1. Peaches – usually multiple pesticides are regularly applied to these fruits
2. Apples – these fruits are typically grown with the use of poisons to kill pests, fungi, and insects. Scrubbing and peeling doesn’t get rid of the chemicals.
3. Sweet Bell Peppers – their thin skins don’t offer much of a barrier to chemicals and insecticides, which they are heavily sprayed with.
4. Celery – it has no protective skin making it almost impossible to wash the chemicals off
5. Nectarines – there can be up to 26 different pesticides found on these fruits
6. Strawberries – much healthier than conventional strawberries, especially out of season, when they are bought from countries with less strict regulations on pesticides
7. Cherries – those grown in the US are found to have 3 times more pesticide residue than imports
8. Leafy Greens – frequently contaminated with what are considered the most dangerous pesticides
9. Grapes – imported seem to be worse than domestic. Vineyards can spray grapes down with several types of pesticides
10. Carrots – in Europe the pesticides on carrots will be banned, not in the US. Go organic to avoid these

These are just several of the top foods that are the best foods to eat organic. Many times you do not know what you are eating, better not add harmful chemicals to that list of unknowns. Go Green, Stay Healthy.

Little Zoe and Ben are jumping up and down; they are just about to have a melt down guessing where we are going this year. The funny thing is my husband and I never had a thought other than a major resort in the previous years. Honestly, thinking hmm what my greener options for travel are never entered my mind. Something changed when a notice from a law firm got dropped off on our doorstep. It stated “x corporation has been legally forced to clean-up the chemicals which they dumped into our communities water source. It continued with high levels of chemical “x” may pose serious health risks if ingested.” Huh? Of course we are ingesting our water. Here is the punch line; they had till 2014 to clean this mess up. So I looked at my husband, jaw dropped, and said so we have been drinking tainted water for the last 6 years and this company is legally allowed to “remedy the situation” over a 5 year period. So legally they are allowed to poison my family for 11 years and the only thing they were legally required to do is to send me this paper telling me they are poisoning my community. It was horrifying and a travesty of justice. Were we offered a settlement? Were we offered free bottled water until they fix the problem? Were we offered an apology? – no! So this year, was the year we began to not only buy organic foods but to live a greener life. To take our kids on a green vacation, and let them understand that we can change the earth one step at a time- one vacation at a time. To teach them that although the water may be out of our control, we daily can become contributors to a greener planet. So how was I going to do this, how would I be that role model? What did that mean, where would we have to travel to find that vacation? How much would it cost? Can we do a staycation, with greener options? Well now, we started to ask the question; what are my greener options when traveling? So here is my story and what I will be sharing weekly is my desire for families to plan greener vacations.

Hint: Want to know more about your water, go checkout LEEP standards.

SAVANNAH, Ga. — Whole Foods would prefer to buy more local and regional organic and conventional produce from Southeastern growers.

The manager in charge of buying fresh fruits and vegetables for the south region for Whole Foods and the president of a distributor on the Atlanta produce wholesale market gave attendees insights on what retailers and wholesalers want in organics during a Jan. 8 session at the 2010 Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference.

Brent Demarest, the Braselton, Ga.-based produce purchasing team leader for the Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods Market Inc., said Whole Foods would prefer to source products such as asparagus closer to home than from New Jersey or California.

He said he used to be able to get asparagus from South Carolina.

“We want to connect our customers to the local farmers, to the taste of the season, and get them back to the way things were where you had seasonality of products,” Demarest said. “Things available year-round don’t really connect consumers with what’s great and great-tasting.”

Demarest said more opportunities are opening in organics with all types of companies such as Gerber, Heinz and Kellogg’s.

“Everyone is getting bigger and bigger in the organics game,” he said. “Demand really outweighs supply at this point.”

Demarest works with growers and sources products for stores in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama.

During the organic production conference section of the convention, Dee Dee Digby, president of Destiny Organics, Forest Park, described how her operation sources organics for regional growers.

She said working closely with buyers on harvest schedules can help guarantee sales. Destiny distributes product to large and small chains in six Southeastern states.

Digby said Destiny has customers that want products sourced locally, but there are many different definitions of local.

The company prefers products produced in the Southeast rather than bringing them in on a truck from California or anywhere else.

Brussels sprouts and broccoli are huge, she said.

“We received broccoli the other day from a Georgia grower,” Digby said. “It just causes excitement. Not just the people at Destiny, but with our customers. Once we let our customers know we have broccoli from a Georgia farmer, it’s just huge.

“What we like to know from you is what you will have. I will buy whatever you grow. We pretty much know what we will sell into retail,” she said. “With foodservice and universities, our buyers let the chefs know what we have now, four weeks out, so with your harvest schedules, the chefs and retailers know what’s coming.”

Article Courtesy of The Packer Newspaper

* Buy recycled or organic items. Purchase organic clothing or other items, or items made with recycled content. Organic baby clothing and blankets can be remarkably soft – and are good for the environment.

* Buy used. Used items, such as winter coats, toys and other items, are in most cases just as good as new. Many resale stores sell baby clothes that have been gently worn and sometimes not even worn once (with tags still attached). Save yourself some green while doing something green and purchase used baby items. Note: never purchase used baby safety items, such as car seats; you never know if they have been part of a product recall or in an accident and could be less than safe.

