Be a Smart Shopper...

Hot off the press! EWG just came out with their 2011 Shoppers Guide to Pesticides in Produce (Clean 15 & Dirty Dozen). You can download and print a copy of the pdf version of this guide. I keep a copy in my wallet and use it while in the grocery store to help make wise choices while I am shopping. www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

Guide to Avoiding Pesticide in Your Produce

Every year the Environmental Working Group publishes a list of the "dirty dozen" and the "clean fifteen". The "dirty dozen" are fruits and vegetables that either are highly treated with pesticides OR retain significant amounts of pesticide. These are the foods that you want to buy organic. Overall, they are fruits and vegetables with thin skins such as peaches, potatoes and berries but also include some leafy greens such as kale and spinach.

The "clean fifteen" are fruits and vegetables that retain little pesticide or are not treated with pesticide ( or a very small amount).

These are the fruits and vegetables that you can risk buying non-organic. Generally these have thicker skins like kiwi and melon. These also include grapefruit, eggplant and cabbage. Since organic is often more costly then conventional, you can save some money by buying conventionally grown "clean fifteen" and organically grown "dirty dozen".

You can also save money by buying organic frozen fruits and veggies. Frozen fruits are a great snack. Frozen vegetables can be even more nutritious then fresh as they are frozen right in the fields, retaining most of their vitamins and minerals. Fresh veggies often travel long distances and lose nutrients through exposure to heat and air. Just remember whatever you cook, frozen or fresh, use as little water as possible and cook for as short a time as possible.

And when you wash your fresh veggies and fruits, don't waste money on produce washes, plain water is more effective.

Find the guide at http://static.foodnews.org/pdf/EWG-shoppers-guide.pdf

-Patricia

GMO's- What's The Deal?

We have all heard the term GMO, but what is it and where exactly do we find these mysterious chemicals?

Scientists are now able to genetically modify the seeds of some fruits and vegetables to enhance traits such as being resistant to various herbicides/pesticides and producing larger crops. The FDA has approved over 50 genetically modified foods, including potatoes, corn (think high fructose corn syrup), soybeans (think soy lecithin), papaya, squash, tomatoes (one of the first to be genetically modified) and others.

Manufacturers do not have to disclose if they use genetically modified foods in their products although many products that are free of GMO’s are clearly stating that on their labels. Produce that is labeled “organic” cannot be genetically modified or have genetically modified components as part of the product. For more information go to www.ewg.org (The Environmental Working Group) and www.healthychild.org (Healthy Child Healthy World).