Protect Your Family’s Health, Buy Organic Food

Protect Your Family’s Health, Buy Organic Food

Organic sustainable food and ethical meat is Key to good health today.

Organic, grass-fed, and finished meat that is humanely raised and butchered is really about the only meat that is healthy to eat.

By purchasing your meat from smaller farms that raise their animals in a humane fashion, according to Organic principles, US consumers promote the proliferation of such farms, which benefits everyone, including all the animals.

The Organic industry tends to favor humane butchering practices, which is another important part of “ethical meat.”

The following organizations can help you locate farm-fresh foods, including organic grass-fed and finished meats in your local area, as follows:

Local Harvest: This web site will help you find farmers’ markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area where you can buy Organic produce, grass-fed meats, and many other good food. (www.localharvest.org)

USDA Farmers’ Markets: A national listing of farmers’ markets. (http://search.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets)

Eat Well Guide: Wholesome Food from Healthy Animals. The Eat Well Guide is a free online directory of sustainably raised meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs from farms, stores, restaurants, inns, and hotels, and online outlets in the United States and Canada. (http://www.eatwellguide.org)

Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA): CISA is dedicated to sustaining agriculture and promoting the products of small farms.  (http://www.buylocalfood.org)

FoodRoutes: The FoodRoutes “Find Good Food” map can help you connect with local farmers to find the freshest, tastiest food possible. On their interactive map, you can find a listing for local farmers, CSA’s, and markets near you.  (http://foodroutes.org)

When looking for antibiotic-free meat, it’s best to familiarize yourself with the various labels currently in use, as some are useful, while others are deceptive:

100% USDA Organic label offers excellent assurance that antibiotics have not been used at any stage of production.

“No antibiotics administered” and similar labels also offer high assurance that antibiotics have not been used, especially if accompanied by a “USDA process Verified” shield.

“Grass-fed” label coupled with USDA Organic label means no antibiotics have been used, but if the “grass-fed” label appears alone, antibiotics may have been given.

“American Grass-fed” and “Food Alliance Grass-fed” labels indicate that in addition to having been raised on grass, the animal in question received no antibiotics.

The following three labels: “Antibiotic-free,” “No antibiotic residues,” and “No antibiotic growth promotants,” have not been approved by the USDA and may be misleading if not outright fraudulent.

“Natural” or “All-Natural” is completely meaningless and has no bearing on whether or not the animal was raised according to organic principles.

“Natural” meat and poultry products can by law receive antibiotics, hormones, and genetically engineered grains, and can be raised in confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs).

Eat healthy, Be healthy

Paul Ebeling

HeffX-LTN

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