6 Ways to Avoid Processed Foods

Food processing companies have one goal and that is to make as much money as possible. This is understandable; why else start a business? The problem for consumers is that this goal of making money supersedes all other moral decisions.

Instead of providing health supporting products that are free of hormones, antibiotics, genetically engineered ingredients, dangerous additives or other poisons, food manufacturers choose to create products that have long shelf lives and cost less to produce. But consumers are smart and they can read labels, right? Yes, but the FDA doesn't require many harmful ingredients to be labeled as such. For instance, most processed foods containing soy and corn are made from genetically engineered ingredients, but you won't see that on the label for a bag of corn chips or a carton of soy milk.

The best way to avoid processed foods, and protect yourself and your family from the industry's financially driven agenda is to take control of your personal food supply. Here are some tips for ensuring you have access to clean, healthy food:

• Research local sources for organic, grass fed meat and poultry and buy it whenever possible. Grass fed meat is much higher in essential nutrients, and it's free of hormones, antibiotics and E.Coli bacteria. Talk with the farmer or rancher providing the products. Make sure the animals, poultry and eggs you buy are from free range, pasture-fed animals. Sometimes, a rancher will "finish" an steer on corn or corn silage. That time shouldn't be any longer than a month. Longer times on grain mean lower CLA and higher ratios of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acids.
• Buy your grass finished meat in bulk. It's cheaper to buy a whole steer, which is about 400 pounds of meat cut and wrapped. Here in Wyoming, a grass fed steer will run $4-$5 a pound. A whole steer will yield about 80 pounds of ground meat, and the rest should be cut into steaks and roasts. This meat is much cheaper than organic steaks and roasts in the health food or grocery store. If you don't have room to freeze that quantity, see if a health conscious friend will split the steer with you.
• Grow your own vegetables in the summer, then cook and freeze them so they are available to you in the winter. We grow spinach, herbs, squash, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes and other vegetables in the summer. From that harvest, I make salsa, squash casseroles, and other dishes and freeze them. These are great in the middle of January when the vegetables in the grocery store are outrageously expensive.
• Raise your own chickens for eggs and meat, or buy eggs and poultry products from farms where the birds have been allowed to range freely. You can see the difference in the egg yolks of our free range, healthy chickens in comparison to store bought eggs. Free range eggs have much higher levels of beta carotene and omega-3 fatty acids, which makes the yolks bright orange instead of yellow.
• Find and join an organic food buying club in your area. I belong to a United Naturals food club where I live. Search Google to see if United Naturals delivers in your area. If you can't find a club in your area, consider starting one!
• Find a local source for clean, raw milk, cream and cheese from grass fed dairy cattle. Raw milk and cream from grass fed cows is one of nature's healthiest foods. If you don't have access to clean, raw milk, at least buy organic milk from grass fed cows. Both Organic Valley and Natural by Nature brand organic milk is from cows that have access to grass.

It takes a little work to avoid processed foods and take control of your food supply, but in the end, you'll find it's worth it, both financially and in terms of overall health.

By Ellen L. Davis