2/7

2. Salmon is a personal favorite.

It might not seem evident that soil-grown foods affect waterborne species, but agriculture and ecosystems are inextricably linked. Such is the case with salmon, says Maureen Wilmot, executive director of the Organic Farming Research Foundation. “Pesticides and herbicides commonly used for cotton, corn, soybeans, vineyards, and orchards deform fish backbones; they’re harmful to aquatic plants that make up the salmon habitat, and they are toxic to the plants and insects that the salmon eat,” she says.

Earlier this year, conservationists and the National Marine Fisheries Service formally took up the issue with the Environmental Protection Agency. Their documentation highlighted the need for tougher restrictions on pesticide use around streams that support Pacific salmon, an endangered species. Organic farming is part of the solution, says Wilmot.