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    " . . . The quality of the fruits and vegetables available at grocery stores is terrible. Most are laden with toxic substances, such as sulfates on grapes, pesticides . . . many times fruits and vegetables are imported from foreign countries that use toxic pesticides that are illegal in the United States."
    As stated by Dr. Ronald Steriti in our article Antioxidants and Organic Foods

Buy Local Fruits and Vegetables to Go Organic, and Save Money

October 16th, 2009 - Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese

VEGGIESIn April, the Environmental Working Group released a report ranking the 12 dirtiest fruits and vegetables, and the 15 cleanest.

The icky stuff, i.e. most contaminated with pesticides, included produce like nectarines, cherries, and carrots.

But avocados, mangos, and eggplant, were among the safer foods.

The problem is, more often than not, organic stuff is more expensive than conventional fruits and vegetables.

So a quick tip to eat cleaner and save a little money is to buy foods from local farmers markets, a lot of the stuff can be organic, plus little markets are almost always cheaper than big retailers.

Another way, and its not technically organic, is to buy regular fruits and vegetables, specifically the clean stuff, and give them a good scrub to avoid any pesticide residue.

I guess I’m a casual organic buyer. I’m not super anal about it, if I see some organic fruits and vegetables I buy them, but I usually purchase organic food products, like cereals, soymilk, tofu, and bread.

Via Island Life.

Image credit: yarnzombie

Do Pesticides Take Nutrients Out of Fruits and Vegetables?

October 1st, 2009 - Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese

STRAWBI bought a bag of non-organic apples the other day and when I opened it up they all felt greasy. I’m not germ-phobic or anything, but it was creepy.

I wash them, but I’m sure a lot of people peel the skin off just to be safe.

My grandparents thought peels were kryptonite. No apple or pear had a chance. They all got eaten in the nude.

But some say peels are loaded with nutrients and carving them off is a waste, another reason to buy organic.

So to keep the peel intact, and most importantly eaten, stick with organic fruits and vegetables avoids the whole problem.

Another claim, and I’ve never heard this before, is foods grown with pesticides prevent nutrients, like vitamin C in peppers, from reaching the final product.

I guess at the end of the day just buy organic. It tastes the same and some say it tastes even better, but truth be told, I’ve never notice the taste thing.

Via The Daily Orange.

Image credit: marfis75

Study Claims Organic Food is Healthier

September 11th, 2009 - Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese

BSPROUTSI buy organic whenever I can. For me it’s mostly fruits and vegetables. The only things I buy that are sold in a box are computer games. Yes, I’m a nerd.

Now, there are lots of reasons to buy organic: no pesticides, genetically-modified whatever and most likely no inhumane animal rearing and slaughtering.

Go ahead and add nutrition to the list-I’m sure many of you already did-because a new study says organic produce is healthier than conventional stuff.

Appearing in the journal Agronomy for Sustainable Development, experts claim organic plants have more “dry matter” and minerals-i.e. iron and magnesium-and more antioxidants, like phenols and salicylic acid.

But researchers suspect most people buy organic primarily for the safety issue, and they found 94 to 100% of organics do not contain and pesticide residue. Also noting organic vegetables have 50% less nitrates.

How do you make a case against organic? Its safer, tastes better, easier on the environment and more nutrition-kind of a no-brainer.

Via Food Navigator.

Image credit: srqpix

Carbofuran Pesticide Gets the Axe…

May 28th, 2009 - Gerald "Gerry" Pugliese

sfskyBananas, squash, sunflowers and other fruits and vegetables just got a little safer. The Environmental Protection Agency will no longer tolerate any carbofuran pesticide residue on foods.

Carbofuran may or may not be harmful to humans, but a single granule of the chemical can kill an adult bird.

The EPA has moved to ban all pesticide residues on food, so the mandate on carbofuran will also involve crops grown outside of the United States.

In addition to bananas, squash and sunflowers, other fruits and vegetables, including wheat, raisins, rice, grapes, melon, pumpkin, peppers and even coffee beans, will now be carbofuran residue-free.

Prior to this, the EPA tried to cancel the pesticide’s registration in 2006. This would have stopped its use in the U.S., but the manufacturer lobbied the zany Bush Administration for help. Go figure!

The main driver behind the EPA’s ban of carbofuran is the potential risks to pregnant mothers and their developing children.

Via The Daily Green.


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