Organic food in supermarkets

Kirri

namecheck wrote: »

Thank you for making this point.

Commercial interests continually say that organic food is not always more nutritious, and sometimes less so..

However, they keep quiet about the pesticides/fertilisers/hormones/antibiotics etc.

I do wonder if children growing up today will have MORE illness as a result of this unhealthy mass-produced food. We are given the line that mass production is necessary to feed the world, but generally it is more profitable for the producers.

I bet a lot of the illnesses we are already seeing since the rise in the use of pesticides etc are caused by it, huge rises in allergies and hyperactivity and people seem to pump their kids full of crappy food without a single thought, let alone the even worse illnesses ie links to cancer. The majority buy without thinking or even questioning the food and toiletries used. I 'won' a sample of coffee this week, it had 7 'E' numbers in!! I was also asked to test a food product this week that had GM in..

It's all about cheap food and profit for the manufacturers, we certainly don't need more food produced for the UK, we are one unhealthy nation already let alone the huge amounts of food waste.

Kirri

Edwardia wrote: »

Thanks for that Quasar. Not had Hotel Chocolat though my sister in law raves about it. I'm sure it's not as expensive as the chocolate I used to prefer www.leonidas.com

Kirri..www.boojabooja.com says now available in 78 Waitrose stores..

Just found Rococo www.rococochocolates.com with one organic drinking chocolate and 34 bars of organic chocolate varying in price between 1.30 and 4.50 for single bars and around 12.50 for gift boxes.

Will look for the Boojabooja next time I'm in Waitrose, do want to try that. Am a major G&B fan out of all choc

Edwardia

Welcome to the thread namecheck and yes agree absolutely that food manufacturers gloss over any potential effects the additives may have.

Food additives are tested to make sure that they aren't immediately toxic and achieve GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) status. No-one does any tests on long-term effects.

Exposure to some additives has been proved detrimental to some children with hyperactive disorders for example, but this has only come to light because of research being done on those conditions and from anecdotal evidence.

I'd say that as supermarkets are selling Free From food, they must have done research on the market, to ensure it's worth reserving the floor space for it. Which means there must be more and more people getting allergies.

RedLass thanks for the tip and welcome to the thread. It would be great if you could review the meat when you've eaten it.

Kirri - seven E numbers in coffee is horrendous. :eek: We haven't drunk instant in years, I buy the occasional jar for my best friend as he won't drink ground. Do you know any mellow organic instants please ?

Had Daylesford organic chicken last night from Ocado and have to say it tastes fantastic.

Quasar

namecheck wrote: »

Thank you for making this point.

Commercial interests continually say that organic food is not always more nutritious, and sometimes less so..

However, they keep quiet about the pesticides/fertilisers/hormones/antibiotics etc.

I do wonder if children growing up today will have MORE illness as a result of this unhealthy mass-produced food. We are given the line that mass production is necessary to feed the world, but generally it is more profitable for the producers.

Many pesticides and artificial additives used in food processing/preserving, do wreck havoc with hormonal function. Many mimic estrogens, which in men can reduce sperm count and in women add unnecessary extra estrogen to the body - which is dangerous.

Also, plastic bottles and the inside of many cans (especially soup cans) contain hormone disrupting substances such as BPA.

One really needs to be motivated to educate oneself as to these dangers, and more especially what is safe to eat. The occasional indulgence is ok, but the safe frequency is surprisingly small.

Self education requires learning what is safe to eat non-organic (fruit and vegs with thick skins that are not eaten), where to source organics, and the understanding that, organic or not, produce that comes from half the way round the world will have been picked BEFORE full ripeness so that it reaches shops before it's too old, therefore taking up fewer minerals from the soil than its ripe counterpart.

Also, frozen organic produce is among the best, because it has to be picked when perfectly ripe, ie. just right, and frozen within an hour or so. Therefore its mineral complement is full and the vitamin loss in freezing is not as great as that which occurs during transportation, storage and waiting on shelves to be bought.

Once upon a time there were lots of books that explained lots of this stuff, and it was expensive for most people to learn the ins and outs thoroughly. Now there is the internet which makes this learning process easier and cheaper. Unfortunately some sites are a crank's paradise, but one soon gets to know what's what.

