The most commonly stated reason people buy organic food is avoidance of pesticide residues. Indeed, organic producers cannot use conventional synthetic pesticides, but that does not mean no pesticides are used. Soap-based herbicides and insecticides such as boric acid, lime sulfur, elemental sulfur and various oils are allowed. So is copper sulphate since it occurs in nature, although for agricultural use it is synthetic, made by reacting copper oxide with sulphuric acid.
Even though our food supply contains only traces of pesticides, some consumers still prefer organic. To make sure they are really getting what they are paying for, they look to Canada’s seal of organic certification. The natural assumption is the seal on a package is a guarantee the rules of “organic” food production that prohibit synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, GMOs, antibiotics and hormones are followed. But that may not actually be so, because as surprising as it might be, organic certification is not actually carried out by the government and does not require testing for prohibited substances.
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