The Origin of our Food
So until very recently I felt that I was doing really well when it comes to ‘clean and healthy eating’. I was making all the correct choices and consuming foods that were as close to ‘the paddock’ as possible. I avoided foods that were processed and made sure to consume a variety of our well-known ‘super foods’ everyday, for their anti-oxidant qualities. As far as I was concerned, life was good!
However, with the recent scare of ‘Nanna’s Berries’ and Hepatitis A, (not that I consumed these berries), it did get me questioning the origin of many other food sources. So I took a walk to my pantry, opened up the cupboard and scrutinized every single word on the back of my chosen health products. I was SHOCKED at what I found!
Garlic (crushed garlic in a tube)– Taiwan
Fresh Asparagus - Mexico
Organic Coconut oil – Sri Lanka
Organic Coconut flour - Philippines
Organic Coconut butter – Sri Lanka
Organic Chia seeds – Philippines
Organic Goji berries – Taiwan
Organic Almonds – Philippines
Organic Cinnamon – Sri Lanka
Organic black grain quinoa - Peru
I felt like I had been deceived. Initially I was very angry, and then disappointed in myself for having not picked up on this earlier. I then sat back and wondered ‘why’ had I just ‘assumed’ that all of these health products were from Australia? It comes down to the word – ‘Organic’. For me, the stigma attached to the word ‘organic’, automatically had me assume that the product was Australian in origin. This is obviously not the case.
So now during the weekly grocery shop, it is time to review ‘three’ separate pieces of information before we decide on a product:
- Food Labels (focusing on saturated fat, sodium & sugars)
- Ingredients List
- Country of Origin
This can lead to spending A LOT of extra time in the grocery store. However, if you spend time at least once assessing all the necessary information, you will be able to identify the same product during your next shop without having to evaluate it’s nutritional breakdown & origin. It is also important to notice that just because a product boasts being ‘packed in Australia’, does not mean it is ‘from’ Australia. KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.
So – take a walk to your pantry, look at your health products and examine whether they are grown and packaged from our home country. Hopefully, you are not as shocked as I was.
