Monday, May 23, 2011

Food, Inc.


Now that I am off of the road for the summer, I am focusing on eating better, eating local, and working out a bit more.  Now, don't get me wrong, you know I love my bacon cheeseburgers and cupcakes, but I am making an even greater effort to read labels, eat food with fewer ingredients, and don't let the corn growers try and fool me by changing high fructose corn syrup into corn sugar.  Sorry, farmers, it's just not natural.

I spent part of my Sunday shopping for organic goodies at my local farmer's market.  For $22.25, I was able to buy fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, cherries, spinach, flowers, spicy red pepper hummus, fresh feta with sun dried tomatoes, and spinach and feta tortillas.  Everything was locally produced, organically raised, and I know exactly what I am eating.  I am tired of reading labels of processed foods with a huge list of chemicals, it bothers me that the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) finds this okay.  I am pretty sure it is no coincidence that we have seen an increase in cancer and other illnesses as processed food has become the norm in our grocery stores.


If this topic interests you, now is a good time to add the 2009 documentary (and Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary), Food, Inc., to your summer Netflix list. I will warn you, it is not for the squeamish, but I can bet you that it will change the way you eat meat and chicken. It sure had an impact on me.  While you cannot always control what type of meat you eat at a restaurant, you can sure shop for meat/chicken without hormones or antibiotics for your own home.  Grass fed, wild caught, and humanely raised will be words in your grocery shopping vocabulary after watching this documentary.  If you want to argue the cost on the organic meat with me, I will argue the cost of your medical care in the long run.  Give it some thought and let me know what you think.  Have you seen Food, Inc.?

*Update* 3 Suggestions for Healthy and Affordable Eating:
1.  I always hear that organic is too expensive.  It's not.  Check out your local farmer's market or go to Walmart. (This is the only time I am going to recommend Walmart, kids.)  Walmart has a strong and affordable organic produce line in their super stores.  These are the Dirty Dozen in produce, these are musts for organic. (The article also includes the Clean 15 where you don't have to worry as much.)

2.  Plan your meals.  Do you want the best recipes and the easiest, fastest way to prepare delicious meals for both carnivores and vegetarians?  Check out Sam The Cooking Guy.  Every recipe is amazing and simple.

3.   Coupons!  You know I am the queen of coupons and sales, I hate to pay full price.  Here is a great resource for organic coupons:  Focus Organic.

Feel free to share any other tips I might have missed.

5 comments:

  1.  Hey Kristyn,
    I'm so glad you brought up Food, Inc.! I watched it late last year, and made an immediate change in my eating (and shopping) habits, but unfortunately this is one of those things that is so easy to get more relaxed about as time goes on, and you forget the horrors of the food industry that were shown in that film. Especially if you're surrounded by people who don't support your attitude towards the food you eat. So, it's great to get a reminder - thanks! Good luck with your efforts :)

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  2.  It is SO easy to get lax about eating habits, I agree with you.  I originally watched the documentary back in 2009, and I have made a few small changes that have stuck.  I am hoping to really make an effort this summer to make a more dramatic change.  The real difficulty will be trying to adhere to that when I am traveling.  Thanks for stopping by, Corina!

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  3. This movie definitely made me think about food. I admit I don't purchase organic but simply because I cannot afford it.

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  4. Does your neighborhood have a farmer's market?  It is the affordable way to do organic veggies, fruits, and meats.  They are a dime a dozen in LA, but I imagine they are harder to find outside of the West Coast.  

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  5. Haven't watched the documentary as I have yet to completely recover from the traditional high school bout with Upton Sinclair's The Jungle.  We are fortunate to have several farmers' markets nearby and even spent a few summers as members of a CSA (community supported agriculture), which introduced us to a bunch of new vegetables + herbs (+ even edible weeds.)  It is still a struggle not to err on the side of convenience, but trying to keep healthy things stocked and have easy go to meals is the plan.  I find cookbooks from a wide range of cultures to be a good source of inspiration.  We're currently having what can we make, freeze and eat after rehearsals planning conversations.    

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