October 30th, 2009 - Barbara Feiner
When we started our blog in November 2005, my very first post examined a new trend in organic food: flavored milk. Dietitian Julie H. Burns, a nutrition consultant for Horizon Organic, noted:
Moms will love these new products because they’re organic, nutritious and convenient for a lunchbox or backpack. Kids will love them because they’re delicious and easy to drink on the go. Families can help reduce their kids’ exposure to added chemicals in food by incorporating organic products into their diets. An easy way to do that is by providing great-tasting organic foods in your child’s lunchbox.
A day later, we published Organic Flavored Milk: Pros and Cons, in which Chef Ann Cooper, the “Renegade Lunch Lady,” told us:
They’re really no better than soda—except for the calcium. Many have a sugar and calorie content that equals or exceeds that of soda, and they become just another way that we’re teaching our children to drink sweets.
Now, the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP), creators of the got milk? advertising campaign, are promoting chocolate milk as the “Official Drink of Halloween.” The newest print ad, which debuted in the Oct. 16 issue of People magazine, features actress Angie Harmon (Law & Order, Women’s Murder Club) and her daughters, all sporting milk mustaches.
“At Halloween and throughout the year, my girls love the flavor of chocolate milk, and I love knowing it contains the same essential nutrients as white milk like calcium, vitamin D and other nutrients kids need to build strong bones,” Harmon states in a MilkPEP press release. “As a mom, it’s important to me that my kids learn healthy habits early—and drinking three glasses of low-fat or fat-free milk each day is one of the best habits I can pass on to them.”
Pediatrician Tanya Remer Altmann, MD, is also supporting MilkPEP’s efforts.
“With Halloween snacks all around, low-fat chocolate milk is something moms can feel good about sharing with their kids,” says the author of Mommy Calls: Dr. Tanya Answers Parents’ Top 101 Questions about Babies and Toddlers.
“Here’s a spooky fact: Two out of three kids fail to get enough calcium, which is critical to build healthy skeletons,” Dr. Altmann adds. “And studies show that kids who drink chocolate and other flavored milks have higher calcium intakes than those who don’t drink milk. Milk drinkers also tend to drink fewer sugary sodas and fruit drinks and are more likely to be at a healthy weight compared to kids who drink little or no milk.
“Encouraging kids to drink more low-fat milk is a great way to steer them from the nutrient-void temptations at Halloween and beyond,” she concludes. “Chocolate milk and white milk contain nine essential nutrients and are a key component in building strong bones during childhood. Moms can benefit from the calcium and vitamin D in chocolate milk, too.”
How do you feel about flavored milks, including the organic kind? Please share your thoughts.
Photos: Horizon Organic, MilkPEP
Tags: dairy, flavored milk, halloween, milk, Organic Food, organic milk
Posted in Health, Organic Food | 1 Comment »
September 8th, 2009 - Laura Klein
 It’s been awhile since I blogged about the companies that are souring organic milk…but that doesn’t mean that they’re not still out there.
One major cheater: Aurora Dairy, the nation’s largest organic milk producer and supplier to Wal-Mart, Target, Safeway, Costco and others, is still not playing by the rules.
This week, the Cornucopia Institute, an organic industry watchdog group, filed a formal legal complaint with the USDA alleging that one of the five industrial-scale dairies operated by Aurora is failing to graze their dairy cattle as required by the federal organic standards.
Aurora’s bad behavior includes…
- Confining their dairy cows in giant barns and pens instead of allowing them to graze on fresh forage as the federal law mandates.
- Allowing cows access to substandard crops that wither in the desert-like heat, instead of more hardy perennials that stand up to continual grazing throughout the growing season.
Not the First Time
In response to a previous legal complaint filed by The Cornucopia Institute, in 2006, career staff at the USDA found that Aurora was in violation of 14 tenets of the organic regulations including confining their cattle to feedlots, instead of grazing, and bringing thousands of illegal conventional cows into their organic operation.
Killing the Competition
The above is not only bad for consumers, who are buying an organic product that doesn’t meet organic standards mandated by law…it hurts small farmers too.
Competitors to Aurora and Dean Foods, another ‘big organic’ dairy company (makers of the popular organic brand Horizon), have been forced to lower prices paid to family-scale farmers, institute cut backs on production or even cancel their contracts with some dairy producers.
“This is an unmitigated disaster for many family farmers who are now facing no market for their organic milk and possibly losing their farms because of the softening economy and the overload of milk coming from these giant factory farms,” said Kathie Arnold of Truxton, NY, an organic dairy farmer milking 130 cows.
