Where are our fruits coming from in the middle of winter?

As we watch the snow falling, we munch away on a orange that obviously could not be coming from our side of the equator. So where is it coming from, and is it grown under the same guidelines as food grown in the U.S.?

Let's look at some of the foreign country standards.

Since 2011 there has been a push to create a global standard but the question is enforcement.

Third world countries struggle with pay offs and basic enforcement of regulations. Who is in the field enforcing the standards that are set? When organic labeled foods are demanding higher prices, we create an environment where even if there is an inspector present, were they enforcing the rules?

So does that mean we do not eat foods in-ported from other countries? It would severely limit our diets in the winter if we did. But we need to be wise in which foods we choose. The safest way to handle the issue is to treat fruits and vegetables as if they have been sprayed with pesticides, cleaning them thoroughly, and choosing foods that have skins such as apples, oranges that are less porous.