Fast-forward 18 months later: Even though it isn’t the Stonyfield Café serving up the fare, organic food will be available for the first time ever at this year’s Super Bowl.

The introduction of organic food at the Super Bowl is the result of a partnership between HOMEGROWN Concessions, a food entity owned by Farm Aid, and Centerplate, the organization who is responsible for all of the concession stands at Lucas Oil Stadium, the venue hosting Sunday’s championship game in Indianapolis.

The food provided by HOMEGROWN Concessions is sustainably produced by local and/or organic family farmers who grow their food in an ecologically-friendly manner, such as grass-fed or without the use of GMOs. Additionally, HOMEGROWN Concessions showcases the farmer story and serves its food in compostable or recyclable packaging.

The organic offerings available to Super Bowl attendees will include:

HOMEGROWN Beef Chili – featuring hormone-free and antibiotic-free beef from regional organic beef producers, as well as from Patty Reding of Langeland Farms in Greensburg, Ind. The tomatoes are grown in the Midwest and processed in Indiana. The onions, celery, peppers and garlic are organic.

HOMEGROWN Pork Chili – featuring hormone-free and antibiotic-free pork from Stanley and Evan Hall of Hall Farms in Paoli, Ind. The garlic and oil are organic.

HOMEGROWN Organic Vegetarian Chili – featuring organic beans from the Fields of Agape Cooperative in Carthage, Ind. The onions, celery, garlic, carrots, peppers and oil are also organic.

According to Farm Aid co-founder John Mellencamp, “Farm Aid is introducing football fans to family farmers by serving HOMEGROWN Chili at the Super Bowl. It’s good food from family farms, including some from right here in Indiana.”

In addition to bringing the story of food grown at family farms, HOMEGROWN Chili sales at the Super Bowl will benefit Farm Aid and family farmers. Centerplate will donate $2 to Farm Aid for every bowl of HOMEGROWN Chili sold.

“We’re proud to stand side-by-side with Farm Aid, local family farmers and Indiana icon John Mellencamp in their mission to create thriving family farms. And we’re thrilled they’re working with us to create a true Heartland Experience for fans,” says Centerplate CMO Bob Pascal. “With this HOMEGROWN program, Centerplate is raising the bar for local partnership and, with the first-ever organic concessions item at the Super Bowl, we’re setting a new standard for healthy and organic hospitality.”

MY TAKE

What a phenomenal development! Aside from the fact that the sale of organic foods will help local and organic farmers, this is just another sign that organic is truly going mainstream.

It also demonstrates that a growing number of people want healthy, hormone-free, pesticide-free, non-GMO food at sporting events. And I have no doubt that sales of these organic foods at the Super Bowl will be much greater than the people at Farm Aid and Centerplate are expecting.

Yet, what most Americans need to realize is that even though the general population is demanding more and more organic food, the Obama administration is embracing policies that are incredibly damaging to organic, such as the deregulation of genetically-engineered alflalfa (will destroy the organic meat and dairy industries) and the imminent approval of genetically-engineered corn which is resistant to 2,4-D, a toxic herbicide used in Agent Orange.

If you care about and want to ensure the long-term viability of organic food, please sign the Just Label It campaign as a way to tell our government that genetically-engineered food must be labeled.

The U.S. is the only developed country in the world that doesn’t require GMOs to be labeled. Why is this?

Because Big Ag and the major chemical companies use their tremendous power in Washington D.C. to make sure consumers are not adequately informed about what’s in their food.

Thank you so much for supporting organic.

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So, who do I want to win the Super Bowl?

The Patriots, of course. I grew up in Boston and have been a huge fan for as long as I can remember.

Plus, the Patriots’ offensive coordinator and recently named Penn State coach, Bill O’Brien, was a classmate of mine at Brown.

Whenever holidays come around, it doesn’t mean that I take a holiday from eating organic.

Since the majority of the world is not yet on the organic bandwagon (including most of my friends and family), it requires that we plan in advance and get resourceful. But it also presents a great opportunity to expose people to some excellent organic products.

