that assures consumers of the methods used to produce the product, the consumer felt comfortable paying more for this information, so be it. . Works Cited "American Society for Nutrition", nd Web, November 15, 2013. "Organic Production and Organic Foods: Information Access Tools." Organic Production and Organic Foods: Information Access Tools. Np, nd Web. . Nov 13, 2013.WebMD “Are Organic Foods Better for You?” WebMD, nd Web. Nov 13.. 2013.