| Top 10 Tips for Buying Organic |
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| Wednesday, 19 October 2011 00:00 | |||
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This post is a continuation of my post from October 18th, where I write about the Top 5 Tips for eating organically on a budget.
6. Create a Menu Plan
The average household wastes 14% of the food they buy. If you spend $100 a week, then you may of just thrown out the equivilant of 3 home made gourmet lunches. By planning out your meals you only shop for the fresh items you need for the week. Any extra portions can be frozen right after you make them so they avoid being leftovers in the back of the fridge.
7. Cook from Scratch and Host a Potluck
Buy ingredients in bulk. Organic Millet is only $1.00 a pound so anyone can afford a few essentials. You will slash your grocery bill this way. Become friends with your crock-pot. By cooking soup and using mason jars, you can make a tasty organic lunch for $2.00 a jar! Recently I have hosted 4 potlucks (a party where everyone brings a dish of food to share) for the same cost as one expensive meal out and the best part is the richness of community. Turn off the TV and socialize!
8. Grow your own
Rooftop and windowsill gardens are becoming all the rage. Consider a sprout garden to have highly nutritious greens anytime you need them. Sprouts are easy to transport and make a great snack.
9. Know what is critical to buy organically
While organic food sales have slowed, the organic marketplace is still growing, leading to continued benefits for our soil and water quality and those of us who prefer food without pesticide residues and added hormones and antibiotics, recession or not. Unless you have an unlimited budget it is often difficult to buy everything organic. The following is a list developed by the analysts at the not-for-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG). It is based on the results of 43,000 tests that were conducted on the levels of pesticides found in produce. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration collected these results between 2000 and 2005. A detailed description of the criteria used to develop the ranking, as well as a full list of fresh fruits and vegetables that have been tested, is available at www.ewg.org.
One of the prime benefits of organic produce is that it isn't sprayed liberally with pesticides. Go organic with this list of fruits and vegetables that contain the highest levels of pesticides.
o Peaches
o Apples
o Sweet Bell Peppers
o Celery
o Nectarines
o Strawberries
o Cherries
o Lettuce
o Grapes – Imported
o Pears
If you need to save some cash at the supermarket, you could buy the non-organic fruits and vegetables on this list. This produce is grown with low levels of pesticides.
o Cabbage
o Bananas
o Kiwi
o Asparagus
o Sweet Peas-Frozen
o Mango
o Pineapples
o Corn
o Avocado
o Onions
*** If you can't afford something organic, just remember to peel it because much of the pesticides are in the skin of the fruit or veggie. ***
10) Roast and brew your own coffee (and/or tote a refillable mug)
When burning the candle at both ends, people often find themselves using coffee drinks to jump-start themselves in the morning, and a pattern of all-day coffee drinking often ensues. To save money, people are forgoing Starbucks in favor of brewing their coffee at home. You can enjoy the most sustainable organic solar dried coffee from Merchants of Green Coffee for $0.30 a cup vs $3.35 for something non-organic at a takeaway shop. That adds up to $100 a month in savings. Home brewing will also help reduce the 28 billion disposable coffee cups we chuck a year, resulting in 100 million pounds of landfill trash.
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Julie Daniluk hosts The Healthy Gourmet (Kaleidoscope Entertainment/Corus Entertainment), a reality cooking show that highlights the ongoing battle of taste versus nutrition with unique groups such as bikers, dragon boat racers and ballroom dancers. As a nutritional expert, Julie has appeared in over 300 TV and radio segments including City TV’s Perfect Fit, The Gill Deacon Show on the CBC, CTV’s Balance and Three Takes on Slice Network. She is most recognized by television viewers from her “busted” segments in The Right Fit (W Network), acting as a nutrition encyclopedia by examining what foods people need to purchase and grading healthy choices on restaurant menus.
After graduating from the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition, Julie became Co-Operative owner of one of Canada’s largest health food stores, The Big Carrot Natural Food Market.
As the W Network’s official online nutritionist and one of the nutritionists for The Big Carrot, she continues to answer diet and nutrition questions from viewers across Canada. She offers entertaining and informative answers regarding why we crave certain foods while suggesting alternatives for optimal health.
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