numbers

[Guest guest]

What do the numbers on your fruits and veggies from

the grocery store really mean?

Those numbers are the price look up (PLU) code to

speed up the check out process.

When you look at the small label placed on a piece of

fruit or vegetable: If it starts with the number 9 and

has 5 digits, it is organic. If it starts with number

8 and has 5 digits, it may be genetically modified run

like hell !

Four digit numbers starting with 4 or 3 are

conventionally-grown.

Many people are switching to organic food. Maybe

you're wondering if you should, too.

Is organic better?

In some ways, yes. In others, no. These facts might

help you decide.

* Organic food is generally free of artificial

fertilizers, synthetic herbicides and pesticides,

genetically modified (GM) ingredients, growth

regulators, antibiotics and hormone stimulants.

* Taste tests usually show no significant differences

between organic and non-organic food. If they do taste

different, it's not necessarily better.

Me personally, I cook a lot and they taste way

better!!!!!!

Um... lies they taste way better!!!!

* Organic food is generally more expensive.

So what!

If you put the most expensive gas in your car and have

no problems eating toxic waste, stop and think because

the irony here is you can trade your car in for a new

model but you're stuck with your body till death.

If anything you need the more expensive " gas " for

yourself.

* Some studies have found that organic vegetables are

more nutritious than conventionally grown produce,

though others have found no inherent differences.

<sum> Organic farming is definitely better for the

environment than conventional farming.

How do you buy organic?

* You can buy organic food from some fruit and veggie

shops, supermarkets and health food stores, via the

Internet or from certified organic retailers.

YOu can go to your local farmer's market, if you live

in Hollywood or Santa monica, lucky you!!!

Santa monica's farmer's market is awesome!!!

YOu can get organic grass fed bison aka buffalo

Great tasting meat. Not wild tasting, milder than

beef, less fat, more beta-carotene, more nutritious

and you know the woman who tends to them. Pretty

cool!

Sources

http://www.annieappleseedproject.org/orfoodin.html

http://au.health./041019/24/1vux.html?r=967556093

http://www.hawaiiorganicfarmers.org/newsletter9_04.htm

I'm done.... stop reading!!!!

I want to go more in depth more below

Why the Little Sticky Label on Fruit?

By: Karma Metzgar,

Former Northwest Regional Nutrition Specialist Nodaway

County Extension Center, University Outreach and

Extension

Have you noticed the little “brand” stickers on your

bananas, apples, peaches, pears, mangos, kiwi, and

other seasonal fruits? Those stickers are helpful for

the store clerk, as they don’t have to distinguish the

difference between Fuji apples from Gala apples. That

little helpful sticker has the price look up (PLU)

code to speed up the check out process. But did you

know that look up number also tells you more? Do you

want to know what? The number on that little sticker,

not only is the price look number, it also tells how

the product is grown or created. This has made news

recently with the release of the new rules for

“organic” labeling.

For conventionally grown fruit, the PLU code on the

sticker consists of four numbers. Organically grown

fruit has a five-numeral PLU beginning with the number

9. Genetically engineered fruit has a five-numeral PLU

beginning with the number 8.

When I read about this labeling, I decided to scout my

refrigerator for the little stickers. The bananas and

apples both were four digits-meaning conventionally

grown fruit So using this numbering system, a

conventionally grown banana would be 4011, an organic

banana would be 94011 and a genetically engineered

banana would be 84011. Interesting isn’t it?

Who developed this numbering system? The numeric

system was developed by the Produce Electronic

Identification Board, an affiliate of the Produce

Marketing Association, a trade group for the produce

industry.

While the stickers are helpful to the cashiers to

accurately identify and price produce, there are

plenty of complaints about how well the stickers

stick!

According to the Produce Marketing Association, some

shippers have begun using stickers designed with tabs

that make them easier to lift off, and are buying

equipment that applies adhesive to the sticker but not

to the tab.

Companies are also experimenting with different

sticker materials, such as vinyl, that hold up under a

variety of temperature and moisture conditions.

The adhesive now used to attach the stickers is

food-grade, but the stickers themselves aren’t edible.

To remove stubborn ones, soak in warm water for a

minute or two. As a kid, we used to argue over who got

the sticker off the bananas to wear as tattoos! They

weren’t a problem…just not enough on a bunch.

So the next time you pick up that kiwi, melon,

pineapple, apple or banana, check out the numbering

system. Is it conventionally or organically grown? Or,

is it a result of genetic engineering? It’s all in the

number-which also is the price look up code for the

cashier. A simple number for a complex situation.

Hawaii Organic Farmers Association (HOFA)

 P.O. Box 6863, Hilo, HI 96720

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