The Bright Side
According to Cornucopia, 90% of all name brand organic dairy products on the market are produced with true integrity. “No matter where someone lives in this country there are many wonderful brands of organic milk, cheese, butter, yogurt and ice cream that conform to not only the letter of the law but the spirit of what has made organics such a successful and fast-growing segment of our nations’ food supply.”
Use the Cornucopia Institute’s recently updated online scorecoard can help you make smarter consumer choices when buying your organic dairy products. Spoiler alert: organic dairy props go to Organic Valley, a farmer-owned cooperative that garners a four-cow rating in the Cornucopia scorecard.
Other blogs on organic milk:
Organic Food Supermarket Trends: Got Milk?
Discover The Delicious Health Benefits of Organic Food
Illegal Organic Milk? Shameful
Milk Farmers in Crisis…and less Safe Milk
Keeping an Eye on Organic Dairy
Tags: dairy, milk, organic dairy, organic milk
Posted in Health, Organic, Organic Food | No Comments »
July 17th, 2009 - Laura Klein
 I recently blogged about ‘big organic’ dairy companies and how they were affecting the quality of organic dairy.
Since then, another dairy emergency has come to light from the folks at Food Democracy Now…the plight of the poorly paid American dairy farmer…and the consumer by-product: imported milk that is less safe.
Food Democracy’s recent email reported…
Since December 2008, the price that farmers are paid for the milk they produce has dropped over 50 percent – the largest single drop since the Great Depression -to a point far below the cost of production. This unprecedented collapse in prices has occurred in large part due to market manipulations and increased foreign imports by milk industry giants.
The report goes on to cite several disturbing stats:
- Dairy farmers are at the mercy of giants like the Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), which controls 40% of US milk production. Last year DFA was fined $12 million for price fixing by the US government and has also been implicated in the recent massive increase in imported milk products.
- Up to 30% of remaining dairy farmers may be lost by the end of this year – 20,000 dairy farmers in total
- Rural America will be negatively impacted, erasing over $52.7 billion of economic development in less than one year.
- Safety is an issue: losing domestic supply will create a serious gap in U.S. food safety as the DFA (Dairy Farmers Association) and others dramatically increase foreign milk protein concentrate imports from countries such as Mexico, India and China — countries which have much lower food safety standards than we do.
Take Action Today!
Send an electronic fax to Secretary Vilsack, head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (it’s all ready for you to sign and send thanks to the socially and environmentally aware cell phone company, Credo) to let him know that you support America’s family dairy farmers.
Tags: dairy, dairy farmers, farmers, milk, Organic Food
Posted in Green Living, Health, Organic, Organic Food | 4 Comments »
August 14th, 2006 - Barbara Feiner
 Organic coconut milk is an extremely versatile product that can be used in place of regular milk in many dishes.
When mashing sweet potatoes, for example, I add butter and lite coconut milk, mixing until I’ve achieved the desired consistency. I sometimes boost the recipe by adding half a mashed banana for an African-inspired side dish.
Thai Kitchen introduced organic coconut milk two years ago, available in both Organic Regular and Organic Lite varieties.
“Our coconut milks have always been the leaders in flavor and quality,” said Marketing Director John Wright at the time. “As more and more people are seeking out organic products, we wanted to offer those consumers products that fit their needs and met our standards of being the finest coconut milks in the world.”
Thai Kitchen’s coconut milks are all-natural, with no preservatives, chemical additives or processing aids, and they meet USDA Organic Standards. You can find them at your local natural and organic food store, and they’re also available for sale online on Amazon.com. A 14-oz. can sells for $1.84. (Shopping links: Organic Regular and Organic Lite.)
Tune in tomorrow for more coconut milk suggestions from top chefs.
Tags: coconut milk, milk, organic coconut milk, organic milk, thai kitchen
Posted in Organic Food | No Comments »
March 10th, 2006 - Barbara Feiner
You stop by your favorite organic coffeehouse, craving a deliciously hot latte or cappuccino. So, what’s the real difference between ordering a regular vs. a nonfat drink?
If you opt for a small size, made with nonfat milk instead of low-fat milk (the standard at many coffee bars), you’re looking at a difference of 20 to 30 calories, says Karen Collins, a registered dietitian in private practice and nutrition adviser to the American Institute for Cancer Research in Washington, DC. Buy a large latte or cappuccino, and there’s a 40- to 50-calorie difference.
“Fat content changes by about 3 to 5 grams,” she says. “Your choice of portion size actually has far more impact. Without changing the type of milk used, changing from small to large in portion size adds from 70 to 140 calories per serving, and ordering super-large sizes available at some places adds even more.
“The other big factor is whether you turn this coffee beverage into a dessert by adding goodies like mocha, whipped cream or caramel syrup,” Collins continues. “Making it a ‘dessert coffee’ adds 50 to 150 calories to a small, or 130 to 230 calories to a larger, drink. If you splurge on one of these drinks once a week or so, none of these differences is really significant. But if you drink one daily, these details can really add up and affect weight control and overall health.”
Tags: coffee, dairy, latte, milk, non fat, non fat milk, Organic Living
Posted in Organic, Organic Food | No Comments »
November 8th, 2005 - Barbara Feiner
As discussed yesterday, organic flavored milks are one of the newest food trends aimed specifically at parents and children. But nutrition experts have mixed views on the subject.
“Moms can feel good about giving their kids flavored milk, such as chocolate and strawberry,” says Molly Pelzer, a registered dietitian with the National Dairy Council and mother of two. “Kids not only savor the flavor, but it provides them with the nutrients they need to grow healthy and build a solid bone bank.”
“Milk is a critical part of kids’ diets, yet it’s competing against some less healthy, but very flashy, beverages,” adds Grant Prentice, executive vice president of marketing for Dairy Management Inc., an organization that helps build demand for dairy on behalf of its producers—including the much-publicized 3-a-Day campaign.
“Serving milk to kids in colorful plastic bottles and giving them a choice of flavors—whether it’s at school or their favorite restaurants—catches their attention and motivates them to drink more milk, which helps build stronger bones and better bodies,” he adds.
But not everyone is buying into this marketing message.
“I strongly disagree with sugared flavored milk,” says Chef Ann Cooper, former executive chef and director of wellness and nutrition at The Ross School in East Hampton, New York. She’s also the author of In Mother’s Kitchen: Celebrated Women Chefs Share Beloved Family Recipes and Bitter Harvest: A Chef’s Perspective on the Hidden Danger in the Foods We Eat and What You Can Do About It.
“They’re really no better than soda—except for the calcium,” Chef Cooper asserts. “Many have a sugar and calorie content that equals or exceeds that of soda, and they become just another way that we’re teaching our children to drink sweets.”
Chef Cooper believes children and teenagers can meet their calcium needs from other sources and outlines the following daily requirements:
- Preschool-age children: 500 to 800 mg calcium (2 to 3 servings)
- School-age children: About 800 mg (3 servings)
- Adolescents: About 1,200 to 1,500 mg (5 to 6 servings)
“While calcium is the most important component of dairy, it is possible to get it—minus the fat—in other ways,” she tells Organic Authority. “Many plant sources contain calcium that is more readily absorbed by the body than the calcium found in dairy. Some examples include nuts, broccoli, dark leafy greens [add some lemon to help free up the calcium], tofu, soy milk, sardines, beans, sunflower seeds and molasses.”
Tags: dairy, Health, kids health, milk
Posted in Organic Food | 2 Comments »
November 7th, 2005 - Barbara Feiner
Most of us grew up drinking chocolate milk, with our parents believing that a squirt of Hershey’s syrup would encourage us to down a full glass. As a parent who follows an organic lifestyle, you may now take the same approach, using a product like Ah!Laska Organic Chocolate Syrup, which is sweetened with organic evaporated cane juice.
Today, flavored milks are a popular item in U.S. schools, available in varieties ranging from chocolate and vanilla to blueberry and coffee. According to the National Dairy Council, these beverages—seldom organic—are usually sweetened with sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup.
Horizon Organic, one of the leading producers of organic dairy products, picked up on this trend and introduced shelf-stable, single-serving packages of flavored milk in varieties like vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, orange cream and banana (ultra-pasteurized and packaged in aseptic containers). Each flavor is sweetened with organic sugar.
“Moms will love these new products because they’re organic, nutritious and convenient for a lunchbox or backpack,” says dietitian Julie H. Burns, a nutrition consultant for the company. “Kids will love them because they’re delicious and easy to drink on the go.
“Families can help reduce their kids’ exposure to added chemicals in food by incorporating organic products into their diets,” she adds. “An easy way to do that is by providing great-tasting organic foods in your child’s lunchbox.”
Horizon notes that “100% of pediatricians agree calcium is important for children’s growth and development, and 93% said that children are not consuming enough calcium in their diets.”
But the flavored milk phenomenon is not without controversy. Tune in tomorrow, when nutrition experts will weigh in on the pros and cons of organic flavored milks.
Tags: flavored milk, Health, milk, Organic Food, organic milk
Posted in Organic, Organic Food | 1 Comment »
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