Ask Liz First » Organic Farming

Zero-Packaging Coming To The Grocery Store

Liz — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 10:45:34 +0000

I am completely stoked about the announcement of a zero-packaging store that will be opening this fall in Austin, Texas. “in.gredients” most probably will be the first store in the U.S. to be package free and have zero waste in their store(s).

How can this be, you ask? Well, it’s because some forward-thinking entrepreneurs are setting their sights on being the “next step” in fixing a variety of problems in today’s food industry. They state that there mission is to be a different kind of grocery store, one that is responsible to the environment and community and one that facilitates a healthy lifestyle.

In their recent press release, in.gredients promises to be an alternative to supermarket-style shopping, featuring local, organic food products, offering cooking classes and gardening activities on site, and hosting a variety of community oriented events geared towards promoting healthy living.

Customers will bring their own reusable containers to hold their purchases or they can purchase compostable containers from the store. It’s bulk food buying at a higher level and it doesn’t get much more sustainable than this.

in.gredients is also searching for investors for this worthy venture, and I’m sure they won’t be searching for very long. This new style of bulk merchandising will hopefully very soon, become the norm as people continue to learn the value of sustainable living.

Almost half of everything that goes to our landfills is packaging and most of that packaging has been used only one time. I am very anxious to see this philosphy spread throughout the nation and eventually see package free, zero waste stores for all consumable products. It’s a no-brainer and it’s a win-win for everyone!

Community Group Promotes Sustainability

Liz — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 01:40:44 +0000

I have been involved for several months with a local organization. It’s the Snake River Chapter of Oregon Rural Action. This grass roots group of passionate people are tirelessly working to raise awareness in our community about agricultural economic sustainability, social justice and more.

They are currently gearing up to get the Four Rivers Community Garden going again this year. The Garden helps provide fresh produce to the local food pantry and is a resource for educating local families about food options.

The monthly chapter meeting is being held, Wednesday, March 16th at the Malheur County Library in Ontario at 6:00 pm. Those interested in hearing about upcoming projects regarding local recycling awareness, plans for a May community garden event and fund raiser, are encouraged to attend.

For more information about what Oregon Rural Action promotes and participates in, please go to their website. Also, for those interested in helping the organization, but have limited time, please consider making an online donation to ORA. You can also “Like” their Facebook page.

About Oregon Rural Action:

Oregon Rural Action is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership-based community organization working to promote social justice, agricultural and economic sustainability, and stewardship of the region’s land, air and water. We’re bringing people together to build strong communities by providing information and tools for local people to use in addressing the issues affecting our communities.

Save The Environment & Your Pocketbook!

Liz — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 09:06:53 +0000

Saving the environment by using safe and non-toxic products doesn’t always mean spending more. In fact, the products that I use and am proud to distribute can save the environment and also help save your pocketbook from being depleted so swiftly.

Smirk if you must, when I tell you that I’m referring to Shaklee products. BUT, did you know that NASA has used Shaklee’s Basic H (all-purpose cleaner) in their facilities? How about the fact that a Northern California based aerospace and defense leader uses Basic H in their specifications for maintenance of equipment? Or, even that there are numerous farm and ranch owners that use Basic H to rid crops of pests or worm their cattle? No, the last example is not based on Shaklee Corporation’s recommendations. But, based on years of practice by forward-thinking farmers and ranchers, Basic H is preferred due to its being a natural, organic, non-ionic, surfactant.

So, why would you pay more for products that may or may not be safe? Or, why would you use safe products that put more packaging into the landfills, than concentrated, safe and guaranteed products by Shaklee? Did you know that even using safe products like vinegar and baking soda, can cost more out of your pocketbook and put more into the landfills, than some of Shaklee’s products?

If, you’ve never met, let me introduce Shaklee Corporation to you. A direct marketing company that has been in continuous business for over 50 years. They were the first-ever certified, Climate Neutral company in the U.S. They are also the number one natural nutrition company in the United States. A company that has never had a product recall and stands behind ALL their products, with a 100% money-back guarantee.

Yep, that’s Shaklee. And what a product line of safe, smart, green products they have! The Get Clean product line includes an all-purpose cleaner, Basic H2. One 16-ounce bottle of this concentrated green cleaner dilutes down into over 200 bottles of cleaner. That works out to about .07 cents a bottle and only one original bottle to the plastic recycling center.

