OUR FOODS, ITS PROCESS

By: Amber Bell11/08/2013

WHERE DO OUR FOODS COME FROM?

INITIAL STEP: Seeds: planted

and grown on farms.

What is used to keep bugs and animals away from the plants.

If grown out of country, what are the safety regulations?

TRANSFORMATION STAGE: Processing Plants:

where they TRANSFORM raw ingredients into foods or foods into other forms.

Food processing typically takes clean, harvested crops or butchered animal products and use these to produce attractive, marketable and often long shelf-life food products.

BENEFITS!DRAWBACKS… Last Longer, Variety (off season

availability), Reduce food borne

illnesses, Mass production.

Takes away nutritional density,

Food additives, Food contamination

(machinery breakdown)

ADDITIVES Propyl Gallate Sulfites (Sulfur

Dioxide, Sodium Sulfite, Sodium And Potassium Bisulfite, Sodium and Potassium Metabisulfite)

Potassium Bromate Monosodium

Glutamate (MSG)

Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil

Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil

Olestra (Olean) Heptylparaben Sodium Nitrite

FOOD ADDITIVES OR INGREDIENTS…

Food additives are substances added to food to preserve flavor and enhance appearance or taste.

Examples:Acids (Vinegar, citric acid, fumaric acid, lactic

acids)Color retention agentsFlavor and Flavor EnhancersGlazing agentsPreservativesSweetenersThickeners, etc.

DELIVERED MARKET

PLATED:

On average, most foods travel at least 1500 miles

before it reaches our plates.

FOODS: HELPFUL OR HARMFUL

FACTS: Lipitor is the most prescribed drug in the

world. Prevalence of preventable diseases:

Heart Disease,Cancers,Diabetes,Obesity,Cholesterol,Hypertension

This could be the first generation that lives shorter lives than their parents.

MORE FACTS: The US spends more on healthcare per

person than any other industrialized country. HOWEVER, we tend to have far worse health outcomes.

75% of our healthcare cost come from diseases that are preventable

PREVENTION Bill Maher says “The answer is not

another pill, its Spinach.” Hippocrates says “Let food be thy

medicine and medicine be thy food.” Study after study has proven:

A HEALTHY DIETEXERCISE

LOOK OUT!We’ve already discussed processed

foods and additives… Lets dive into the details.

“LUNCHBOX” FOODS Highly processed

foods, Foods that have

longer shelf lives,

Often higher sodium levels,

More added sugars,

FAST FOODS

FYI: red triggers stimulation, appetite, hunger, it attracts attention.  Yellow triggers the feelings of happiness and

friendliness.

SODA

DO NOT BE FOOLED

One meal: 400 calories, 13g protein, 5g fiber—but 10g fat, 20g sugar, 500mg

sodium.

One bottle (2.5 servings) of the Charge flavor: 125 calories, 32.5g sugar.

TEST OUR FOODS… Canola Oil

Krispy Kreme Doughnut/ McDonalds Cheeseburger

Chicken Nuggets

HBO DOCUMENTARY FILMS: THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wwwVOcOZOc

HOW DO WE WIN?1. Figure out where your foods come

from,2. All that can be bought locally, buy

locally,3. Limit consumption of highly processed

foods, fast foods, soda4. Read the label and know what’s in

your foods1. No more than 5 ingredients2. Transfats3. Saturated fats4. Sugars (less than 8g)

BALANCE!

PLANT-BASED A plant based approach that emphasizes

minimally processed foods from plants, with modest amounts of fish, lean meat, and diary.

Increase: fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts

and seeds, and zero animal products. Decrease:

meat, butter, milk, cheese, gelatin or other animal by-product. 

SKIP A PHASE: BUY LOCAL- “KNOW YOUR FARMER, KNOW YOUR FOOD” Freshness. Local fruits and vegetables are usually

harvested and sold more quickly so they do not contain the preservatives that are added to products shipped long distances and placed in storage.

Taste. Produce that is ripened on the vine has better texture and flavor than produce harvested unripe, then treated with chemicals and ripened during shipping.

Nutrition. Nutritional value declines — often drastically — as time passes after harvesting.

Improving the local economy. When you buy homegrown food, you circulate your food dollars inside the local area.

Strengthening producer/consumer relations. When purchasing food locally, consumers can ask how the product was grown and processed, what chemicals (if any) were used, and any other questions they may have. People tend to trust individuals they know, and they become repeat buyers.

Amber M. Bell, MPH Policy and ManagementSouthwest Georgia Project for Community Education, Inc.Community Foods Grant Project CoordinatorEmail: bell.a@swgaproject.comPhone: 229-430-9870Fax: 229-446-9269Visit our website: www.swgaproject.com