Here are a few ideas for an organic Valentine’s Day.

- Equal Exchange is selling a fantastic box called My Fair Valentine Cards & Candy.

Each set includes 24 Valentine’s Day cards and 24 fairly traded, organic dark chocolate minis. The colorful cards are illustrated with animals, and the informative bookmark explains where fairly traded chocolate comes from.

The My Fair Valentine Cards & Candy box is one of the most creative organic Valentine’s Day gifts I have seen. It can be purchased online and at select retail locations.

- One of my favorite organic restaurants in NYC, One Lucky Duck, is selling organic chocolate hearts. They are raw, dark chocolate and can be purchased individually or in a pack of 5.

Anything that is made in the kitchen of One Lucky Duck is absolutely top-notch.

- If you’re looking for something unusual while still keeping with a chocolate theme, consider Tisano’s Cacao Tea. I profiled Tisano several months ago and it remains one of the most unique organic products I have ever come across.

- In the hunt for some chocolate whose red, purple and black wrapper matches the holiday theme?

If so, consider Lulu’s Chocolate. This organic chocolate is rich, smooth tasting, raw, and is made with coconut sugar, one of my favorite sweeteners.

Lulu’s has a special Valentine’s Day box of all 6 of its bars for $19, and it can be purchased online.

- Lastly, for those of who eat organic, it is vitally important to buy organic flowers as well.

The flower industry is a massive, massive industry in Latin America, most of which is non-organic.  As a result, a TON of pesticides is sprayed on the flowers and eventually makes its way into the water supply.  Furthermore, the chemicals sicken the workers.

The NY Times reported on this several years ago, and it did not paint a pretty picture.

I’ve ordered from Organic Bouquet several times before and have always had a very positive experience.

Have a fantastic organic Valentine’s Day!!

One such product that I recently discovered at Whole Foods Tribeca is Sol Simple Solar Dried Bananas.

Produced in Nicaragua, the organic bananas come in thin spears and are dried indoors using a solar drying technology, which enables Sol Simple to reduce carbon emissions.

According to the company, traditional outdoor drying techniques take 2-3 days, expose the fruit to mold and bacteria, and allow the fruit to oxidize.

Sol Simple’s end product is a sweet-tasting and slightly chewy banana spear.

The benefit of sun-dried bananas, as opposed to the bananas that we get at the stores, is that the fruit is not picked off of the tree as early. This means that it has more time to mature and contains higher level of minerals and vitamins.

Aside from the fact that Sol Simple solar dried bananas are a unique organic product, the story behind the company is very inspirational.

With numerous years of experience in Latin America, Will Burke wanted to start a dried fruit business in Nicaragua that would not only produce healthy snacks but would also benefit impoverished communities in that country.

What is Sol Simple doing now? Among other things, the company:

- Produces a line of organic fruit, nut and coffee products.

- Employs 18 single mothers.

- Sources from 35 different producers whom either have converted to certified organic production or are in transition.

- Works on organic and renewable energy integration development programs in the local area.

- Partners directly with small farmers and helps prepare them for organic inspections.

- Operates the largest solar hybrid dryer in the region.

Two projects in the works include:

(1) designing and funding a bio-digester, a large tank that would dispose of biodegradable waste material and produce methane, which would generate electricity; and

(2) investigating the integration of a vegetable oil converted diesel generator or converted propane/methane generator fueled by Sol Simple’s bio-digester in order to power the company’s processing facility in Nicaragua.

Sol Simple is selling a wonderful organic product and is also making an incredibly meaningful contribution to society.  Awesome job!!

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Sol Simple products are available at select Whole Foods and other retail locations.

The video below is in Spanish but you’ll see how clean the factory is and meet some of the single mothers that work at Sol Simple.

I was at a party the other night and got into a discussion with a bakery owner about how some of the best organic products that I have reviewed on livingmaxwell are from Italy.

