Buy Local

Wrapping Up the Growing Season

October 17, 2011

Here in Michigan, fall has moved in and my garden has been done for a couple weeks. While I miss having so much free, ripe produce available for the picking I’m at least thankful that I don’t have to really shop at the grocery store- yet. Our local farmers market is open until Christmas, and [...]

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More Reasons to Purchase Local Meat

April 8, 2011

I’ve been skeptical of purchasing fresh, pre-packaged meat for a long time now for many reasons such as the use of hormones, antibiotics, preservatives, and unnatural feed as well as the general treatment of the animals. My personal preference is to purchase pastured frozen meat from a local farm or at least buy fresh from [...]

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Dangers of Artificial Food Dyes

March 29, 2011

One thing I’ve been noticing a lot lately is the abundance of food dyes in all sorts of items at the grocery store. While it’s certainly nice for food to be attractive, do we really need potentially dangerous chemicals to do this, and if so, at what cost to our health? To me, it seems [...]

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Ultra-Pasteurization of Dairy Products

February 25, 2011

Although I drink my whole milk raw from a local farm that I trust, I sometimes find myself purchasing extra cream and other pasteurized (heated) dairy products at the store. I accept that these items are only available to be purchased pasteurized at this time, even at health stores, but I’ve recently learned about ultra-pasteurization [...]

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Tips for Freezer Organization

February 2, 2011

I have been saving a freezer organization article I read in Better Homes & Gardens magazine for an embarrassingly long time (October 2009- eek) on getting and keeping a freezer organized. Not only does it help to ensure food is used up in a timely manner, but it also makes it easier to grocery shop [...]

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Fluoride in Food

October 23, 2009

If you are like most people who’ve experienced a natural health awakening over the past few years, (or maybe you’re still in yours – after all, education is a lifelong process!), you are aware of the dangers of fluoride, and you have taken steps to remove it from your water supply. To recap, sodium fluoride [...]

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Bars By Bellini – Handmade Skincare Products

June 24, 2009

I was lucky enough to run into a wonderful vendor, Dee Bellini, at the local Artisan’s market again this year. She is the founder of Bars by Bellini and has an offering of handmade natural skin care products that work extremely well. I’m writing this to tell you the best part- you can now buy [...]

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West Michigan Farmers Markets 2009

May 18, 2009

In my efforts to allocate most of my food budget toward local growers this summer, I stumbled upon a great treasure, this printable list of West Michigan area farmers markets, complete with contact info, location and hours. The famous Fulton street market is listed of course; but others less well-known around Grand Rapids include Thursday’s [...]

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Real Milk is Raw Milk

February 7, 2009

Well, today has been one of the most liberating Saturdays I’ve experienced in a few months. The cow-share program we’ve recently joined was hosting a Dairy Essentials Class free to all members (classes are open to the public at a reasonable rate during the summer), and there were at least 15 of us there today. [...]

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Local Raw Milk

January 28, 2009

Yes- we’ve done it. Tackled the replacement of yet another dangerous food in our lives- mass produced milk. What was a small local purchase years ago has turned into mass production, and the result is not just another sacrifice of quality for quantity. Instead, the horrendous treatment of cows in the mainstream milk supply has [...]

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