Choices

It's the time of year again - I seem to blog about this every year - when the crops are sprayed. In this case it's the apple orchards in front of The Cottage. There are choices: spray against pests with chemical insecticides, spray with Bacillus thuringiensis (a spore forming bacterium that produces crystals protein which are toxic to many species of insects and used in organic farming) or do nothing. Doing nothing is not a commercial option because we, the consumer, just won't buy insect damaged products (and they wouldn't last long anyway).   Each year I am reminded, however, that when I eat an apple I am probably eating some residue of the insecticide used: