Hey organic foodies! I just bought Frito-Lay “Natural Tostitos, made with certified organic corn” and they are great! They weren’t on sale like the regular Tostitos, though. Regular are usually 2 for $5.00 at the grocery stores here in South Jersey. I think “Natural” was $3.29 or so for a 9 oz. bag.
Anyway, Frito-Lay has a Natural line now, including Lays potato chips, Cheetos, Ruffles, and Doritos! (Why am I so happy about this?) Right on the bag it says that these chips are made “with corn grown by farmers that meet the strictest standards for organic agriculture.” Frito-Lay says this organic corn has been certified by “Oregon Tilth“.
Here is their self-description at their web site:
“Oregon Tilth is a nonprofit research and education membership organization dedicated to biologically sound and socially equitable agriculture. Oregon Tilth offers educational events throughout the state of Oregon, and provides organic certification services to organic growers, processors, and handlers internationally.”
Oregon Tilth’s web site with great information on the latest news in the organic food movement. One article of particular interest to me was “USDA Amends Certification Cost Assistance Program” dated Nov. 7, 2008, that will help more farmers, producers, and processors of organic food.
If anyone is in the San Francisco area the weekend of Nov. 14, 15, 16, why don’t you check out the Green Festival? It is sponsored by Green Festival™, a joint project of Global Exchange and Co-op America.
Here is their message:
“We’re celebrating what’s working in our communities—for people, business and the environment. Join us at the nation’s premier sustainability event in San Francisco for 3 days filled with the best in green!
A joint project of Global Exchange and Co-op America, two leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to environmental and social justice for more than twenty-five years, Green Festival is a forum to explore and build sustainable solutions for communities and the environment. The San Francisco Green Festival will host 150 visionary speakers, 400 local and national green businesses, and dozens of community and nonprofit groups. All exhibitors must meet strict standards set by Co-op America, guaranteeing the highest level of social and environmental responsibility in everything that enters the convention center.” (Global Exchange and Co-op America, 2008)
Go, Green Festival!
Now, I know many of you organic food enthusiasts are already vegans or “health nuts” and the like, but it just makes me happy that a well-known, popular snack food company like Frito-Lay is stepping up to the organic plate and possibly setting a standard in the industry. If that sound too lofty, at least they are making the effort to listen to what the public wants. Go, Fritos!
Next, Celestial Seasonings Tea has a cranberry pomegranate flavor Green Tea that is yummy, but more importantly, this tea was put in familiar pink packaging with a notation “proud sponsor of the National Breast Cancer Foundation“. The artist that painted the picture seen on the box of tea is a breast cancer survivor, Dagmar Fehlau.
Another plus to this product is that it is stamped with the “Ethical Trade” emblem, with a paragraph below it that says that by buying this product we are supporting ethical trade practices, like fair wages, that benefit the people and areas that grow the tea.
I just got off the phone with Celestial’s toll free number. I called to find out exactly what country their tea came from. The very nice woman told me that the tea is grown in the likely places in Asia, mostly China and India. Unsolicited, she told me that they test their products very thoroughly for organic compounds, heavy metals, lead, and something called Aflatoxin that apparently has been getting into the food supply from Asia. They reject any tea with “unidentified compounds” found in it.
I definitely got the feeling that Celestial Seasonings was doing a public relations campaign, probably because China, with its dangerous production methods, has been in the news. This also makes me happy to know that American companies are doing their utmost to insure high quality, safe products reach our tables. Go, Celestial!
Celestial Seasonings, Inc. (2008). Retrieved November 11, 2008 from www.celestialseasonings.com
Frito-Lay, Inc. (2008).
Green Festival. (November 11, 2008). Retrieved November 11, 2008 from http://www.tilth.org/events/green-festival
Oregon Tilth. (2008). Retrieved November 11, 2008 from http://www.tilth.org.
Organic Food: Going Against the Grain 