Runa, one of my favorite organic tea brands, recently launched four bottled flavors of its very unique Guayusa tea, and I think they’re excellent.

I first spotted these bottles at the Green Festival NYC a few months ago and knew that I had to write about them.

What makes Runa different from any other tea that I have tasted is that it doesn’t have the astringency that most teas have. It is incredibly smooth, with no twinge of bitterness at all.

Interestingly, Runa’s tea, which is made from a leaf called Guayusa, has the same amount of caffeine as coffee and twice the amount of antioxidants as green tea.

All certified organic and fair trade certified, Runa’s bottled tea products come in four flavors — traditional, lemon-lemongrass, mint, hibiscus-berry — and they can be found at supermarkets in a select number of states across the country (check Runa’s store locator to see if they’re available near you). By far, my favorite flavor is the mint. Read more »

I have been trying to limit the amount of oil and dressings that I am using these days. Yet, eating salads with no dressing isn’t exactly the most exciting thing in the world.

So, I have been experimenting with organic salsa and came across one from Field Day that I just love.

When you open the bottle of this organic salsa, the powerful smell brings to mind just one word: freshness. It was as if someone literally just made it in their kitchen minutes ago.

The salsa itself is slightly chunky, has excellent overall texture, and offers an impressive flavor profile.

Field Day’s “hot” flavor definitely has some heat to it but is not unbearable.  I don’t feel my mouth burning for 10 minutes after I eat it. Read more »

There were several highlights from last year’s 2011 Natural Products Expo East trade show in Baltimore.

One of them was staying at the amazing Inn at the Black Olive hotel, the most green hotel that I have ever visited.

Another was speaking on one of the panels at the show titled “Allergies, Additives and Special Diets” – the first trade show panel that I was asked to be on.

And another one was a memory I have of driving back home to New York City from Baltimore. I was absolutely famished and reached into my bag looking for a food sample that I had received at the show.

I pulled out a Kur Delight, ripped open the wrapper, and bit into it. To this day, I vividly remember saying to myself “Wow, this is amazing.” I could not believe it how great it tasted. Read more »

Normally, I cringe when I hear the words “artisinal” or “specialty” to describe a food.

I just feel that they are overused terms that have been exploited for marketing purposes, similar to how all of the industrial food companies slap “natural” on so many of their products. And as we know, “natural” doesn’t mean anything.

Yet, when I tried out the cinnamon red maca almond butter by Jem, the first thought that came to my mind was “Wow, is this different. I guess this is what an artisinal or specialty product is supposed to taste like.” Read more »

While I do not have kids myself, I constantly think about what kinds of food I would feed my children if I did have them.

Two things are crystal clear to me.

One, they’d be eating all organic, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who knows me or reads my blog.

I have written before about how milk is the most important organic product a family can buy. Furthermore, I am well aware of the tremendous health risks that GMOs pose and would keep my kids as far away from them as humanly possible.

Two, I would introduce them to green juice and wheatgrass at an early age.

One issue, however, that all health-conscious parents must worry about is what their children are eating when they’re at school or with their friends. Read more »

I cannot tell a lie. I have a real soft spot for root beer.

It brings back memories of when I was a kid (decades before my organic days) and would have root beer floats in the summer. The taste just really does it for me.

Except for the occasional glass of Sipp’s ginger blossom, which is nearly impossible to resist, I don’t drink any soda.

So when I tasted Cell-nique’s root beer flavor at Expo West recently, I kind of flipped out.

Cell-nique is not a carbonated soda but a juice made of many of the world’s best superfoods. And that is what makes this beverage so impressive.
Read more »

I see a lot of products in the organic food world but there is a buzz about Harmless Harvest and its coconut water that I have never seen before.

This tends to happen when you are in a super-hot category and you are the best tasting, healthiest product in that category.

Harmless Harvest’s raw organic coconut water is made by using a technology called high pressure pasteurization (HPP), which I named one of my top 5 organic food trends for 2012. Read more »