Only Organic Swap Challenge: Dinner
Weeks Seven and Eight
If you missed the launch of our Organic Swap Challenge, it’s not too late to join in on the fun. This week we are guiding your swap journey with three dinner items to trade for healthier organic options.
To access the other swaps in the challenge visit these blogs:
Top 3 Organic Dinner Swaps:
- Grains
- Why you should swap:
Since grains make up 30-40 percent of our daily intake, it’s important to trade this staple for a healthier, safer organic alternative. If you’re looking to avoid GMOs and toxic chemicals in your diet, you’ll want to opt for organic grains especially when purchasing soy, corn, rice, and wheat. About 90 percent of the corn that you find in processed foods is genetically modified. Whereas 94 percent of soybeans sold in the United States is genetically modified.
When it comes to rice, organic production systems have a lot of advantages over conventional. For example, conventional rice production uses over 40 different pesticides to control weeds and insects—pesticides that contain such toxic chemicals as piperonyl butoxide, malathion, and carbaryl. Organic rice paddies also use environmentally friendly soil amendments such as compost, which helps increase soil health and decrease nutrient run-off.
When consuming wheat products the importance of choosing organic is dependent mainly on avoiding the high dose of roundup used during pre-harvest application. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup, is sprayed on wheat and barley as a desiccant. This toxic practice has become routine since the 1990s and is used as a drying agent 7-10 days before harvest. Organic wheat cannot be grown with such methods and does not allow toxic persistent pesticides like glyphosate to be used.
Our top picks for organic grains are Lundberg Family Farms, Annie’s Homegrown, Nature’s Path, Rudi’s Organic Bakery, and Dave’s Killer Bread.
- Frozen Food
- Why you should swap:
Gone are the days when food companies sacrifice taste for convenience. Frozen dinner foods can often be laden with artificial ingredients, preservatives, unhealthy processed fats, sugar and synthetics. Choosing organic frozen foods is a good first step to avoid the high amount of artificial ingredients used to make frozen processed dinners.
Our top pick for organic frozen foods is Amy’s Kitchen.
- Butter
- Why you should swap:
Butter ends up on our dinner plates in many ways such as sautéing or directly adding it to food for additional flavor. As we explained in our breakfast swaps, organic dairy products have higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids than conventional dairy products. When you melt that butter on your organic baked potato or butter your organic bread, you’ll want to know that the cows that produced that creamy goodness were raised humanely and were fed an organic diet. To learn more about organic dairy practices visit us here.
Our top pick for organic butter is Organic Valley. Our top pick for organic dairy is Stonyfield.
- After dinner drinks
- Why you should swap:
Whether you’re going out for cocktails or sipping on some digestion tea after dinner, you’ll want to choose certified organic. As we explained choosing organic tea is a must because of the toxic chemicals used, but what about alcohol? If you’re making cocktails or drinking wine we suggest choosing products that are certified organic. Organic wine is made from grapes that have been grown without the use of artificial or synthetic chemicals, such as herbicides and pesticides. To ward off pests and weeds, organic farmers work with nature, rather than against it, by boosting their vineyard’s biodiversity. If you’re mixing your wine to make sangria or to make a cocktail, we recommend Uncle Matt’s organic juice. For after-dinner tea for digestion or sleep we recommend Traditional Medicinal.
Organic Dinner Swap Menu:
Smoky Grapefruit Gin and Tonic
Roasted Leg of Lamb with Yogurt Mint Marinade
Golden Turmeric Pineapple Herbal Tea
Last chance to enter our swap giveaway and be one of 9 lucky winners to win a prize pack worth $50 from one of our participating organic swap partner brands. Learn more here.
Challenge Complete!
You did it! Switching to organic food sends a strong message to food corporations that we need more sustainable farming practices and healthier foods. Certified organic products provide both of those things. Knowing that your dollars are going towards a better environment and great food brands is an investment in our planet and food future. Thanks for participating. Please share this challenge with a friend.
