Going organic an investment in health

Shoppers who are toying with the idea of buying organic products are sometimes dissuaded by sticker shock.

Even proponents of going organic acknowledge that it’s not easy on the pocketbook, with prices for organic products sometimes significantly higher than comparable nonorganic items.

But making the switch and spending a little bit more money is worth it, they say.

Organic wine-making moves on to a new level

WITH almost 6% of its vineyard converted to organic production Alsace can claim to be the greenest wine region of France.

Although the prediction made a few years ago by one top grower that 90% of Alsace’s vineyards would be organic by 2010 now seems wildly optimistic, the rate of conversion is steady and sustained. There are also a large and growing number of vignerons who, while stopping short of full organic status, claim to practice sustainable viticulture and only spray their vines with agrochemicals as a last resort.

Biodynamics: the heart and soil of winemaking?

CONTRARY to popular opinion, biodynamic wine is not the same as organic wine, and to proponents of the former, it should never be viewed as such.

While both viticulture practices are concerned with sustainability, restoring the health of the soil and a zero tolerance of pesticides, herbicides and fungicides, this is probably where the organic bit ends and the biodynamic thing begins.

Organic foods offer twice as many antioxidants

New study finds organic foods offer up to twice as many antioxidants

A new study throws light on just how much healthier organically grown foods are compared to mass produced foods - up to 97 per cent richer in certain antioxidants.

And with more nutrient content by weight, organic foods can provide more health benefits for your money.

New Zealanders fastest with uptake of Fairtrade products

New Zealand has reported the fastest growth in sales of Fairtrade products in the world - a 45-fold increase in just four years.

This is from the latest edition of the newsletter, in case you missed it!

This issue's article talks about the thoughts and struggles behind
following an organic eating plan. Can you relate? Let us know what you think!

Specials and Recommendations
Up north of the equator we're heading into full summertime grilling season. Timing is never better for your gardens or your local farmer's market. If those don't work for you, the Internet is as always loaded with choices.

You've heard me tell you about Ideal Bite, right? Daily organic tips in your inbox? I recently saw a report that it's been bought by none other than Disney.That's validation not only of the newsletter, but of the market it serves (i.e., us.) Check it out and see why 230,000 others already find Ideal Bite so fascinating.

Pfaelzer Brothers: Take 15% off your entire purchase - just enter promotion code Summer15 at checkout. Free steak seasoning with any steak purchase too!

If you like Hickory Farms better, use promotion code FATHERDAY and get 10% off your entire purchase, through the end of June. Father's Day may have passed, but this hasn't!

And at wine.com, save 20% off any 6 or more bottles of clearance sale wines. They do frequently include organic wines in their specials, so be sure to check.



Our newsletter community spans the globe, but it's tough for me to find specials that do. So be sure you're checking the web site for providers that ship to or service your part of the world:

Organic wine
Organic coffee
Organic meat
Organic produce
Organic chocolate


Feature Article: Organic Eating Habits Aren't As Wide Spread As They Could Be

Unfortunately with the easy and ready availability of processed foods, organic eating habits aren't as wide spread as they could be. Even those of us who prefer not to literally riddle our bodies with pesticides and chemical toxins find that sometimes a fast food meal from our favorite drive-in or takeaway is easier than going to the trouble of preparing our own organically cooked meals.

I have to admit that I sometimes even go to the lengths of heating up a TV dinner when I'm too tired to even lift a finger to dial the pizza joint for a meal that has to be better than a first frozen and then nuked meal eaten in solitary confinement in front of the TV.

In fact this is why I turned to organic eating habits to begin with, to get out of the rut that my life had fallen into. It did take some doing, and I did fall off the organic eating wagon quite a few times, but perseverance finally won through and I was out of my fast food junkie and TV dinner rut, and onto the benefits of organic eating.

The problem is though, that sometimes I'm just too tired to bother about cooking a meal for myself and that's when I resort to the fast foods or the TV dinners. In order to combat the seductive quality of these fast paced lifestyle ruts, I even went so far as to find and buy organic TV dinners, but common sense finally set in on that one, and I switched back to stocking my freezer with non-organic TV dinners.

Why? Simply for the reason that after all the processing these foods have gone through, along with the freezing process, and then the nuking, it renders useless any type of goodness that might be found in the foods. So why pay more for what turns out to be essentially the same item? That was my theory anyway.

If you decide to follow an organic eating regime however, you will find that your life just became healthier and more difficult at the same time. It became healthier because you're eradicating pesticides and other toxins from your body, and it became more difficult because now you have a larger monthly food bill, and you also have to search specifically for organic foods!

