Organic food production standards require that the integrity of organics is maintained through out the growing and processing stages. So, how many of these organic food diet mistakes do you make?

1. Using non-organic herbs and spices to season your food.

Organic food regulations do not permit food irradiation to be used. Non-organic spices and herbs can be irradiated to increase their shelf life.

When you add irradiated herbs to your pasta sauce it is no longer organic. This is true even if you grew those tomatoes yourself using great care in your methods.

2. Using non-organic sauces in meal preparations.

A couple of examples of this would be soy sauce or barbecue sauce. The problem here lies in the potential that genetically modified ingredients were used.

Genetically altered food cannot be labeled as organic. Soy beans are genetically engineered. In fact, the majority of the world's soybean crop uses modified seeds.

Avoid products made with soybeans or use only the organic versions of the product.

3. Using regular milk for your sauces and recipes.

Conventionally produced milk is sold with acceptable contaminants. These permitted contaminants include hormones, antibiotics, pesticides and even cleaning solvents.

4. Not washing your produce.

Organic food production does not allow the use of synthetic chemical pesticides and fertilizers. That is not to say that pesticides and fertilizers are not in use. They are used, so washing is important to remove these residues. You would also be removing contaminants that had settled on the food during transport.

5. Not washing your "pre-washed" lettuce.

Pre-washed lettuce is handy. The idea being you save a step in food preparation.

Well, when I get lettuce out of the garden, one washing just doesn't do it. I may have to change the water three times before all the dirt is gone.

And then there is another point. Are you willing to rely on the cleanliness standard of someone else for your food? Probably not, right?

6. Washing your produce with tap water.

Tap water is loaded with chlorine and other contaminants. If you are going to use tap water, do this first:

Fill a container with water. Then pour the water into another container. Do this back and forth 3 - 4 times. Then it is ready to use. By doing this, it will cause the chlorine to evaporate off faster than by just letting it sit.

7. Cooking with pans made of galvanized steel, copper, aluminium, t-fal or tin plated steel.

Your cooking ware can peel or release contaminants into your cooking. Choose porcelain or stainless steel cookware.

8. Using a microwave oven.

This is probably the most common and biggest mistake we make. The fact is that microwaving is not permitted in organic food production. To maintain the integrity of your food, avoid the microwave.

9. Not understanding organic food labeling.

To have an organic logo, the product must have at least 95 percent organic ingredients.

Products made with 70 percent organic ingredients may state this on the label. However, they may not have the organic label.

Products using an organic ingredient may have the organic ingredient identified. Now, here is where many people ere.

Let's say you grabbed a box of cereal off of the shelf that was made with organic blueberries. This is fine as long as you understand that it is the blueberries that are organic, not the product.

10. Assuming that all foods in a health food store are organic.

They are not. As an example, I found ketchup made with high fructose corn syrup in a local shop. The bottle was not labeled organic. Yet, the merchant said he wanted it available for those who could not tolerate cane sugar. HFCS is not healthy and should be avoided.