Learning about your food
In the past few months I’ve become very aware of the type of food I buy. I love to cook but the more dishes I learn to make; the more I’ve come to understand that the quality of the ingredients you use, really does matter. Even more importantly understanding how your food has been created, treated and fed makes a difference not only in how it tastes but mainly on what it does to your body.
We all know how much of our food is treated with hormones but for some reason we chose to ignore it. Well…it’s not for some reason, the main reason we ignore it is because the more natural/healthier an item is, the more expensive it is. Let’s face it we’re not living in the best world right now, the economy is still rotten and the food we’re consuming it seems, is even more rotten. I suppose at one point you just have to take a stand for yourself, what matters more- saving a few dollars a week or eating something that has been prepared as naturally as possible and most importantly, something that has not been tortured and malnourished.
If you choose the latter, you may find that the road to “natural” is filled with many marketing/advertising loopholes and fancy jargon that is never explained on the product’s label. Understanding the labels will allow you to know how foods are grown and raised, which can impact both your health and the environment.
For example, what’s the difference between “organic”, “cage free” and “free-Range”? We’re only talking about eggs here, why does it have to be so confusing. How can I get the eggs I used to eat when I was little and my grandmother would bring them in, still warm from where the chicken had laid them? The chicken I used to play with and chase around our backyard, who only ate what she wanted and found in our garden. Apparently it’s impossible to get those types of eggs. Below is the breakdown of each definition because knowledge is power and you should always know what type of food you’re putting in yours and your family’s stomach.
Eggs
Cage-Free - eggs from birds that are not raised in cages, but in floor systems usually in an open barn. The hens have bedding material such as pine shavings on the floor, and they are allowed perches and nest boxes to lay their eggs. However, they may still be at close quarters with many other hens — just not in cages.
Free-Range - eggs are laid from hens that have the opportunity to go outside. Smaller farms may keep birds outside under a canopy area. They may travel in and out of a barn at free will or spend some portion of their day roaming outdoors.
Organic Eggs - are laid from hens that may be kept in any kind of caging system, but generally are cage free. They eat an organic feed and don’t receive vaccines or antibiotics.
In order to qualify for USDA organic certification, the grains used for the hens’ diets must be produced on land that has been free from the use of toxic and persistent chemical pesticides and fertilizers for at least three years.
Meat & Dairy Products
Organic meat and dairy products are produced from animals that are fed organic feed and allowed access to the outdoors. They must be kept in living conditions that accommodate the natural behavior of the animals, may not be given antibiotics, hormones, or medications in the absence of illness; however, they may be vaccinated against disease.
Natural – In the U.S., this label means “minimally processed” and that the meat can’t have any artificial colors, artificial flavors, preservatives, or any other artificial ingredients in it. Animals can still be given antibiotics or growth enhancers.
Grass fed – animals are fed solely on a diet of grass or hay. These animals have access to the outdoors. Cattle are naturally ruminants that eat grass, so they tend to be healthier and leaner when fed this way. In addition, grass fed beef has been shown to have more of the healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
Free range – animals weren’t confined to a cage and had access to the outdoors. Unfortunately, in the U.S. at least, the animal density can still be very high and the animals may have only short periods outside in an area that’s quite small. Therefore, it is difficult to tell exactly what free range means when you see it on meat packaging in the U.S.
No hormones added – In the U.S. and some other countries where the use of growth hormones is permitted, this term indicates that animals are raised without the use of any added growth hormones. For beef and dairy products it can be helpful, but by law, poultry and pigs cannot be given hormones, so don’t pay extra for chicken or pork products that use this label.
There are several categories of Organic foods which are explained below. Ideally you would always purchase the 100% Organic
100% Organic – Foods that are completely organic or made with 100% organic ingredients may display the USDA seal.
Organic – Foods that contain at least 95% organic ingredients may display the USDA seal.
Made with organic ingredients – Foods that contain at least 70% organic ingredients will not display the USDA seal but may list specific organic ingredients on the front of the package.
Contains organic ingredients – Foods that contain less than 70% organic ingredients will not display the USDA seal but may list specific organic ingredients on the information panel of the package.
Now that we’ve looked at the Organic Labels, let’s have a look at the U.S government allows in feed or to be used in conventional production:
Dairy cows – antibiotics, pig & chicken byproducts, hormones (for growth), pesticides, sewage sludge
Beef cows – antibiotics, pig & chicken byproducts, steroids, hormones, pesticides, sewage sludge
Pigs – antibiotics, animal byproducts, pesticides, sewage sludge, arsenic-based drugs (growth hormones are prohibited)
Broiler chickens – antibiotics, animal byproducts, pesticides, sewage sludge, arsenic-based drugs (growth hormones are prohibited)
Egg laying hens – antibiotics, animal byproducts, pesticides, sewage sludge, arsenic-based drugs
** In case you didn’t quite catch that, Egg laying hens and Broiler chickens eat sewage sludge… that is exactly what you think it is.
Lastly, here is a list of fruits and vegetables where Organic matters most, because on average they’ve been found to have the highest pesticide levels when conventionally grown.
- Apples
- Grapes (imported)
- Nectarines
- Bell Peppers
- Peaches
- Carrots
- Pears
- Celery
- Strawberries
- Kale
- Cherries
- Lettuce
And here is a list of the fruits and vegetables which were found to have the lowest levels of pesticides when conventionally grown and you can safely purchase as Non-Organic.
- Pineapple
- Broccoli
- Watermelon
- Cabbage
- Kiwi
- Onion
- Mango
- Corn
- Papaya
- Eggplant
- Tomatoes
- Peas
- Avocado
- Asparagus
This is a lot of information and it takes a serious effort to read, understand and follow through with it. Ultimately everyone makes their own choices, but I always think it’s better to make an informed choice rather than a blind one.
