Tag: bulk foods

The use of the word ‘natural’ or ‘all natural’ for foods has been in debate for years.  Does it mean organic or NonGMO or does it allow for the use of artificial ingredients, colors, GMO’s, and preservatives??  Currently, the FDA has just closed the public comment period and will review these comments and may or may not issue their definition or guidelines for the use of this word.  The entire food industry now waits for this guidance so that any changes to packaging and/or marketing copy can be updated to stay in compliance.  For more on this click here.

SunRidge Farms supplies ‘All Natural’ items as part of our offerings.  For over 30 years, SunRidge Farms All Natural has meant:

– No Preservatives or Additives

– No Artificial Colors or Flavors

– No Hydrogenated Oils

– 0g Trans Fat

We’ll continue to honor our heritage and our stance on the term ‘All Natural’ until regulations require us to change.  Should that occur we’ll adjust just as the food industry does anytime that new regulations demand.  Rest assured, the commitment to sourcing only the best ingredients remains our focus and that’s our bottom line.  We thank you for making SunRidge Farms your choice!

Still wondering if eating organic makes sense?  More and more evidence makes it clear that the advantages are many.  Here’s some more fuel to help motivate you to make better eating choices.

http://www.naturalnews.com/053701_organic_diet_conventional_foods_pesticide_poisoning.html

SunRidge Farms urges you to consider organic foods as often as possible.  Let’s work together to increase organic acreage for agriculture in the USA.

We are currently in a mass extinction event.  The term “extinction event” is used to define any period from three to twenty centuries, during which the planet loses 75 percent of its biodiversity. The world has lost 52 percent of its wildlife in the past four decades alone, so it is well on its way to meeting that criteria.

Read this story – http://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/this-image-of-a-man-consoling-an-orphaned-gorilla-will-inspire-you-to-fight-for-our-planets-survival/

There is only one earth and we must protect her.

Eating organic makes sense.  Eating NonGMO also makes sense.  Are they one and the same??  No, but either way stick to those labels when you are choosing foods.  Here’s a guide that will help you understand the distinction.  Thanks to Olivia’s Organics for this.

1. Learn the lingo.

Certified Organic food has been farmed and manufactured within the

strict guidelines set forth by the US Department of Agriculture. Farmers

and handlers that hold a Certificate of Organic Production, have

submitted to a 3^rd party audit, certifying that USDA Organic

Standards have been met. They are not allowed to use synthetic

herbicides, pesticides and many other harmful inputs. They also can’t

use anything that has been genetically engineered (GMO’s). Non-GMO

Verified food has been subjected to an additional 3^rd party

audit. This verifies that it has been produced according to best

practices for GMO avoidance. Note that organic foods are by definition

non-GMO, but non-GMO foods aren’t always organic.

2. Understand the label.

Certified Organic food will display the USDA ORGANIC seal on the

label. Look for this black/white or green/white logo. Products claiming

to be “100% Organic” or “Organically Grown” may not have been through

the auditing process and are typically not certified. Non-GMO Verified

food will brandish the Non-GMO “Butterfly” logo. Products claiming to be

“GMO Free” are not in compliance with the Non-GMO Project’s

verification process but many food companies have affidavits that certify the Non-GMO nature of that item.

Much

of the recent debate over GMOs has centered on labeling all products

that contain genetically modified ingredients. The U.S. and Canada have

no nationwide labeling requirements, but some companies have started

labeling products that do contain GMOs. If you don’t see the USDA or

Butterfly seals and the ingredients contain corn, soybeans, canola,

cottonseed, vegetable oil or any sugar other than “pure cane sugar,”

there’s a good chance it contains GMOs.

3. Research the issue.  Finding

information on the ongoing GMO debate can be challenging. It’s best to

seek out material from a variety of sources. Start by checking with the GMO Literacy Project through Penn State University, or keep up to date on the issue with coverage updates from the New York Times.

4. Find out more about the brands you eat.

 Once you understand the larger issue and how to read the labels of the

food you eat, check the labels of the brands you frequently purchase to

see where they stand on GMOs.

