Sometimes I get asked if I think organic certification and labeling laws have gone too far. Personally, I don’t think so. As a consumer I’m pretty happy knowing that anything I purchase – believing it to be organic – is in fact organic! I am of the firm belief that this can only come about through a robust third party certification system such as the one that’s currently in place. Perhaps you feel the same?

How do you react then when you hear about a company that’s been caught trying to fraudulently pass off their wares as organic? If you’re anything like me, you’re unimpressed. You may even feel somewhat disgusted. After all, this sort of behavior undermines the entire organic certification system. Perhaps worst of all, it plants seeds of doubt in the minds of would-be organic consumers. This ruins things for all of us.

So what sort of reaction would you have if a company were trying to pass off a cigarette as “organic”? Don’t laugh – I’m serious! Think about that for a minute – an organic cigarette…

A court in Germany wanted nothing to do with it.

U.S. company, Reynolds American Inc. (RAI), argued that its cigarettes were made with “100% organic tobacco” and biodegradable paper filters and therefore complied with European Union rules for organic production.

The German court didn’t accept that. Instead, they were of the view that “the concept ‘organic’ implies that such a cigarette is not harmful”. They found that the company’s use of the term “organic” was in violation of national tobacco and business competition laws.

I tend to agree. What do you think?

This year’s Sydney Organic Expo was another great success. I hope everyone attending – organisers, exhibitors, presenters and visitors – enjoyed themselves and went away as inspired as I did. I found the Expo to be particularly beneficial. This was the first time I’ve attended the expo as a member of the Organic Guide team. While there were many familiar faces, I’d particularly like to thank those of you I hadn’t met before and who took the time to chat with me. As I said earlier, I left the expo feeling really impressed with every single one of the people I met. Everyone I talked to displayed tremendous passion for the organic products and services they were representing. You’re all wonderful! Congratulations and massive thanks to all of you. The future of Australian organics is in very safe hands!
 
You may have noticed that Jeff was busy taking photos during the expo. We’d like to share them with you. We’ve just set up an Organic Guide flickr account. If you have a website or blog that you’d like to use any of the images in, please feel free to download them. Additionally, if you’d like copies of any of them for promotional or other purposes please drop me a line and I’ll make sure we email you some higher resolution copies. In the meantime, please find a sample of what we were able to capture of the expo by checking out our new flickr sidebar (which appears toward the bottom right hand corner of this page). Cheers from Tony…

Last December I looked at some of the reasons motivating me to continue preparing fresh organic fruit and vegetable juices for my family. For those of you who are interested in making your own juice, I thought I’d take a look at the various technological options available to you.

There are many implements and appliances available for making your own juice. These range from the relatively inexpensive to the almost unbelievably overpriced. While the equipment you choose needs to suit your intended purpose, it’s also important for it to fit within the parameters of your household budget. There’s no point forking out money for equipment you’re not going to use after a few weeks. Unfortunately, people often spend good money on expensive juicing equipment only to see it gather dust at the back of their cupboards. One of the reasons many people give up on juicing is the time it takes to clean up afterwards. Therefore, ease of cleaning should be a major consideration when choosing a juicer.

To ensure you choose the most appropriate juicer for your needs, I’d encourage you to think about the following questions:

• What is the main purpose of your juicer?
• How frequently do you intend to make juice?
• How much kitchen bench space do you have?
• What sorts of juice do you want to make?
• How easily can the juicer be taken apart?
• How easy is it to reassemble the juicer?
• Is it possible to access all corners of the juicer to remove excess pulp?
• What is your budget?

Here are some of the more common options available:

Citrus juicers – Naturally enough, a citrus juicer can only be used with citrus (for example, lemons, grapefruits, limes). A simple citrus juicer is one of the least expensive and most commonly found juicing implements in any kitchen. If you intend to limit your juice making to the occasional squeeze of a few oranges and lemons, a simple citrus juicer may be all you require. However keep in mind the fact that, while citrus is a fabulous source of Vitamin C – and therefore extremely good for you – it also contains high levels of acidity. When taken in excess, the acidity in citrus juice can overwhelm the digestive system. Accordingly, if you intend to juice more frequently than say once or twice a week, I recommend moving beyond a citrus juicer.

Food Processors – Food processors are versatile. They are designed to perform a wide variety of roles in the kitchen. Although some of them can be used for making juice, they tend to be significantly less efficient than appliances specifically designed to extract juice. One thing that you’ll want to ensure is that you maximise the amount of juice you obtain from your organic produce. For this reason I do not recommend using a food processor as a juicer.

Centrifugal juicers – Centrifugal juicers work by applying the concept of centrifugal force. Centrifugal means “to move away from the center”. Centrifugal juicers spin at very high speeds. As their internal mechanism spins, pulp is separated from juice. The pulp, which is caught in a separate section of the juicer, can be used for a variety of other purposes. Centrifugal juicers are compact, widely available and relatively inexpensive. They are efficient at juicing both fruit and vegetables. Although certain brands tend to be somewhat noisy, centrifugal juicers are a fantastic option for those looking to get into some serious juicing.

