Picking a can of black beans is likely one of the most mundane grocery store tasks. Unless, of course, the choice is between organic and non-organic beans.

At a Manhattan Whole Foods （ WFMI - news - people ）, the store sells in-house non-organic and organic 15-ounce cans for $.89 and $1.09, respectively. But it also offers several brand-name organic beans that range between $2.19 and $2.39.

The added cost for organic beans seems like a small price to pay for a product that's supposedly better for you and the planet. Yet recent developments have called this trade-off into question, and that has once again put organics at the center of an ongoing debate about the American diet.

In Depth: Seven Things to Know About Organic Food

In 2008, consumers spent $23 billion on organic food. The market, which grew by 16% last year, is seen by many as an alternative to the practices of industrial agriculture; organic food is largely produced without pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, hormones and antibiotics. And though most organic food producers don't bill their products as more nutritious than conventionally grown food, the organic label tends to confer increased health benefits.

Yet according to a recent comprehensive review published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, there is no evidence to support the claim that organic food has higher quantities of vitamins and minerals. In addition to that finding--contested by many organic food advocates--the USDA announced this month that it would audit the National Organic Program, which develops standards and accredits organic certifiers. The decision came at the behest of industry members who say the integrity of the program had been compromised in recent years with less-than-uniform guidelines.

去杂货店选择一罐黑豆可能是的一项最平凡的任务。当然，这并不是是在有机豆子和无机豆子之间进行选择。

在曼哈顿的 Whole Foods（完全食品市场公司-消息-通讯录）,这家商店在内部分别以 0.89 美元和 1.09 美元出售非有机的和有机的 15-盎司豆类罐头。但是它也提供几种范围在 2.19 美元和 2.39 美元之间的名牌有机豆类，.

为有机豆类增加费用似乎是为一种对于您以及这个星球假定更好的产品付出一个小的代价。然而，最近的事态发展已经对这种通过交换卖掉的方式发生疑问，并且再次把有机食品放到正在进行的有关美国人饮食的争论的中心。

人们逐渐地了解到关于有机食品的七个事情

……

2008年，消费者们在有机食品上花费了 230 亿美元。很多人看到了这个去年增长了 16% 的市场，视为产业农业习惯做法的替代；有机食品主要是不用农药、化肥、激素和抗生素生产的。不过大多数有机食品生产商并没有列出其产品比常规方式生产的食物有更多的营养成分，有机标签趋向于赐予增加的健康益处。

然而，根据最近发表在《美国临床营养学杂志》上的综合评论说，并没有证据能支持这种说法，即有机食品具有更高数量的维生素和矿物质。在这个发现之外--许多有机食品提倡者所争辩的---美国农业部在这个月宣布，它将对全国有机计划项目进行审计，该项目制定标准并且向有机证明者授权。这个决定是应产业成员们的要求而作出的，他们说，在近年来，该项计划的完整性已经受到不统一的指导方针的损害。