Sugar rush

A couple of good documentary movies all about sugar and the food industry which everyone should watch. Fed Up is on Netflix and available on DVD. And just out is That Sugar Film about an Australian who goes on a 6 week "healthy food" sugar diet. This meant no confectionery, no soft drinks, no ice cream and the results were still shocking. I have seen Fed Up and it is informative, worrying and then inspiring. The more the public can engage with the truths about the food industry the more pressure we can put on government to stand up to 'Big Food'. It is changing slowly but just like tobacco last century it seems to be taking way to long for the change to happen. Apathy, lack of education and powerful food company lobbyists all play a part. Big Food are making a lot of money and don't want change. Engage and spread the word!

Food Food Food!

I love food! I eat a lot. I have never been overly concerned with what I eat as I think I am pretty healthy. Growing up in semi rural New Zealand has encouraged and developed a love for natural and raw ingredients (and of course roast lamb!!). Our family had huge vegetable gardens and many fruit trees and berry bushes which we children had to spend many Saturdays working in. We ate the produce fresh, we bottled it, froze it, preserved it and dehydrated it. Our goats produced milk, our chickens eggs, we got honey from our bees and my first pet lamb we fattened up and ate!

Nutritional Food Production.

But it's only been more recently as more research has appeared on food and the impact of preservatives, additives and artificial sweeteners etc. that I have started to take a closer look at what I am eating. Like many of you I would have said I was pretty healthy in my eating but can I really say that if I don't actually know what many of the ingredients in my food are? For example do you know what any of these common ingredients are and whether they are natural or artificial? Or proven to be good for you or not?

• Calcium ascorbate 
• Nicotinic acid
• Potassium sorbate
• Xanthan gum

The lists of artificial additives and preservatives is seemingly endless and the research into what is and isn't safe is confusing, unclear and often times debated or inconclusive. However what is very clear is that a largely natural moderate diet is safe and healthy. You don't have to think about it to much to appreciate the logic of this--our bodies are a natural product and so they respond positively to natural products and negatively to artificial products. It's also hard to ignore the massive rise of western diseases such as asthma, alzheimers, dementia, and the many forms of cancer. Obesity, heart disease and diebetes are much easier to attribute to an artificially tainted diet.

As I mentioned in my last blog cost and convenience are again key in our choices even if we do believe that natural is best. And until the big food companies are regulated more strictly, supermarkets will continue to sell products laced with artificial (and in some cases poisonous) additives. Most of the common brands we buy are owned by 10 giant global food companies whose revenues add up to more than a billion dollars a day. They are driven by shareholders (are you one?) and boards demanding profits and using artificial products enables them to produce cheaper items and bigger profits. This diagram shows 'The Big 10' and their many brands.

Ethical Food Production

This is also a concerning issue. If you haven't considered this before then I challenge you to think about it. Oxfam have rated the same big 10 food companies on 7 ethical issues from land use and climate to how they treat women and you can see the score cards here.

Where can I buy good nutritional, ethical food?!

Obviously your supermarket and other local markets will have plenty of natural foods such as meat, vegetables and fruit and eggs. Two great UK brands you will also find in your supermarket are Yeo Valley and Innocent Drinks.

For other packaged items you may not be sure so here are 2 websites I have used:

Real Food Source - I got coconut oil from them for half the price of the supermarket (1kg for £10) They also have great cashew nuts.

Naturally Good Food - This place has loads of products including non food items. However they stock at least 1 brand I wouldn’t use (Ecover-detergents). I went for Ecoleaf detergent and also got a lot of nuts and dried fruits. 

Note - I haven't mentioned organic food here but will do at another time. 

And last but not least please read about and sign Jamie Oliver’s food education petition here!