Please take the opportunity to view this short 3-minute video with information about Shaklee’s cleaning products. Also, feel free to go over to my website and peruse through for information on each and every product. Also, Shaklee offers kitchen and laundry products that are safe for the environment and your pocketbook. The Shaklee philosophy is: Always Safe, Always Works, Always Green. I invite you to find out for yourself and share the results here for others to see.

Easy Steps To A Healthy Diet

Liz — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:01:00 +0000

Sharing a great article from my friend, Irina Wardas, website. Please click on the hyperlinks below each topic, for more great info from her website.

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.– Annie Dillard

1. COOK AT HOME

The food we take into our mouth goes into our stomach where it gets digested and eventually assimilated into the bloodstream. Our blood is what creates our cells, our tissues, our organs, our skin, our hair, our brains and our thoughts and feelings. Learning to cook high quality food for yourselves and those you love can change everything.
Healthier Substitutions for Your Recipes
Soup Time to Feel and Look Fabulous
Asparagus, Beets and Chicken Salad Recipes
Sweet Eats for More Energy

2. EAT THE RIGHT FOODS

- drink more water;
One Extra Glass of Water to Drink and Extra 500 Calories to Burn the Easy Way
- start with a breakfast
Video Tip: How to Make a 3-min Nutritious Breakfast to Feel Fabulous All Day
Healthy Breakfast to Feel and Look Fabulous
Healthy Pancakes
- incorporate more fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, grains, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices into your diet;
4 Reason to Eat Apples
“11 Reasons to Eat Beets
Eight Reasons to Eat Squashes
Detox, Weight Loss, Glowing Skin and Other Reasons to Eat Radishes
Heart Healing Foods
Immunity Boosting Spices Recipe
Simple Detox with Cleansing Herbs
Lentils Recipes to Fight Seasonal Depression
- switch to only healthy fats with omega-3 fatty acids you can find in olive oil, salmon (chose fish carefully because it can be highly contaminated with toxic chemicals like mercury and PCBs), walnuts, flax seeds;
Salmon and Avocado Recipes

3. WATCH WHAT YOU EAT

Avoid super unhealthy processed foods which add more stress on our system and are super harmful for our health.
Super Foods to Avoid in Order to Stay Healthy
Listen to Your Body and Be Crave Smart

4. READ LABELS

We read all labels carefully looking for ingredients we cannot pronounce or don’t know the meaning of. There are too many preservative, chemicals, artificial colors we must avoid in order to stay healthy. Even more careful we have to be with labels on meat and diary products because most of the terms mean not exactly what we think.
Sugar and Caloric Overload Foods
How to Read Labels and Find Hidden Sugar
Video Tip: Sugar Surprise – How Much Sugar You Think You Eat

5. GO U.S.D.A. ORGANIC

Did you know that the worst toxins we can ingest are put into our foods as additives and preservatives? Organic foods are supposed to be produced without synthetic growth hormones, genetically engineered organisms, antibiotics, chemical fertilizers or chemical pesticides.
Why Strawberries, Peaches and Cherries Can Be Dangerous for Our Health
Is Your Mouthwash Cancer Proof
How You Can Reduce Your Risk of Cancer

6. GO LOCAL & EAT IN SEASON

To eat local and in season means that food was stored for less time and traveled not far. You get it fresher and more nutritious. Did I mention, that it will be cheaper?
Go local and find Farmer’s Markets near you at www.LocalHarvest.org

7. DE-STRESS

Stress is #1 cause of all our illnesses. If we want to be healthier, sleep longer and feel better we need to take care of out stress overload first.
Video Tip: Simple Exercise for Detox, Weight Loss and Better Sleep-Part I
Foot Massage for Detox, Stress, Sleep, Constipation and Headaches
Instant Mood Boosters – MP3 mini-class
Video Tip: How to Fall Asleep Faster and Sleep Longer
What Sex, Garlic and Swearing Have in Common
Video Tip: Three Instant Mood Boosters that Work