Italian Volcano orange juice, Bionaturae fruit spread and Middle Earth Organics pasta sauce were a few organic brands that immediately came to mind.

What is it about food from Italy that makes it taste so good?

I believe it is the soil quality.

Unlike in the U.S., their land has not been ravaged by long-term, toxic pesticide use.

This means that Italy has been able to maintain rich, healthy, and biodiverse soil.  As a result, the country grows fantastic tasting and nutritious food.

In the excellent documentary called Dirt! The Movie, we get a comprehensive look at dirt, or soil, from numerous different angles including:

- What is in dirt
- Why is it so essential for the health of our food and planet
- Why organic farming techniques are so important for soil
- How industrial farming and major energy industries are ravaging the soil and the implications for the world

Even though Dirt! The Movie does show us the all of the negative things happening because of our mistreatment of soil, we also meet several inspiring individuals and organizations around the globe working to make positive changes.

A lot of people see organic food as means to achieve good health, yet the environmental and sustainability components of organic farming often get overlooked. This movie shows us why dirt, or the “skin of the earth”, is so vital and is something that needs to be protected at all costs.

I strongly recommend Dirt! The Movie, especially for kids, and found it to be very moving and extremely informative.

Because it is the only nationally-recognized and accepted system we have in place for organic standards.

I firmly believe that the more people we have participating and engaged in the system, the stronger it will become. Conversely, the more people who opt out of the system, the weaker it will become.

That being said, it is by no means perfect. And just as is in every other area of our society, big companies in the organic sector use lobbyists in Washington D.C. to enact policies that will benefit them financially.

Even though organic has social ideals that many other industries do not, we can’t forget that organic is big, big business – $27 billion a year.

As I wrote about recently, the USDA’s National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) agreed to allow illegal, synthetically-derived additives – commonly marketed as DHA and ARA — into certified organic products.

The company who makes these additives is Martek Biosciences Corporation. Martek is part of a $12 billion Dutch-based conglomerate,

DHA and ARA, are being added to milk, infant formula and other organic foods by such companies as Dean Foods (Horizon), Abbott Laboratories (Similac) and Nurture, Inc. (Happy Baby).

Needless to say, this decision has created outrage in the organic community and violated the standards set by the NOSB.

The Cornucopia Institute, an organic food watchdog organization, has formally requested (PDF) that the USDA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigate corruption at its National Organic Program.

Key highlights of Cornucopia’s complaint include:

- Misconduct by NOSB Chair Tracy Miedema and her allowing a deficient technical review, which went against the requirements as set forth in the NOSB Procedure Manual.

- The misleading of NOSB board members by NOSB chair Tracy Miedema and William J. Friedman, a Martek lobbyist and very powerful Washington D.C. lawyer at Covington & Burling LLP.

In addition, The Cornucopia Institute has also requested that the D.C. Bar conduct a formal ethics investigation into the conduct of William J. Friedman for misleading NOSB board members.

- Failure to disclose serious conflicts of interest by some NOSB board members, including two individuals who work at Earthbound Farms, the giant organic produce company.

- Possible use of GMOs in the DHA/ARA ingredients or in the processing of them. When asked repeatedly, Martek failed to provide any evidence or proof that its materials are GMO-free.

- NOSB allowed personal attacks by advocates and lobbyists of Martek against any individual who argued against Martek’s petitioned materials.

- NOSB Chair Tracy Miedema made disparaging remarks against unnamed non-profit organizations who worked to discredit “experts”.

She spoke extensively about these consumer and farmer organizations as putting out “misinformation” and said that their previous testimony was a “waste of time”.

DR. ALAN GREENE – WHOSE SIDE IS HE ON?

While I don’t know him well, I had always considered Dr. Alan Greene, a well-known physician who testified at the NOSB meeting on behalf of Martek’s supplements, to be a big organic advocate, and we met briefly at last year’s Natural Products Expo West conference.

He is the author of Feeding Baby Green, and his website says he has worked with organization such as The Organic Center, Environmental Working Group, and Allergy Kids.

