Organic herbs that are grown by large corporate farmers have and obvious pricing advantage in the market place against smaller local growers. There are hidden and unmentioned factors that may change ones decision as to whether pricing is most important in buying organic herbs and other organic foods. In a supply and demand marketplace the pendulum is swinging in favor of organic food growers. Now the battle is on with the large ones vs. the small local ones. If you factor in the cost to the environment from farming practices and potency reducing transportation times you may find the small local growers are very comparable in price over the long term.

When choosing herbs it is best to buy them in locally. The fact that small local organic herb growers have greater control over their growing practices (pesticide use) and have virtually no potency reducing transportation times (environmental pollution) ensures that the long term dangers to the nations health is reduced. He is likely growing his produce organically. The higher prices come from the supply and demand continuum. Slower and smaller production ensures higher prices. From an economic standpoint when buying in bulk from non organic larger growers at a discounted price you still pay a higher price over the long term due to, again, those large scale farming practices. Large scale farmers tend to focus on one or two herbs and grow the same ones on the same soil over and over while never allowing the soil to replenish its nutrients through other crop growth and/or resting the soil. The fact of poor nutrition and environmental pollutants leading to disease give credence to the importance of what should be a very simple choice when purchasing organic foods. Additionally you must consider the time issue. Buying locally ensures that the product is properly dried and not sitting on railroad cars or trucks while in green state and going though the dying time in the presence of road pollutants and pest laden railroad cars.

So, in my opinion the small organic grower is no more costly than the large corporate grower when you factor in these unseen long term expenses. Even though you pay a higher premium you still have to deal with the environmental damage done with pesticides and health issues stemming from their use. Due to that fact that large scale growers aren't able crop rotate their land the disease resistance factor in the plants is reduced over time, thereby requiring more petroleum based fertilizers and pesticides to deliver a crop. Truth be told by the time you factor in the costs of environmental damage and damage to ones health the cost of buying organic herbs in bulk are currently just as costly as buying from local growers. I recommend buying locally.