8. DETOX

Toxins can be poisons, heavy metals, pesticides, fungicides, cleaning solvents, smog, and many substances that we don’t even know are leeching into our bodies via our clothing our furniture, and even out carpets. We need to detox with the seasonal fruits and vegetables to stay healthy. It is also very important to avoid chemicals and pesticides not only in foods but also in skin care products, make up, cleaning products, etc.
Simple Detox with Cleansing Spices
Spring Detox and Beauty Recipes
Three Detox Recipes
Video Tip: Detox Recipe: Super Simple and Healthy Turmeric Dressing
Detox Recipe: Kale with Cranberries and Sesame Seeds
Healthy citizens are the greatest asset any country can have.–Winston Churchill
If you feel you might need help with one of my Holistic Health and Nutrition Programs for Women, let me know, and let us talk…

And don’t forget to always breathe, smile and try to be happy.
© Irina Wardas, HHC
Women’s Holistic Health, Nutrition and Relationship Expert
NaturalCounselor.com

Not All Fruits & Veggies Are Created Equal

Liz — Fri, 08 May 2009 12:06:00 +0000

Ahhh, Spring has Sprung ! And with Spring, comes fruits and vegetables…. EVERYWHERE !!

With the availability of many gorgeous fruits and vegetables, a lot of us start looking to increase our daily intake of these wonderful natural products. Not just because they taste so good, but because we know they are good for us and most are low in fat and calories.

But, there’s “the other side” of the story to these beautiful creations. And that being that usually all fruits and vegetables are treated with pesticides and some of them have a very high level of toxins, which can be dangerous to our health? Yes, there are also toxins in the cleaners we use, the air we breath, but today I just thought I’d focus on fruits and vegetables.

Some of them we can eat in large quantities and be happy about it, but some of them it is better to avoid eating non-organic because they can do more harm than good for our health.

Have in mind that organic produce doesn’t mean pesticide free. Organically grown fruits and vegetables are grown on better soils and have less pesticides level. Well, and these pesticides are less dangerous to our health, but they are still pesticides, maybe only better quality.

So as you can see, it is very important to know which fruits and vegetables are less desirable, (less beneficial to our overall health). If peaches, strawberries, cherries contain a very high level of pesticides, we have to think twice before buying them non-organic. Would you like to add more dangerous toxins to your system? I don’t. There are always other choices: you can buy organic only a smaller amount (if the price is high), you can buy local (if you know that the farm is small and they care about their produce), or you don’t buy at all.

So, to help you to remember why not all fruits and veggies are equal, here is a list of the “dirtiest” and the “cleanest” fruits and vegetables for 2009 based on an Environmental Working Group Survey.

In 2009 these fruits and vegetables you should buy organic:

1. Peaches 100

2. Apples 93

3. Bell Pepper- 83

4. Celery – 82

5. Nectarines – 81

6. Strawberries – 80

7. Cherries – 73

8. Kale – 69

9. Lettuce – 67

10. Grapes – Imported from outside U.S. – 66

11. Carrot – 63

12. Pear – 63

This is a list of fruits and vegetables you don’t have to buy organic:

Onion – 1
Avocado – 1
Sweet corn – 2
Pine Apple – 7
Mango – 9
Asparagus – 10
Sweet peas – 10
Kiwi – 13
Cabbage – 17
Eggplant – 20
Papaya – 20
Watermelon – 26
Broccoli – 28
Tomato – 29
Sweet Potato – 29
Grapefruit – 29
Honeydew Melon – 30

I first learned about this subject from reading my friend, Irina Wardes’ blog. (Women’s Holistic Health, Nutrition and Relationship Expert). She graciously granted me permission to use portions of her blog post, so I could pass this information along to others like you. Please go to her wonderful website and blog for tons of more great health information like this!

The Demise of Organic Foods With HR 875?

Liz — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:39:00 +0000

A bill has been introduced into Congress (HR 875), which will more stringently regulate farming practices. That’s all well and good, except the fact that HR 875 could essentially put the small farmer out of business and more specifically, organic farming!

Congressional Bill HR 875 was introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, whose husband Stanley Greenburg works for Monsanto. Ummmm, Monsanto, need I say more?

Dr Merola’s website poses some interesting questions and facts regarding this Bill. Read through his comments and watch the video below which talks about it.