Welcome back to the work week! Where I am working it’s currently very cold, very snowy and the worst is on the way. That said, what do you do if you are like me and you crave a good farmer’s market? You prefer fresh vegetables to packaged ones, organic produce to store-bought? Simple, you look for a winter market.
That’s right, a winter market, if available in your area, can be the perfect solution for filling your grocery bags with good, healthy, organic produce and food without having to head into your nearest Safeway or Albertons. According to the article I read, there are many great ways to utilize a Winter Farmer’s Market, here is what they had to say:
Well I guess you can’t fault them for trying, right? Rumor just hit my block that McDonald’s is going to do the right thing and keep their line of Organic Coffee they have been experimenting with. That’s the good news. The bad news is, all you Organic Fans will only be able to get the aforementioned coffee in about 600 stores. While that sounds like a whole heck of a lot of stores, considering the fact that McDonald’s has an estimated 45,000 stores or more in the United States alone, it’s not like they’re taking a giant risk here.
I personally found it pretty cool that they were branching out and experimenting with more Organic products. According to reports:
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) has extended its agreement with McDonald’s USA, LLC to source, roast and package Newman’s Own® Organics Blend coffee for more than 600 McDonald’s restaurants in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Albany, New York.
Right on Mickey D’s for sticking with them. I just with they’d fully branch out and start introducing and spreading the Organic message all over America. It’s not a big secret that the Golden Arches actually have a gigantic amount of sway and influence to their loyal customers, and we all know that even more healthy choices on the menu would hurt exactly no one.
As soon as we hear more about them actually branching out, trust me, you’ll be the first to know. For now, maybe pick a local coffee shop that knows a thing or two about true organic farming. Just a thought.
Hello and Happy Friday! You did it, yet again, made it through a work-week and now get to celebrate and enjoy the fruits of the first weekend in December! To cap off a great week, I thought it’d be wise to open our eyes to something on a global scale.
I just stumbled across this video from the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries that does amazing things to show not only the food crisis Japan might be facing, but the way it could be for almost any nation, anywhere. This video very quickly and even a bit entertainingly shows things that can be done to have healthy food for the future, not just tomorrow, but in the years to come. A dangerous combination of decreasing farmland, farmers aging, unhealthy eating habits and a great deal more food imports is creating a situation that could be dangerous in the years to come.
The question is, what happens if we Can Not produce enough food to live? What if the population exceeds the supply? These are all questions that need answers, and this video is a great, small indication of that. Check it out, and enjoy your weekend!
Let’s face it, eating organic, while better in nearly every way, is not always cheaper in nearly every way. Very often, it is more expensive to buy an organic brand than your everyday, generic branded version. It’s not always cheaper, and it’s not always easier. It IS always better. That said, how do you strike a balance between saving some money, and helping save the Earth? Simple, you eat organic, but on a budget.
Given the current state of today’s economy, many of you are probably thinking much harder about your 401k than your bags of carrots and pasta. According to new reports, when it comes to saving money on the organic front, the simplest way to do so is to just make sure you’re actually Eating everything you buy. It’s believed that if you go shopping once a week for a week’s worth of food, you’ll end up throwing away almost 20% of it. Yikes. To organic shop on a budget, change that and instead buy an entire case of something, much cheaper than a single item price, and then split not only the price, but the goods amongst a few friends. That way you’re only keeping what you can really eat, and you’re all saving money!
Another great way to do it, is to cut corners on Which items you buy organic. If money is an issue and you simply can’t afford to buy everything organic, try just buying all produce organic, and skimp in other areas. Quite often, the difference between organic and non-organic produce is the most drastic of all. The shift is here, and we can all feel it, start buying in bulk and preparing your Own foods instead of buying pre-prepared. Help the Earth, help your wallet. Win-win.
Tomorrow, as you well know, is Thanksgiving! The day for eating, laughing, sleeping, watching sports or early Christmas shows, eating more, and then sleeping again. We all know the holiday, we love it and we love the food that always accompanies it. I for one, look forward to the holiday MONTHS in advance. Now, I want to find a way to “Green” our Thanksgiving a bit, and I found a perfect way to do so.
That’s right, I found a perfect way, and it’s a bit unconventional and actually only will work if you live in an area that is somewhat conducive to the idea. Nevertheless, the idea is cool and it actually is pretty simple: Forage for your Feast! That’s right, there are a great deal of wild, organic fruits and vegetables out there that are completely forageable. The article I just read mentioned that the following foods can be found, snatched up and later feasted upon:
Birds
Berries
Nuts
Mushrooms
Flowers
Fruit
Not in an area that really would allow you to forage like the olden days? How about doing the very same foraging at a Farmer’s Market or Organic Market? The same quality foods can be gobbled up from there without the dirt, plane ticket and bug spray to actually trek into the wild. Nevertheless, it brings up a perfect point: Thanksgiving this year can be so much more organic, healthy and environmentally friendly if we just all take some steps to “Green” it up a little. This is a DIY project I can fully get behind!
It’s almost here! We mentioned yesterday some amazing ways for you to transform this Halloween into the greenest yet, and by now I”m sure your costumes are made (hopefully out of recycled materials like I mentioned yesterday!) your Trick-or-Treating route is picked out, and heck, maybe even thought about some reverse-trick-or-treating! The last thing you have to do, is fill up those bowls will all natural candies and treats! The doorbells are about to ring, it’s time to get ready!
Yesterday, we talked about how one of the best ways to stay green was to put a ban on classic candies, and replace them with organic, all-natural treats. Not only will the treats be better for the kids that are eating them, they are better on the Earth and environment at the same time. Talk about achieving two awesome goals at one time. At any rate, thanks to this article, I found some of the best organic and natural candies you can buy:
There you have it. Who says you can’t be Eco-Friendly AND the cool house on the block?! Try it this year, I have no doubt once you try Greening up your holiday, you’ll never go back.
Hello, Happy Monday and here’s to you and hoping that you had an amazing weekend. It’s officially Fall now, Summer has come and gone, and with Fall comes the promise of not only less fresh produce grown locally and organically at my Farmer’s Market, but also, higher energy bills. Yikes. When it comes to fresh, organic produce, I can’t tell you how much better for my body, my pocket book, and the Environment to buy Organic whenever possible.
Unfortunately, the reality of the situation is that not everyone, everywhere has direct access to organic food. Some people Never do and as such must eat non-organic food year round. I just read an article about a study done in 77 different community areas of Chicago; the findings were scary and disappointing. The findings showed that organic food is much harder to come across and locate in more urban areas, and surprisingly, those with a high concentration of African-American citizens. Here are some of the findings:
- “Ten percent of stores in black communities carry organics, compared to 24 percent in Latino communities and 63 percent in white areas.
- The population of the white neighborhoods was less than one-third of the total population of the communities examined, but were home to nearly two-thirds of the stores that carried organics.”
Clearly this is an uneven distribution of what are rapidly becoming Vital resources. These “food deserts” are located in nearly every major city across the United States and unless something is done to revitalize every one of these areas with the resources and at least availability, it’s never going to take off as it should. Going Organic is a simple way in your every day life to start helping a lot more than just your diet.
Welcome back to the work week! Where I am working it’s currently very cold, very snowy and the worst is on the way. That said, what do you do if you are like me and you crave a good farmer’s market? You prefer fresh vegetables to packaged ones, organic produce to store-bought? Simple, you look for a winter market.