Yet, The Cornucopia Institute paints a very, very different picture of Dr. Alan Greene.

The below is taken from Cornucopia’s website.

Dean Foods, Martek’s largest customer, brought in a well-known web-pediatrician, Dr. Alan Greene, who has acted as a public relations agent endorsing Horizon brand organic milk with the added Martek DHA oils.

Although Dr. Greene represented himself as a “consultant,” simply answering questions for Dean Foods, and stated he had previously worked for two other organic companies, but failed to disclose his multiple conflicts of interest in commenting on the benefits of Martek’s manufactured DHA supplements.

Greene has also accepted compensation from Mead Johnson, the largest conventional infant formula manufacturer, to promote Martek’s DHA oil in their products, and even has his own product line of nutritional supplements that include Martek DHA, marketed by Twinlabs with his name and photograph on the product package.

“It is unconscionable that a physician, who accepted money from a big drug company to promote synthetic DHA—which many believes promotes the use of baby formula at the expense of the nutrients in breast feeding—failed to disclose such a gross conflict of interest when he testified before the governmental body on certified ‘organic’ standards,” said Lisa Graves, Executive Director of the Center for Media and Democracy/PRWatch, which helps expose corporate PR tactics.

Greene’s role on behalf of Dean Foods and Martek was to directly dispute the preponderance of scientific literature, including two meta-analyses, that discredits Martek’s claims that their supplements promote cognitive development in infants and children.

MY TAKE

Several thoughts.

1) I am very happy that The Cornucopia Institute has taken these measures to protect the integrity of organic and the health of organic consumers.

While I was not at the meeting, it appeared that Martek rolled out their team of “experts” and did their best to bulldoze through their materials.

I don’t fault Martek at all. That is what powerful corporations do – use their muscle to influence policy. Nothing new there.

But what concerns me is that the NOSB does not appear to be protecting organic as it should be doing.

Unfortunately, corruption hits all areas of society, including organic.

Read about the extremely questionable activities that have been going on at the Organic Trade Association and you’ll see what I mean.

2) If I had kids, I would absolutely not be feeding them any certified organic product that has these “added DHA or ARA” supplements.

Yes, they have been approved by the NOSB but a huge cloud of suspicion remains and many questions have not been answered.

When it comes to my health, I don’t listen to what completely conflicted lobbyists and financially motivated “experts” have to say.

Give me independent, third-party analysis and have Martek satisfactorily answer the questions about GMOs in its products. Then, I will listen.

3) Please support The Cornucopia Institute and The Center for Food Safety, two organizations who are constantly fighting and litigating on behalf of organic consumers.

4) Add your name to the Just Label It campaign and spread the word about the importance of getting GMOs labeled.

The best way to take organics to the next level is to require that GMOs be labeled. We are still short of 1 million signature goal, so please get involved.

As soon as I have more news about Cornucopia’s complaint to the OIG, I will let you know.

Thank you for supporting organic food.

Organic beet kvass isn’t exactly a household name, similar to a coconut water or even kombucha.

And I don’t believe that it will ever come close to having the same name recognition as these other two drinks.

Yet, its health benefits and utility may surpass them both.

A lacto-fermented beverage of Russian origin, beet kvass provides the body with beneficial bacteria and aids in digestion.

It is also touted as a blood purifier and an excellent way to cleanse the liver.

Unlike kombucha, which uses sugar in the fermentation process, the beet kvass from Hawthorne Valley uses no sugar at all. And because it is a raw drink, all of the vitamins and minerals remain intact.

While I tend to drink it straight, the other great thing about beet kvass is that it can be used as a base for soups, salad dressings or marinades.

Beet kvass is slightly sweet, slight salty and slightly addictive.

And it is just one of those drinks, very much like green juice, that you know as soon as it is in your mouth how incredibly healthy it is for you.

If you’re looking to incorporate a new, nutritionally-rich beverage into your lifestyle, give organic beet kvass a try. I love it.

