A Field Guide To Buying Organic

The definitive guide to healthful, affordable food shopping in the Organic Age—from a pioneer in the organic movement What does it really mean when a food is labeled organic? While many of us believe there are good reasons to buy organic, what exactly are they? The authors of this indispensable handbook sift fact from fiction to help you make informed decisions that are right for you. Here is everything you need to know, including when paying more for organic is worth it—and when it’s not. A Field Guide to Buying Organic provides you with: ·Self-tests to determine your current organic-shopping habits—and the type of organic shopper you want to become ·A primer on organic food standards, labels, and seals ·Health and quality comparisons of organically grown versus conventionally grown produce ·An aisle-by-aisle supermarket guide to information about the most popular organic produce, dairy, meat and poultry, baked goods, nuts, seeds, grains, convenience foods, and drinks ·The truth about pesticides, hormones, genetically modified foods (GMOs), toxins, and bacteria …Plus illustrations featuring product logos and contact information, and a fascinating overview of the evolution of organics

The Organic Food Handbook examines an important trend and provides a concise, easy-to-follow guide to eating and buying organic food. It clearly explains what organic food is and how it is produced, and where to buy it at the most economical prices. The book, also, covers: how conventional food poses threats to our health and environment; why organic is a healthier, safer choice for us all; how organic certification ensure that organic food is produced to the highest standards; and, how the high costs of conventional foods are hidden in the subsidies we support. As this book shows, organic food clearly benefits our personal health as well as the environment. Eating organic contributes to a more sustainable world and a healthier future.

At last, a field guide to identifying and selecting more than 200 fruits and vegetables from around the world! The perfect companion for every shopper, Field Guide to Produce offers tips for selecting, storing, and preparing everything from apples to zucchini. When an unfamiliar edible appears on your grocer’s shelf, simply flip through the full-color insert until you’ve found its photograph. Turn to the corresponding page to discover its country of origin, common uses, and season of harvest. This practical guide includes more than 200 full-color photographs of the world’s most popular fruits and vegetables, cross-referenced to in-depth descriptions and selection tips. Step-by-step preparation directions tell you whether the item must be peeled, washed, trimmed, or blanched. Grocery shopping—and dinner—will never be the same again!

Read Diane McEachern's posts on the Penguin Blog. Protecting our environment is one of the biggest issues facing our planet today. But how do we solve a problem that can seem overwhelming-even hopeless? As Diane MacEachern argues in Big Green Purse, the best way to fight the industries that pollute the planet, thereby changing the marketplace forever, is to mobilize the most powerful consumer force in the world-women. MacEachern's message is simple but revolutionary. If women harness the "power of their purse" and intentionally shift their spending money to commodities that have the greatest environmental benefit, they can create a cleaner, greener world. Spirited and informative, this book: - targets twenty commodities-cars, cosmetics, coffee, food, paper products, appliances, cleansers, and more-where women's dollars can make a dramatic difference; - provides easy-to-follow guidelines and lists so women can choose the greenest option regardless of what they're buying, along with recommended companies they should support; - encourages women to spend wisely by explaining what's worth the premium price some green products cost, what's not, and when they shouldn't spend money at all; and - differentiates between products that are actually "green" and those that are simply marketed as "ecofriendly." Whether readers want to start with small changes or are ready to devote the majority of their budget to green products, MacEachern offers concrete and immediate ways that women can take action and make a difference. Empowering and enlightening, Big Green Purse will become the "green shopping bible" for women everywhere who are asking, "What can I do?"

This definitive month-by-month guide brings gardeners into the delicious world of edible landscaping and helps take a load off the planet as we achieve greater food security. Full of illustrative colour photos and step-by-step instructions, The Zero-Mile Diet shares wisdom gleaned from 30 years of food growing and seed saving with comprehensive advice on: * Growing organic food year-round * The small fruit orchard and backyard berries * Superb yet simple seasonal recipes * Preserving your harvest * Seed saving and plant propagation * Dirt-cheap ways to nourish your soil * Backyard poultry--it's less time-consuming than you think * Growing vegetables in the easiest way possible * A-z guide to growing the best vegetables and herbs Put organic home-grown fruits and vegetables on your table throughout the year, using the time-saving, economical and sustainable methods of gardening outlined in The Zero-Mile Diet. This book is about REAL food and how eating it will change our lives for the better.

More and more people are eating organic food. Once derided as a hippie fad, today organic is the fastest growing segment of the United States food industry with consumer demand increasing by nearly 20 percent each year. No longer confined to natural food stores, organic food is now on supermarket shelves, served in restaurants and fast food chains, and even sold at national parks and major league baseball stadiums. Many schools and colleges, such as Yale and Stanford, now serve organic food to their students. People are choosing organic because they want a healthier and safer alternative to ''conventional'' food with its use of toxic pesticides, antibiotics, hormones, and genetic engineering. The Organic Food Handbook examines this important trend and provides a concise, simple guide to eating and buying organic food.