Why (A) is right: conclusion vs. premise
A Main point explanation from our free library. The question below is original, written for this page. Then the full breakdown: why the right answer is right, and why each wrong answer is wrong.
The question
Many people believe organic food is healthier. But the best available studies find no consistent nutritional difference between organic and conventional food. What organic farming does reduce is pesticide runoff into waterways. So the real case for buying organic is environmental, not nutritional.
The main point of the argument is that
- the case for buying organic food is environmental rather than nutritional. Correct
- organic food is no healthier than conventional food.
- pesticide runoff into waterways is a serious problem.
- everyone should buy organic food.
- nutritional studies cannot be trusted.
Why (A) is correct
Find the sentence everything else serves. The nutrition finding and the runoff finding are both evidence. The sentence they point to is the last one: the real case for organic is environmental.
The giveaway is the word 'so,' which signals the conclusion. Choice (B) is the classic main-point trap: a true premise dressed up as the conclusion. Ask of each candidate: does the rest of the argument support this, or does this support the rest? The main point is the one everything else supports.
Why the wrong answers are wrong
(B) Half-right: premise, not conclusion
This is stated, and it is true in the argument, but it is a stepping stone. The argument uses it to get somewhere: to the claim about what the real case for organic is.
(C) Half-right: premise detail
The argument says organic farming reduces runoff, which supports the environmental case. But "serious problem" upgrades the claim, and either way it is support, not the point.
(D) Too strong
The argument never tells anyone what to buy. It is about what the case for organic rests on, not a shopping recommendation.
(E) Reversed
The argument trusts the studies; it cites them. This answer flips the argument's own treatment of its evidence.
Last updated October 12, 2026