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Made from organic beets, organic cabbage, organic spices, unrefined sea salt and well water, Hawthorne Valley beet kvass can be found at select retail locations and can be purchased online.

I had been hearing very good things about these fixed-price, four-course dinners at The Natural Gourmet Institute and finally decided to check it out last week. Here’s what I had:

HIJIKI CAVIAR BLINI

This was a very clever use of hijiki, a sea vegetable that I enjoy a lot.

WALDORF SALAD & MUSHROOM CONSOMME WITH GARLIC TOAST

While the salad may appear to have a heavy cream sauce, the dressing is actually dairy-free and made from cashew milk. The soup provided great balance to the crisp and refreshing salad.

TEMPEH-QUINOA LOAF SUPREME

It was a little embarrassing when this meal was served because I devoured it in about 10 seconds while everyone else had barely eaten a bite of their food.

I have had a ton of quinoa and a decent amount of tempeh in my life but never together in a loaf. It really worked and had fantastic texture and flavors.

Alongside the quinoa-tempeh loaf were kale, green beans, onion rings, and a potato, Jerusalem artichoke and cauliflower duchesse.

BANANA BOAT SUNDAE

As with everything else in this meal, the dessert was dairy-free. Coconut milk was the base ingredient, and brown rice syrup was the main sweetener.

This dairy-free/sugar-free ice cream sundae was rich and decadent.

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Overall, I was very impressed with the meal at The Natural Gourmet Institute. Everything was incredibly fresh, and I really liked the variety of the flavors presented in each course.

And once the meal was over, the chefs came out and we were able to ask them questions about how the food was prepared. How great is that?

While I have never taken any cooking classes at The Natural Gourmet Institute, I would like to do so soon and left my Friday dinner with an extremely favorable impression of the school.

If you’re ever looking for something fun and different to do on a weekend in NYC, definitely give these Friday night dinners at The Natural Gourmet Institute a try. You’ll eat some fantastic food and meet some really interesting people.

The one criticism that I hear all of the time about organic is that it costs too much.

Yet, if you take the time to shop correctly and cook at home, organic can definitely be affordable.

Here is how the costs broke down to make this great tasting quinoa dinner, and every single ingredient was organic.

COST OF EACH INGREDIENT FROM THE STORE

Before I cooked, I went to my local organic market and bought the following items.

Organic Cherry Tomoatoes: $4.19
Organic Spring Mix: $2.48
Organic Avocado: $1.49
Organic Walnuts: $1.36
Organic Quinoa:$1.32

Total Store Items – $10.84

COST OF EACH INGREDIENT AT HOME

I also used some ingredients that were already in my kitchen, and those costs need to be included as well.

For the items below, I took the price of the item and made a rough calculation of how much I used of each. The resulting number is the cost below.

Organic Sauerkraut: $1.57 (1/3rd of $6.29)
Organic Black Sesame Seeds $0.06 (1/50th of $3.19)
Organic Dulse Flakes: $0.12 (1/50th of $5.97)
Organic Pitted Kalamata Olives: $1.74 (1/4th of $6.99)

Total Home Items – $3.50
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Total Store Items: $10.84
Total Home Items: $3.50

Total Cost of Dinner: $14.34

There is not a chance that I could have gone to any organic restaurant and gotten this meal for anything close to $15.

Aside from the price, the numerous ingredients were super-high in minerals, vitamins and nutrients, and the sauerkraut provided the beneficial bacteria that our bodies need.

Even better was how good this organic dinner tasted, and it only took about 15 minutes to prepare.

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Trying to make organic more affordable for your family?

If so, sign-up for my newsletter and receive my Top 5 Inexpensive Ways to Shop Organic.

On the call we saw a preview of the fantastic new Just Label It video (WATCH BELOW) and we also heard from:

* Gary Hirshberg, Chairman of Stonyfield, who recently resigned as CEO to dedicate more time to this very important cause.

