How to be a SMART consumer

***SHELF LIFE***

Should we just throw away unconsumed food after their expiration dates?   Often we gauge the safety date on shelf-stable products by:

 

Use-By, Best if Used By, Best By, Best Before when actually all the above merely give indication how long the product is likely to remain at its absolute best quality when unopened.

 

Proper storage allow the shelf life to be extended beyond this date. However, examine if there is any noticeable gradual changes in the unopened product’s texture, color or flavor.

As for perishables like meat, seafood, poultry and milk, the sell-by date is a guide for stores to know how long they can display a particular product. It is advisable to buy the product before the sell-by date expires. If you have followed the safe storage procedures, consuming not far beyond that date is not a problem. For instance, milk that has been continuously refrigerated remains drinkable for about one week after the “sell by” date on the package. However, take ‘expires on’ seriously when infant formula and some baby foods are concerned.

 

Note packing codes which appear as a series of letters and/or numbers on the package may indicate the date or time of manufacture, and does not provide any indication of either food safety or quality. This is of good help to manufacturers and grocers in rotating their stock and quickly locate products in the event of a recall.

 

***FRUIT LABEL***

Do you know that the little sticker on the piece of fruit you are eating  right now tells you a whole lot more than just the country of origin?  Pay  attention to these critical numbers as stores are not obligated to tell  you from the digits if the produce is grown naturally, organically or genetically.

 

+   Conventional Fruit Labels – Four digits starting with 3 or 4  (eg. 4922)

These produce have been grown on ordinary conventional farms where harmful  fertilizers and chemical pesticides are applied. This is why you need to wash  your fruit before eating it.

 

+   Genetically Modified Fruits – Five digits and starts with the  digit 8 (eg. 89222)

Nobody knows yet what the effect genetically modified foods” has on our  bodies or whether they are any harmful effects.

 

Basically, the genetically altered produce has its genes mutated by scientist in order to make them  more resistant to bugs and pesticide sprays during harvesting.

 

+  Organic Fruit Labels – Five digits and starts with number 9  (eg. 99222)

 

***ORGANIC FOOD*** 

+  Paying more for organic is worth it? Organic produce may help to avoid pesticides, but it may be more prevalent than you think.

 

List compiled in the US of the pesticide levels of common rank, ranked 1 (lowest) to 100 (highest)

 

* Peaches – 100

* Apples – 89

 * Strawberries – 82

 * Pear – 65

 * Grapes – 43

 

* Oranges – 42

 * Blueberries – 24

 * Bananas – 16

 * Pineapples – 7

 

Other items nicknamed the “clean 15″ includes onions, sweet corn and avocados  having lower levels of pesticides on average. (for complete list, go to Ewg.org/foodnews/)

 

+  Organic food uses no pesticides?

 

Most people harbour the thought that organic food is grown pesticide free. Is this the reality?

The British Journal of Nutrition found that organic produce contains less pesticide residue than conventional food. The big difference is that conventional farmers apply synthetic pesticides not permitted under organic farming.  Besides using natural farming methods, pesticides are still necessary to enable healthy natural growth. Thus, organic farmers use lots of natural pesticides which prove to be as toxic as the synthetic ones.

There is no test carried out on levels of organic pesticides. Basically, the organic pesticides have little impact of the environment as they degrade faster. To be more effective on plants, more have to be applied and thus the end result may be about the same for both types.

 

The two popular organic pesticides – rotenone and pyrethrin are extracted from sub-tropical plant species and chyrsanthemum respectively. On excessive use, both can damage nerves or nerves cells. This is found to cause Parkinson’s disease in laboratory mice.

 

Given the fact that the level of pesticides even in conventionally growth produce is already way below permissible levels, rinsing any produce thoroughly eliminates most pesticide residues is sufficed.

For those who still insists on organic food, it is just one part of  the equation of eating well. Eating organic potato chips may seem better than  the ordinary one, but it is still the unhealthy junk food. Avoid processed food at all cost.

So eating sufficient fresh fruits and vegetables whether organic or not makes more sense than having a limited intake of organic food due to cost reason.

 

Source: http://www.stilltasty.com/articles/view/5