The benefits however, far outweigh the disadvantages, and you will most definitely be glad later on that you went to the trouble to change your eating habits to organic eating habits.

About the author:
Muna wa Wanjiru is a Web Administrator and Has Been Researching and Reporting on Organic Foods for Years. For More Information on Organic Eating, Visit His Site at Organic Eating.

Shoppers to 'abandon organic food to cut bills'

Shoppers who have previously been willing to pay up to 50 per cent more for organic meat, or fair trade coffee, could soon ignore ethical concerns in favour of keeping their shopping bills down.

Canada’s retailers may need organic certification

A lot of details still need to be sorted out before the new Canada Organic Regime goes into effect.

One key item — whether or not retailers will have to become certified organic in order to carry bulk organics and do in-house fresh-cut organic produce — is still uncertain.

Organic foods, sustainable fashion going from niche to mainstream

Organic food, once the sole domain of farmers' markets and small health-food stores, is going increasingly mainstream as the aisles of large, chain supermarkets fill with organic produce, groceries and convenience foods.

Organic shoppers have also changed, growing beyond a loyal core of earth mothers to a wider base of soccer moms.

Organic winemaking a worldwide rarity

You don’t have to be an organic evangelist to buy some organic products in your weekly shop, and or to have a weathered eye out for new organic products.

For instance, restaurants for the first time are starting to offer some organic selections in their wine lists.

Scientists Find Pesticides Change DNA, Increase Cancer In India

Pesticides were once touted as a tool of the agricultural green revolution designed to help increase crop yields but now are being blamed for causing cancer, reducing the nutritional value of some food crops and failing to boost crop yields.

Safer, healthier notions boost growth of organics

Organic businesses are seeing an upswing in demand for their products, partly because consumers see organics as safer and healthier options compared with conventional produce, according to a recent survey.

Organic producers need to understand customers, not cut costs

Organic farmers should work on developing consumer loyalty rather than concentrating on cutting costs, a survey into shoppers' perceptions of organic fruit and vegetables has found.

Few organic fruit and vegetable producers understood people's reasons for buying organic produce and thought price was the biggest barrier to them buying it.

Co-op takes on Soil Association in food miles fight

Two leading voices in the fight against climate change are at loggerheads over the weight given to "food miles" in a labelling system designed to encourage consumers to choose low-carbon products in shops and supermarkets.

The Co-operative group says it makes "no sense" for the Soil Association to focus so much on air freight which is often a relatively small part of the total environmental impact of a product and risks increasing poverty in places such as Africa which needs planes to carry some goods to markets.

Wine: Seeing red, white and green

Whether your favorite wine is white or red, it may have a touch of green blended in.

More and more wineries are embracing an environmentally sensitive approach to the product they put on the shelf or pour at their tasting venues. Adjectives such as sustainable, recyclable, organic, biodynamic, global climatic and carbon footprint sensitive are gradually finding their way into many wine operations and onto labels.

Going organic doesn't have to break the bank

These days, with rising food costs, just making ends meet can be tough -- and it's even tougher if you've gone organic.

But it's not impossible. If eat­ing organic produce and other foods is important to you and your family, you can make it work. It may just take a bit more effort.

Back to the soil

# Food-safety scares of the past two years have people wondering what's in and on their store-bought food.

# A reborn environmental movement questions the wisdom of using so many synthetic pesticides that end up polluting waterways and drinking water.

# Organic produce is the latest food-industry darling as restaurant menus brag about organic ingredients and supermarkets display organic choices next to the "regular" offerings.

'Organic,' 'natural' not the same thing

The terms "all-natural" and "organic" are often used interchangeably. Their meanings are different, though, so be in the know. Organic describes the way that an item is farmed - with an emphasis on renewable resources and conservation of soil and water. All-natural means a product does not contain artificial ingredients - not that it is farmed organically.

Wily food fraudsters reaping unfair ‘organic‘ benefits

THE next time you bite into that “organic” apple, think again – there‘s a good chance you‘re being conned by wily food fraudsters passing off their produce as organic to make a quick buck.

Experts say the lack of legislation governing the use of the word “organic” in South Africa means farmers who spend thousands of rands arduously growing legitimately organic products are being dwarfed by “fake organic” producers trying to make money by passing off their goods as organic.

Get healthy! 5 ways to green your diet

Greening your diet is not about sacrificing an entire food group, or strictly eating vegetables, or giving up the foods you love. A green diet is a healthy, diverse diet that involves eating real foods.