Buying organic food
Years ago, the only way to buy organic food was to go to a farmer's market or a specialty store, but today there are many more options. Whole Foods, for example, now has 194 stores nationwide, and there are more than 250 Trader Joe's locations — both great places to find lots of organics. But now that organics have gone "mainstream," many more sources are available. Your local chain grocery store probably stocks at least some organic produce, plus an array of organic packaged foods from household names like General Mills, Kraft and Kellogg — although some of these companies are using different brand names for their organic lines. And then there's Wal-Mart, which is the nation's largest seller of organic milk.

Getting the most from your money
Organics do tend to be more expensive than conventionally produced foods. That's why advice from a February 2006 Consumer Reports article is so valuable. They identified which organic foods give you the best "bang for the buck." Foods like apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, imported grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, red raspberries, spinach and strawberries tend to carry pesticide residues even after washing, so CR recommends paying the premium for the security of knowing that there was no pesticide to begin with. They also recommend organic baby food (since babies are particularly sensitive to toxins) and meat, poultry, eggs and dairy, which do not carry things like mad cow disease and various hormones and antibiotics like conventional products can. CR recommends against buying organic seafood, since the main worries with fish are mercury and PCB contamination — two things that organic certification does not guarantee against.

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