* Robyn O’Brien, leading food safety advocate and author of the acclaimed book The Unhealthy Truth: One Mother’s Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America’s Food Supply — and What Every Family Can Do to Protect Itself.

* Robert Kenner, writer, director and producer of the documentary Food, Inc. and the Just Label It video below.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS DISCUSSED

- The general benchmark for labeling, of any sorts, is materiality. Is something about the food materially different that would warrant a label?

For example, “made from concentrate” or “country of origin”. These are things that must now be labeled.

Yet GMOs, because they don’t taste or smell materially different, do not have to be labeled. As we know, this reasoning is completely absurd. The DNA structure of GM-food and non-GM-food is totally different.

As a result, we recently filed a petition with the FDA mandating that they require the labeling of GMOs.

GMOs receive patents because they are deemed unique and different, but the FDA/USDA considers GM-food and non-GM-food the same thing.  Makes no sense at all.

- The U.S. is the only developed country in the world that doesn’t require GMOs to be labeled. The EU, Japan, Russia, China and Brazil all require labeling.

- The major safety concerns about GMOs continue to grow. While pharmaceuticals must undergo years of human clinical trials, GMOs need none of that, even though they are something that people ingest on a daily basis.

- The growth of GM-crops is leading to an increasing amount of toxic pesticides being sprayed on our farmland, which is causing another set of serious problems.

In the last several years, the use of glyphosate, Monsanto’s Round-Up herbicide, has grown from 7.9 million pounds per year to 119 million pounds per year.

The really alarming problem is that these weeds have become resistant to glyphosate and have morphed into uncontrollable “superweeds”. Superweeds now occupy over 13 million acres throughout the country.

In order to deal with these superweeds, Dow Chemical believes that 2,4-D, a super-toxic herbicide, is needed to kill them.

Dow Chemical is now poised to receive permission from the USDA for a GM-corn that is resistant to 2,4-D, one of the primary ingredients in Agent Orange.

So, in order to control these “superweeds”, we are going to pour even more toxic herbicides onto them.

2,4-D will not only poison our water supply but will severely impact the air quality wherever it is sprayed.

It is nothing short of an outrage what is going on, and the Obama Administration has shown no will to stop any of this.

- Robert Kenner talked about the most shocking thing that he witnessed while making the movie Food, Inc.

At a hearing to discuss whether cloned meat should be labeled or not, a representative for the meat industry said “it would be too confusing for consumers” and that they “shouldn’t get this information.”

- Right now, the Just Label It campaign has amassed 500,000 signatures. BUT we need 500,000 more to meet our goal of 1 million.

The link to sign the electronic petition is HERE. If you haven’t signed it, please do so.

Also, please forward this page to your entire network of colleagues, friends, and family, and have them watch this video below.

It is absolutely essential for the health and well-being of our country that genetically-modified foods be labeled.

My body seems to reject heavy sauces, fried foods, and sautées, even if they are 100% organic.

I like simplicity in a meal and as a result, I tend to cook a decent amount for myself. Why?

Not only is cooking at home the most inexpensive way to eat organic but I can have exactly what I want.

Whenever I make quinoa, millet or a big salad, one of my favorite things to put on these dishes are black sesame seeds.

A rarity at organic restaurants, black sesame seeds can always be found in my kitchen for a few different reasons.

First, they are very rich in minerals such as magnesium, calcium, copper, and zinc. Getting these minerals into my diet is extremely important.

Second, I love the slightly nutty taste of black sesame seeds and they add tremendously to the flavor profile of whatever I am eating.

According to Chinese medicine, black sesame seeds are very good for the kidney and liver.

Some people also claim that black sesame seeds can reverse gray hair.

Whether black sesame seeds can actually reverse gray hair or not, I can’t say for sure. But I do have plenty of gray hair and I do eat a lot of organic black sesame seeds, so I’ll keep you posted on this one.

Frontier Natural Products Co-op, a brand that I like a lot, sells organic black sesame seeds and they can be purchased online.