* Make the gifts yourself. Rather than shelling out money for expensive toys, consider making them yourself. For small children, the simplest of toys can provide hours of entertainment. Put together a busy book by gathering several different colored sheets of felt and cutting out and sewing different patterns onto full sheets. Sew the “pages” together to make a book. For older kids, have them help make gifts for themselves or for other family members, such as grandparents. Make a clay mold of their hand prints using a kit (available at craft stores) or make batches of organic granola, fudge, or cookies.

* Decorate with natural elements. Instead of plastic snowmen and window clings, decorate with items found in nature. Take the kids out for a hike and gather pine cones, branches and other natural pieces to decorate with. Consider making bird feeders from pine cones to hang near windows and garlands of fresh cranberries. Place a bowl of pine cones (or shiny red or green apples, or pomegranates, or oranges) on the dining table for a centerpiece.

* Donate unwanted or unused items. Instead of letting unused items, such as outgrown clothing or toys, collect dust or take up valuable closet space, donate the items. Local charities such as the Salvation Army, churches and other organizations will most likely be happy to take the items and put them to good use.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amanda_Stock

SocalMom2007

Thank you for this wonderful video.  Click here to get Buy one Get One Free coupons

As a woman in my early twenties, I’ve been using cosmetics and other beauty products for about ten years. What started out as a preteen fascination, which led to much experimentation with products of varying quality and price, has evolved into a more discerning, educated perspective. As I got older, I realized that quality really does matter. Both quality in terms of a product’s effectiveness, but also in terms of its ingredients. After all, what you’re putting on your face now will affect how you look ten or twenty years down the line. I got especially worried after watching an episode of Dr. Oz, where he mentioned that even artificially scented body and face care products can speed up your skin’s aging process.

So when the organic trend caught on I was definitely interested. It just seemed that all natural ingredients would be better for my skin than all those synthetic chemicals. Still, as a cautious consumer, I was weary of joining the ranks of excited organic skincare users and switching to an organic beauty routine without some preliminary research. At his point I didn’t even really understand the science behind what made organic beauty products better for you. I just knew they were more “natural”.

After doing a little research I found out what makes organic products so different: certified organic products are made with ingredients that are grown free of synthetic pesticides, herbicides and genetically modified organisms. They also don’t include harmful additives such as petroleum waxes, fillers and artificial chemicals. Since the ingredients used in skincare products don’t just stay on the skin, but penetrate it, and thus make their way into the body, the idea of unnecessary and possibly harmful chemicals used in my regular beauty products was a little scary.

At the same time I was wondering, were synthetic chemicals really unnecessary? Maybe cosmetics manufacturers used them in their products for a reason. I discussed this with a friend of mine, who was a complete organic beauty junkie, and this is the way she explained it to me: “A hamburger from a fast food restaurant tastes pretty good and is filling, but is horrible for your health because of all the chemicals and processed ingredients. You’re better off eating something fresh. Well, make-up is the same way. All natural, organically produced ingredients are of superior quality. There are plenty of effective natural ingredients that will produce the same results as synthetic ones, but will be better for you. An organic beauty routine is simply healthier and better for the environment.”

That was a pretty basic explanation, but it made sense. But before switching to an organic beauty routine, I wanted to know more about the harmful chemicals contained in regular beauty products, why cosmetics manufacturers chose to use them, and how organic beauty manufacturers were able to avoid using them while still producing effective products.

Stay tuned for next week’s article, where I’ll discuss the answers to those questions.

So why is organic food beneficial to the us and the environment, its because of how the food has been grown or raised and processed. A food is organic based on how the farmers grow and process these agricultural goods, like fruits and vegetables, dairy, grains, as well as meat. The organic farming practices encourage soil and water conservation to reduce pollution, as well as finding ways to control weeds and prevent disease without using traditional means of using chemicals. Below we see the difference between Conventional and Organic farming.

Why is Organic Food Beneficial?

With the absence of these chemical and unnatural growing methods in the food and in the livestock, the plants and animals are able to produce more vitamins and antioxidants, which means better food for us with less chemicals for us to ingest. These missing chemicals mean there is less pollution and contamination in our soil and water, providing a healthier environment for us. This is something I can definitely see myself getting into in order to live a healthier lifestyle. As I continue to do more research in the subject, I start to learn about more common foods that are the most contaminated. Next week Ill give you the top ten vegetables with the most pesticides and poisons on them.

So I did try the other brands as an experiment when I was away and did not have my Steaz available. Red Bull or Rockstar of course had their pick me up qualities to them however if you are a Steaz addict like I am, you will find that the flavor in these beverages are just so overwhelming. Steaz Diet Organic Energy Drink has a much lighter citrus flavor which is what I like. Just like everything in life folks. In moderation! This drink just like in any is loaded with caffeine (Albiet natural) Half a can is fine with me.

Ok. As promised, here is how you can get your Steaz Diet Organic Energy Drink at half the price! This link and this will take you to this coupon site. You have to install this program to your browser (I think it only works in Internet Explorer) It says its good for any Steaz product. However right there on the coupon it says its up to an $8 value. So we get the 4 pack.

So for a buck a can you can get an energy drink that is in my opinion the best in the market, Organic, Light and Diet. Enjoy! Hope you like it.

This does not install any third-party software, adware, or spyware, nor does it collect any personal information.