livingmaxwell: a guide to organic food & drink

My Best Juicing Advice – Keep It Simple

Written by Max Goldberg on June 18, 2013. Follow Max on Twitter: @livingmaxwell.

best-juicing-advice

Ever since I launched the Pressed Organic Juice Directory a few months ago, people have been constantly asking me what I drink for juice.

In terms of pressed organic juice, I prefer green juice in a glass bottle. However, sometimes glass is not available. And sometimes straight green juice is not available either. Usually, this means that a juice bar has added apple for sweetness.

Despite the fact that I have plenty of places to buy pressed organic juice in my neighborhood, I have not abandoned juicing at home. And I never will. Read More »

Gopal’s Pumpkin Seed Sprouties are the Perfect Travel Food

Written by Max Goldberg on June 15, 2013. Follow Max on Twitter: @livingmaxwell.

sprouties-organic-pumpkin-seeds-gopals

I am always on the search for healthy snacks that I can take with me on-the-go or for whenever I travel.

My ideal snack is nutritious, filling, and not too sweet. I don’t want to eat something and suffer through that “sugar hangover”, even if it is derived from a natural source.

Pumpkin seeds, also known as pepitas, are that perfect food. Not only do they satisfy my hunger, but they provide excellent health benefits: Read More »

Whole Foods Opens its First Inner-City Location, Receives Enormous Welcome

Written by Max Goldberg on June 10, 2013. Follow Max on Twitter: @livingmaxwell.

whole-foods-detroit-opening

The next time I speak with Walter Robb, the Co-CEO of Whole Foods, I can’t wait to ask him the following question: So, how does it feel to be a rock star?

This was the jaw-dropping scene from when he and his colleagues opened Whole Foods’ highly anticipated Detroit store, located at 115 Mack Avenue.

While I have never attended an opening of a Whole Foods store before, I cannot imagine that there has ever been quite a reception like the one above.

Yet, the new Detroit store is by no means your average Whole Foods location. It is the company’s first inner-city store and has been the subject of close attention in the Detroit media since 2008. Additionally, it has been of tremendous personal importance to Walter Robb.

“We’ve worked toward this day for nearly five years. We’re inspired by what Detroiters are doing for this great city,” the Co-CEO of Whole Foods said. “They are our partners, our neighbors, our team members, and our friends. We couldn’t be prouder or happier to be part of the mix.” Read More »

Organic Avenue’s New Quinoa Bowls are Outstanding

Written by Max Goldberg on June 4, 2013. Follow Max on Twitter: @livingmaxwell.

Last year, I met with Jonathan Grayer, the new controlling shareholder of Organic Avenue, and one of the things that we discussed was the quality of food at his company. Much to my surprise, he was incredibly forthcoming and acknowledged that several of Organic Avenue’s items were not up to par.

He told me that his goal was to offer raw and cooked vegan food that would appeal to a mainstream audience and that also tasted really, really good.

Aside from already having revamped the salads, which are now excellent, Organic Avenue recently launched its first line of quinoa bowls, and I have been beyond impressed.

The three red quinoa bowls are the following:

SWEET YAM & CELERY

organic-avenue-quinoa-bowls-sweet-yam-celery

Very hearty and filling. The sweetness of the yams ties everything together really well. When I am hungry, this is what I go for. Read More »

THANK YOU, Gary Hirshberg!!!!!!!

Written by Max Goldberg on May 28, 2013. Follow Max on Twitter: @livingmaxwell.

gary-hirshberg-just-label-it

In case you didn’t read it, I started off my Organic Link Love column the other day with a quote from Debbie Stabenow, the Democratic Senator from Michigan and chair of the Agriculture Committee.

During the recent vote for GMO-labeling in the Senate Farm Bill, The Huffington Post quoted her as saying that “labels run counter to science and the public interest in healthy food.”

This is one of the most ridiculous statements that I have ever heard. And it is completely insulting to the intelligence of any American citizen.

In the United States, we have a fundamental right to know what is in our food. Yet, these rights don’t seem to matter to a majority of the politicians in Washington, D.C., such as Senator Stabenow, who are fighting against the labeling of GMOs.

The real question is: why are so many men and women in Congress doing everything they can to kill GMO-labeling efforts?

Gary Hirshberg, Co-Founder/Chairman of Stonyfield and Founder of Just Label It!, said it best the other day when he gave a commencement address at Bates College in Maine:

“conventional wisdom is a fabricated aura of inevitability bought and paid for by massive lobbying and campaign finance donations.”

This is not hyperbole. This is reality. Read More »