Safety in the Kitchen

Organic or Conventional? Stainless Steal? Enamel? Cast Iron? Dishwasher safe? Cage Free? Pasture Raised? Green? Natural?
   There are all of these labels on things, and I'm not sure what any of it really means.  I know what I think it should mean, but what does it actually mean? I wish I had a clear cut answer, but I don't.  And when I try to research things, all of the information makes my head spin.  One site says one thing while another says the opposite.  So I try to rely on a little bit on common sense and how to apply what I know in a general sense.
   In terms of cookware, it's my feeling that anything that is enameled or non stick is covering something that we shouldn't be exposed to.  These types of pans should NEVER be scoured.  Because that means that you are breaking down that layer which protects us from what is underneath it.  Safety tests (if there were any) are done with the assumption that our cookware is in good shape and that we replace what isn't.  But how do we really know when that layer is gone? Well, with non-stick it's pretty easy.  But it has recently come to my attention that the "safe" go-to, stainless steal, is not necessarily fool proof either.  I cannot go out and buy a new set of pans right now, but I make sure that when I wash my pans I don't use harsh soaps or scour them.  If I need to soak them in hot water, that's fine.  Usually everything will just come right off that way. 
  I am trying to make more use of my cast iron pan and my stonewear.  These should NEVER be put in the dishwasher (if your stonewear says that it's dishwasher safe, then it is enameled and defeats the purpose of what stonewear is supposed to be).  To clean them, just use hot water and wipe them clean.  Then immediately wipe them dry.  No soap, ever.  Easy! And my food usually comes out fabulous!
   But how about food? There are all of these labels about being "naturally raised", "hormone free", chickens that are vegetarian....wait a minute.  Chickens aren't vegetarians.  So why are vegetarian chickens a GOOD thing? I don't think they are, it's just creative marketing.  I saw this post (http://seasonseatingsfarm.wordpress.com/2007/08/24/meat-eating-cows-and-vegetarian-chickens/
some time ago, and it really hit home. Why, why, why am I paying so much more for "cage free, vegetarian fed" eggs? Or chicken? Because on some level I hope that the conditions are better than the regular stuff. Really what I should be doing, and am looking into for spring, is finding local farms to provide meat and eggs and veggies.  Because veggies have some implications of their own, even the organic kind.  Mostly political, but I can't help feeling that if I have the knowledge that something is happening, then I have the power, and to some extent the responsibility, to change my actions.  And if enough people do the same, we should see some difference, or hopefully even improvement. 
   My last thing is cleaning stuff. What are we really buying? If cleaning is as easy as vinegar, water, baking soda, and a pinch of lemon....what are all of the "green" chemicals? And why pay so much for them? I can see needing some kind of surfactant for getting grease off of dishes and germs down the drain, but we don't need to be using as much as the marketing companies say we do.  And we certainly don't need cancer causing chemicals just because we like the smell of fake fruit, do we? It's cheaper, safer, and easier to stick to home made things...that's my view anyway!