It seems to make sense that organic foods would be more nutritious.  With the amount of ‘noise’ that big agriculture creates to cloud our picture of what foods should be, it’s great to see studies that move us towards clarity.  Here’s the latest from NPR – http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/02/18/467136329/is-organic-more-nutritious-new-study-adds-to-the-evidence

From increased Omega 3’s to much higher flavanols and antioxidants for the body and the undeniable benefits to the planet, making the choice to eat organic makes more and more sense each day.

SunRidge Farms support organic farming and efforts to get more US farmers engaged in this effort.  Only 1% of US agricultural land is organic and yet demand far exceeds what we produce here in the states.  The countries that support organic farming are receiving the benefits of this demand, whereas American farmers are not.  Not only that, this hurts the American consumer as you have to pay more for organic as these crops aren’t available here.  Demand that your farmer go organic and help them understand it is in their best interests now and in the long term.

This article from the NY Times discusses GMO crop useage and acreage globally.  read more

This article really shows how deeply entrenched GMO crops are in the US and a few other countries.  This is the number one reason that organic crops cost more in the USA yet demand is skyrocketing.  Only 1% of US agricultural land is organic, yet GMO proponents say that globally, only a fraction of agricultural land is GMO.  Doesn’t make sense, does it??  Also today, the Wall Street Journal published a story regarding corn imports rising, even with a glut of production here in the US.  Corn farmers are complaining that this is driving prices down and “leaving bad tastes in our mouth”.  We offer this solution – switch your acreage to organic and watch those trucks come to your farm and take your harvest to market instead of watching those trucks drive by with corn from Brazil.

The candy company Mars is following General Mills’

and Campbell’s actions as the new standards loom. “Mars is introducing

clear, on-pack labeling on our products that contain GM ingredients

nationwide,” ahead of the Vermont regulations kicking in on July 1, the

company wrote in a blog post published on its website Friday.

This excerpt is from this article, https://www.yahoo.com/news/another-major-food-company-announces-nationwide-gmo-labeling-210814261.html

 

The same company also announced in February they were removing artificial colors from M&M’s.  Wow!  It took until 2016 for this company to actually think this was a good idea.

With SunRidge Farms you don’t have to ever worry about this.  We don’t use GMO’s and we certainly don’t use artificial anything.  We have been doing this for over 30 years.   Regardless of the fight over labeling, isn’t it strange that all of these companies made a conscious choice not to think of you, the consumer, for all these years but simply the bottom line.  Make the better choice for you and your family.  Buy organic whenever possible and buy from companies who have had your back since the day they opened their doors.

No, this is not an April Fools Day prank.  The people continue to speak and our congress is being forced to act.  It’s hard for even our elected officials to go against a 90% mandate.  That’s right, 90% + of people want GMO labeling, regardless of the money and effort being spent by big agriculture on fighting this.  Let’s keep the pressure on, only 1% of our US farmland is organic, yet over 5% of our demand for food is for organic.  It’s not hard to see that if we increase the amount of land for organic food production, prices for organic food will go down and we will be taking care of the environment, increasing jobs, and actually improving yields for crops.  Here’s more information on this topic – https://www.yahoo.com/news/gmo-labels-spread-u-congressional-effort-halt-them-182256896–sector.html

SunRidge Farms support mandatory GMO labeling and all efforts to move to organic farming and food production techniques.  Let us do what is right for the planet and our species.

Today, the Senate did the right thing and did not advance a bill from

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) that can best be described as the Denying

Americans the Right to Know (DARK) Act.

Here’s the full story – http://ecowatch.com/2016/03/16/senate-rejects-dark-act-gmo-labeling/

SunRidge Farms supports labeling of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) as we believe everyone has a right to know what is in their foods.  We thank the millions of Americans who made their voice heard by contacting their representatives in opposition of this bill.

In a mountainous region in eastern India, Sikkim is now a 100% organic

state, with no chemical pesticides or fertilizers and no GMOs.  This remarkable achievement can be the impetus for a move to all organic farming globally.  It can be done; we just need to commit.

http://foodrevolution.org/blog/organic-food-sikkim/

SunRidge Farms supports efforts to increase organic farming and encourages all to understand why organic farming is the right thing to do.