Lastly, one doesn't need to break one's bank going organic. As I said, it's all a matter of searching and adjusting one's diet. For the price of a take away, or a ready meal from a supermarket, we can cook a delicious organic meal from scratch. And stay healthy with it.

LOL I'm sure you lot know all the above already, sorry.

Quasar

Kirri wrote: »

I bet a lot of the illnesses we are already seeing since the rise in the use of pesticides etc are caused by it, huge rises in allergies and hyperactivity and people seem to pump their kids full of crappy food without a single thought, let alone the even worse illnesses ie links to cancer. The majority buy without thinking or even questioning the food and toiletries used. I 'won' a sample of coffee this week, it had 7 'E' numbers in!! I was also asked to test a food product this week that had GM in..

It's all about cheap food and profit for the manufacturers, we certainly don't need more food produced for the UK, we are one unhealthy nation already let alone the huge amounts of food waste.

Unfortunately it is not just pesticides, but the countless additives and preservatives in processing an already chemicalised food. Coulourings, flavourings, "flour improvers", refined sugars and downright unnatural oils - ultrarefined and hydrogenated (the transfats) - plus irradiation and whatnot, are ensuring fat profits, as well as a fat and deeply unhealty population.

The progress that technology has given us in so many areas, has turned out to be a regress in public health.

Edwardia

Quasar discussion is good because none of us knows everything and we learn from each other

Re: Irradiation, that is common in the USA but here there are few places licensed to do it and irradiated veg should be labelled. Have to say I've never seen any over here.

Re: flour improvers, bread manufacturers aren't always obliged under UK law to list all ingredients used which are part of the bread-making process and supposedly not in the finished bread. Don't know whether that includes organic bread or not.

Edwardia

I called Iceland some time ago and they said they used to do organic frozen food but not any more.

Green & Black's and Mackie's of Scotland organic ice creams can be found in many supermarkets and Waitrose does Duchy Originals.

Yeo Valley does frozen yogurt so far I've seen strawberry only.

Sainsbury's does own-brand organic frozen peas as does Waitrose. Don't know about others. Waitrose also does organic petit pois, sweetcorn, broccoli florets, vegetable mix with broccoli, oven chips (OH likes these) and leaf spinach.

Couldn't find organic frozen veg on Tesco and ASDA websites.

Waitrose does frozen organic Italian stone baked Margherita pizza for 2.99 which I liked (I did have a small bit) but OH says needs more toppings.

Ardo www.ardo.com has the Ardo Bio-organic range of 61 organic
vegetables and herbs but I've not seen them in supermarkets. If you have access to a frozen food wholesaler however you may be able to find them there. I have put a product request in at Ocado

Quasar

I haven't read all the thread yet, but on one of my rare visits to Lidl I saw they sold organic milk and organic wholewheat pasta at a decent price. Not bought any yet, but considering.

One thing I LOVE are blueberries - love them in a tumbler, covered with red wine . Their prices are prohibitive however, whether organic or not. Waitrose do frozen berries/blueberries at a great price but they do not appear to be organic.

Edwardia

Quasar, we've tried the Lidl organic fresh semi-skimmed milk and we thought it was watery compared to Moo and Duchy Originals.

I don't eat pasta but OH says the Lidl organic is fine. You will sometimes find the Seeds of Change organic sauces on offer in Lidl as well.

I lurve blueberries,,well blueberry anything really. When I lived in Canada I ate lots of Sealtest blueberry yogurt. Unfortunately though they are supposed to be relatively low in carbs. blueberries make me feel dizzy. I am able to eat lots of organic strawberries though

vincenta

Quasar!
I would agree with Edwardia that Duchy milk is much tastier than Lidl organic one:j Abel & Cole and Riverford milk are great too, it taste delicious, with full milk flavor, not watery like Lidl and supermarket own organic milk!
I used Riverfod organic milk( because t is not homogenised) to make dry cottage cheese.It taste much better than shop bought and isn't so hard to make.
By the way bought 400 g organic Vine tomatoes in Sainsbury's, they were priced 1.50 £ instead of 1,80£
Tasty:j
About bread, my hubby bought me Panasonic bread maker(I begged him for ages:eek:
It is so easy to use, all time perfect bread with no addictive it tastes, much better than Greggs one :j
Shop bought bread, even organic, after this bread tastes like rubish:rotfl: