Ignorance is bliss. I don't watch the news, I don't like to know who is at war, I don't want to know that my car is guzzling the last few drops of oil on the planet and I don't pay attention to what is in my food. If something important happens that I need to know about, Facebook will tell me. About four years ago I jumped on the gluten free bandwagon when I was diagnosed with celiac disease. This is when I started looking at what was in my food. Not because I was really concerned about it, but because I would suffer the wrath of gluten belly if I didn't. I was amazed at how many products had wheat in them, like milkshakes, chips, soy sauce, fake crab... the list goes on. I was not concerned about chemicals or GMO.
Fast forward to a couple months ago. My husband was talking to a friend about Monsanto and the GMO uprising. I will admit that I knew what GMO stood for, but was so out of the loop that I didn't even know I was pronouncing Monsanto wrong. Anyway, he came home after that conversation all in a rage about what this company is doing. He was genuinely upset about the farmers and the fact that we were being served up this toxic cocktail without even knowing about it. After hearing him rant for about fifteen minutes, I stopped him and told him that if he really wanted to do something about it, we had to stop buying the products that support this mega giant. I went on to tell him that we would have to stop buying his favourite cereal, pop, chips...the list went on. Needless to say, it shut him up. But it got me thinking about what was really in our food. The more I researched, the more I was shocked at what I was eating on a daily basis. I could go on and on for days about the impact that GMO seeds are going to have on the future of this planet and our bodies. There is little to no research done on the long-term effects on our health, yet the amount of products that have GMOs in them is staggering. The top GMO crops in Canada and the USA are corn, canola, soy and sugar beets. This means that cornflakes, cereals, anything with fructose, cornstarch, sugar, eggs, meats, canola oil, soy, or milk all have GMOs in them. And if you think the problem is worse in the USA, think again. 95% of canola crops of Canada are GMO.
The more my husband and I talked about it, the more he was on board and ready to change our lifestyle. He was more afraid of the price tag, since we are a low income family but I didn't care. I set out to make changes that were within out budget. We are a family of four and spend about $200 a week on groceries. We swapped out frozen juice for organic, our favourite chips for ones that are GMO free, we now enjoy organic GMO free cereals and we buy organic meat and produce whenever possible. There are some things that we just can't compromise on and I am ok with that. Like milk and eggs. (For now) Over the past month, our grocery bill has gone up only 20%. To me, that is a small price to pay. Because not only are we getting chemical free and GMO free foods, we are eating a lot healthier and wiser. We are really conscious of the amount of food we eat too. Instead of consuming four bags of chips a week, we only eat one of two. We buy a lot less ice cream and now make homemade popsicles. And if you don't want to jump on the organic bandwagon, eat an organic carrot or banana! They are so good and actually taste like they are supposed to! I have also started gardening. My five year plan is to either grow or purchase locally, 80% of the produce we consume. Yes it takes time and effort, but its worth it in the long run. Growing my own food will save us lots of money in the future and I will be able to provide organic food that is free of chemicals to my growing family.
Thanks to my mother-in-law who planted raspberry bushes years ago, I now have two giant ziplock bags full or fresh picked organic berries in my freezer for my family to enjoy over the winter.
Do you know organic meats mean? I called a butcher to find out! It basically means that the animal is fed only organic grains. This means no GMOs. :)
I know that I live in a dream bubble here on the Sunshine Coast, where all of these changes are possible, but I believe the world is slowly shifting. Changes will be made, we just need to start opening our eyes to what is going on. We no longer live in a world where all food is safe, but there is hope with effort and education.
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