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Better Choices

5 Essential Ways to Avoid Genetically-Modified Food (GMOs)

Recently, I got an e-mail from a reader asking how she would know if she is eating genetically-modified soy or not.

Figuring that many other people may have that same question, I wanted to explain how to avoid eating genetically-modified food (GMOs) and the things that you need to look out for.

#1 – Buy USDA Certified Organic Products  GMOs are prohibited in organic food. Therefore, look for products that contain the USDA certified organic seal.

Even though GMOs are prohibited in organic, organic crops can be contaminated by GMOs through cross-pollination and drift. (That is why the proliferation of GMOs is a real threat to organic farming. The co-existence of GM-crops and organic crops is simply not possible, despite what our government would like us to believe.)

USDA rules require that organic certifiers test samples from at least 5% of the operations they certify on an annual basis.

#2 – Buy Non-GMO Project Verified Products  There is an independent, third-party organization called the Non-GMO Project.

This entity does field testing on every base ingredient in a product and does not allow any of its verified products to contain more than 0.9% of genetically-modified ingredients. Since GMOs are so widespread, it is nearly impossible to find something that is 100% GMO-free, and this 0.9% is the same standard that Europe uses as well.

A few important things of note here:

* When it comes to detecting GMOs, the Non-GMO Project utilizes a much more rigorous process than the one employed by the USDA’s National Organic Program. So, if you can buy a product that is USDA certified organic and Non-GMO Project Verified, that is the best of both worlds.

* The Non-GMO Project does not account for super-toxic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, and other substances prohibited in USDA certified organic products. Its objective is to identify genetically-modified ingredients.

That is why I will always choose USDA certified organic over Non-GMO Project Verified.

* Many products are labeled as “Non-GMO”. Yet, if it is not Non-GMO Project Verified, how do you know that it is in fact Non-GMO?

You don’t.

But if you know what the high-risk GM-crops are, you will have a much better idea if it is Non-GMO or not.

#3 – Understand the High Risk GM-Crops  In the U.S., there are five main crops that are incredibly high risk of being genetically-modified. If they’re not USDA certified organic, it is almost a near guarantee that they are GM.

The five high risk crops and the estimated percent that are genetically-modified:

Corn – (91%)

Canola – (90%)

Cotton – (90%)

Sugar Beets – (95%)

Soy – (94%)

Also, more than 50% of Hawaiian papaya is genetically-modified, and there are over 24,000 acres that grow GM-zucchini and GM-yellow squash. Genetically-modified sweet corn is a very new product and is not widespread just yet, so just to be on the safe side, always try to buy organic sweet corn.

#4 – Understand the High-Risk Derivative Ingredients   There are many ingredients, or products, derived from high-risk crops that you need to know about, and they are sometimes referred to as “invisible” genetically-modified ingredients. Some of them include:

Corn – Corn flour, corn gluten, corn masa, corn starch, corn syrup, cornmeal, High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), and sweeteners such as fructose, dextrose, and glucose.

Soy – Soy flour, soy protein, soy isolates, soy isoflavones, soy lecithin, vegetable proteins, textured vegetable protein (TVP), tofu, tamari, tempeh, and soy protein supplements.

Sugar Beets – Sugar not specified as 100% cane sugar is likely from GM-sugar beets.

Cotton – Cottonseed oil

Canola – Canola oil (also called rapeseed oil)

Vegetable oil, vegetable fat and margarines can be made from soy, corn, cottonseed, and/or canola.

#5 – Avoid Animal Products That May Have Been Exposed to GMOs  If you’re not a vegan or vegetarian, consuming non-organic animal products carries real risks. Here’s why.

* Non-organic dairy products may have come from cows who have been injected with the GM-hormone recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH). Please read this post on why organic milk is a MUST, especially for kids.

* Non-organic animal products, such as meat, eggs, and dairy products, may have come from animals that have eaten GM-feed.

A message from Tradin Organic

How Tradin Organic is Helping Coconut Farmers in The Philippines

For more than a decade, Tradin Organic has been working with local partners in The Philippines to bring a diversified range of organic products to the market, such as coconut oil, tropical fruits and even cocoa.

The company is helping to support local farmers by assisting them with technical support and organic certification, in addition to paying Fairtrade premium on top of the organic premium.

Learn more.

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Living Maxwell

Better Choices

Another Reason to Eat Organic — GMOs and Weedkiller Found in Conventional Cereal

If anyone you know is still feeding their children conventional cereal, maybe this piece of news will get them to change their habits.

GMO Free USA, a non-profit that educates consumers and other stakeholders about the potential hazards of GMOs, just published its results of independent lab tests (verified by DNA analysis) done on Kellogg’s Froot Loops cereal.

Here’s what they found:

1) 100% of the corn in the Froot Loops was genetically-modified, containing DNA sequences known to be present in insecticide-producing Bt and Roundup Ready corn. This corn produces insecticides inside of the plant’s cells and cannot be washed off.

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A message from Tradin Organic

Why Tradin Organic is Prioritizing Regenerative Organic Farming

At Tradin Organic, we believe that regenerative organic farming is key to growing healthy and nutritious food ingredients — for now and for future generations.

And in Sierra Leone, we have grown the world’s first Regenerative Organic Certified cacao.

Learn more.

Living Maxwell

Better Choices

5 Reasons to Eat Organic Apples

In a previous post, I wrote that milk is the most important organic product that a family can buy.

But milk is by no means the only item that people should be concerned about.

The worst offender on the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list are apples.

Forbes magazine recently did an excellent piece talking about five reasons to eat organic apples, and I wanted to share the highlights with you and provide commentary. To read the full article, click here.

Reason #1 – The average conventionally grown apple has more pesticide residue on it than any other fruit or vegetable.

Data from the Environmental Working Group showed that 98% of 700 apples tested had pesticides on them and that 48 different pesticides appeared. WOW!!!!

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Living Maxwell

Better Choices

What is Cold-Brew Coffee and Why You Should Know About it

Despite the fact that it has become a burgeoning trend in the beverage world, cold-brew coffee is still a relatively unknown quantity to the average person on the street.

In a very unscientific poll that I conducted, the majority of people that I talked to had heard of cold-brew coffee but couldn’t give me a good answer as to what it is and why people should be drinking it. And to be perfectly honest, I was pretty in the dark about cold-brew as well.

While I know that choosing organic coffee is a must, because coffee is one of the most chemically-treated crops in the world, I, too, had many questions about this increasingly popular drink.

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livingmaxwell: a guide to organic food & drink