Masticating juicers – Masticating juicers work by forcing fruit and vegetables through a mesh wire. The force used to push the fruit and vegetables through the juicer is immense. As a result they tend to produce large quantities of juice with little or no wastage. Masticating juicers work at lower speeds and are therefore more adept at juicing a wider range of fruit and vegetables than centrifugal juicers. They are particularly good at juicing greens such as spinach, lettuce, wheatgrass and parsley. Although masticating juicers are generally more expensive than their centrifugal counterparts, they tend to be more efficient at extracting juice than centrifugal juicers. Over time, this may save you money since by using a masticating juicer you’ll require fewer raw materials (organic fruit and vegetables) to generate similar quantities of juice than if you were using a centrifugal juicer.

What do I recommend? If you’re just getting started on your juicing odyssey and you’re on a budget, I recommend a centrifugal juicer. A good quality centrifugal juicer, although somewhat noisier and slightly more difficult to clean than a masticating juicer, is a relatively less expensive option and will enable you to make a wide range of wholesome fruit and vegetable juices. On the other hand, if you’ve decided that you’re really serious about juicing and have a little extra cash to spend, I recommend a good quality masticating juicer.

So far this year, I have purchased approximately nine dozen bottles of organic wine. The number of those secured with traditional cork stoppers amount to only seven. That’s less than five percent, with the remainder sealed beneath screw cap devices. The move away from cork has caused some consternation among organic consumers who tend to prefer natural materials as opposed to plastic and manufactured components. On the other hand, there are experts who believe that new sealing technologies provide a safer and more dependable option for consumers.

Despite careful selection and quality controls, natural cork is associated with the risk of structural weakness and mould contamination. Most wine consumers appreciate that cork stoppered bottles can be adversely affected by oxidation or chemical reaction. Structural faults in cork tend to influence its permeability to oxygen and other atmospheric gases. Under some storage conditions, there is a risk that oxygen will penetrate the hollow fissures of a structurally impaired cork. Depending on the extent of oxidation, the affected wine will usually taste flatter and less appealing than it otherwise should.

When a bottle of wine is described as ‘corked’, mould contamination is generally the most significant contributing cause. Depending on the severity of contamination, corked wine is experienced as lacklustre on the palate with a sensation of musty dullness or worse. Despite evidence that clean and structurally sound cork provides an effective seal for many decades, the potential for contamination or oxidation is often used to encourage wider acceptance of the sterilised screw cap devices.

Screw cap devices ensure that bottled wine remains consistently fresh and impervious to oxygen. They slow down the ageing process which is not necessarily beneficial for red wine with a high tannin content. Of course, wine will alter its taste characteristic once exposed to the atmosphere. In most instances there is a comparatively larger taste shift noted for screw-capped bottles.

Have you ever considered growing your own sprouts? If you’re not already growing sprouts, there’s a good chance someone you know, whether a neighbour, relative or friend, is already benefiting from this wonderful activity. Here are ten reasons why rearing sprouts is becoming an increasingly popular activity for organic consumers and others who take their health seriously:

Sprouts are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals – During sprouting, the vitamin content of some seeds increases from 100% to 1000%. Minerals become available to the body in a form capable of being readily assimilated.

Sprouts can be grown anywhere and at any time of year - It doesn’t matter where you’re living, whether in Australia, Canada or Ireland, sprouts can provide you with a healthy food source irrespective of geographic location or external seasonal conditions.

Sprouts provide a great learning opportunity for young children – Sprouts are a living food source. Growing them provides an opportunity to talk with young children about nature, health, and the importance of providing our bodies with high quality, nutritious food. And given that sprouts grow quickly, even young children can take part and see almost instant results. If that wasn’t enough, rearing sprouts also helps children develop a sense of responsibility.

Sprouts can help if you’re on a tight budget – Each serve of sprouts costs only a matter of cents. Given the high quality nutrition provided by sprouts they represent excellent value for money.

Sprouts contain no chemical pollutants – Because you are in control of the growing conditions of your sprouts you can be certain that no chemical sprays or additives have been used in bringing them to life.

Sprouts provide a powerful source of antioxidants – Antioxidants protect the body from free radical damage. The vitamins, minerals and enzymes present in sprouts contain significant levels of antioxidants.

Sprouts are a brilliant source of essential fatty acids – Sprouts contain significant quantities of Essential Fatty Acids (EFA). EFAs are necessary to sustain life. They play an important role in enabling many important bodily functions to occur.

Sprouts are tightly packed with living enzymes – Living enzymes are found in living foods. Because sprouts are eaten shortly after picking, they are rich in nutrients and living enzymes.

Sprouts have an alkalising impact on the body – To achieve optimal health, our bodies need to achieve an alkaline state. Sprouts are alkaline. They help strengthen our immune system.

Spouts don’t require much space to grow – Sprouts can easily be grown in apartments, on kitchen windowsills, and in many other places. This means that sprouts can provide a valuable food source for anyone.

Sprouts are a wonderful food source. Growing them is easy and good fun. Why not give growing your own sprouts a go?