Let’s face it: not everyone has access to the highest quality of food at all times. Nor is pastured chicken and biodynamically grown vegetables available in every area, but we should all be working in that direction.
So here’s a simple guide. When the very best is available and within your price range: buy it. If you can’t find the best, then just shoot for the next best thing.
Red Meat & Pork
- Best: Wild game or local grass-finished meat and pasture-raised pork purchased from a rancher you know.
- Better: Non-local grass-finished meat and pasture-raised pork purchased through a good-quality company
- Good: Organic or free-range beef and organic or natural pork.
- AVOID: Conventional meat from confinement operations.
- Tip: If purchasing the best quality meat stretches your budget too thin, don’t give up and purchase CAFO meats; instead, consider purchasing less expensive cuts and supplementing with highly nutrient-dense, but inexpensive organ meats. Grass-fed organ meats and bones typically sell for $2 to $4 per pound, a fraction of the cost of more expensive cuts and are extremely nutrient-dense.
Poultry & Eggs
- Best: Wild birds, local pasture-raised poultry and eggs from local, pasture-raised hens purchased directly from the farmer.
- Better: Pasture-raised poultry and eggs from an indirect source like a local or online grocer.
- Good: Organic, omega-3 eggs and meat from “free range” chickens.
- AVOID: Conventionally raised meat and eggs from battery cage industrial chicken farms.
- Tip: There probably is someone locally raising chickens and selling eggs, don’t be afraid to ask around or take a trip to the country.
Fish
- Best: Fish and roe from wild-caught, ocean-going fish from cold waters, plus fermented cod liver oil.
- Better: Periodic use of fish and roe from wild-caught ocean-going fish, plus fermented cod liver oil.
- Good: Periodic use of sustainably and ecologically farmed fish and shellfish, plus fermented cod liver oil.
- AVOID: Fish from fish farming operations, excluding sustainably and ecologically farmed fish.
- Tip: Use SeafoodWatch.org to determine which fish are sustainably caught/farmed and which are best avoided. You can purchase sustainable wild-caught seafoods online (click here) and fermented cod liver oil can also be purchased online (see sources).
Fruits & Vegetables
- Best: Fresh locally, organically or biodynamically grown fresh fruits and vegetables.
- Better: Fresh and frozen organically grown fruits and vegetables.
- Good: Purchasing as much organically grown fruits and vegetables as possible while supplementing with conventionally grown fruits and vegetables with low-pesticide residue.
- AVOID: Conventionally grown fruits and vegetables with high-pesticide residue. Most canned fruits and vegetables.
- Tip: Check out the Environmental Working Groups guide to the pesticide levels in produce.
Dairy Products
- Best: Raw whole milk, butter and cream from grass-fed cows producing milk containing A2 beta casein (see sources).
- Better: Raw whole milk, butter and cream from grass-fed cows containing A1 beta casein.
- Good: Vat-pasteurized, non-homogenized dairy from grass-fed cows.
- AVOID: Non-organic dairy products from cows of unknown origin. Ultra high temperature pasteurized organic milk.
- Tip: Check out the Environmental Working Groups guide to the pesticide levels in produce.
Fats & Oils
- Best: Traditional fats including raw butter from grass-fed cows, suet & tallow from grass-fed cows, organic unrefined coconut oil, organic extra virgin olive oil, poultry fat from pastured chickens, lard from pastured pork.
- Better: Butter from grass-fed cows, unrefined coconut oil, poultry fat from “free-range” chickens, extra virgin olive oil.
- Good: Organic butter, refined coconut oil, olive oil.
- AVOID: Canola oil, margarine, soybean oil, cottonseed oil, vegetable oils (excluding coconut oil, palm oil, cocoa butter, olive oil and flaxseed oil), shortening.
- Tip: Check out this guide to which fats to use for cooking and which to leave uncooked.
Lovage Soup for Spring
Moroccan Preserved Lemons
campfire roast chicken with flowering onion and dill
Our Daily Bread: No-knead Sourdough
A Story of Recovery (and a Recipe for Grain-free Carrot Cupcakes with Honey Cream Cheese Frosting)
A Recipe for Beet Kvass: A Deeply Cleansing Tonic
Kind of interesting to read
cause in Denmark organic always means = pastured
and no additives – but I have seen that the American organic produce seem to be a “watered down” product compared to our European products.
Check out Henriette’s last post: Danske journalisters hjernedødhed.
I was speaking about dairy, cows and eggs btw
- and our organic dairy while adly not raw – but at least only low temperature pasterurised and NON homogenised – with nothing added like starch, fillers etc.
Check out Henriette’s last post: Danske journalisters hjernedødhed.
If only I could get my hands on some raw milk!
We are able to get grass fed beef, pastured chickens and true free range eggs along with tons of organic veggies from our CSA. But milk is a hard one right now because it is SO expensive in CO. So we get local natural whole milk and try to consume a lot of it cultured as in yogurt or kefir. Culturing held grow back some of it’s good bacteria, right?
Check out Noelle’s last post: they grow FAST!!!.
Wonderful post! I stumbled it.
Check out CHEESESLAVE’s last post: Got Osteoporosis? Drink Raw Milk!.
Noelle -
You can get back the good bacteria but pasteurization inactivates the enzymes in raw milk. I just posted about it in my post about osteoporosis. You need the enzymes to make sure your body can utilize the minerals.
You can get enzymes in raw foods.
Make sure you eat enough raw (soaked/sprouted) nuts, sprouts and seeds, raw veggies, and if you can find it, I’d eat raw milk cheese (aged).
You can also eat raw fish in the form of sushi (or ceviche), raw meat in the form of beef tartar or carpaccio, and raw cultured foods like sauerkraut.
Ann Marie
Check out CHEESESLAVE’s last post: Got Osteoporosis? Drink Raw Milk!.
Great post. We also prioritize our foods this way. One thing I differ slightly on:
Fish.
Here’s my rule of thumb (which also happens to be what Nina Planck argues for): If you’re eating carnivorous fish (like cod, salmon, or tuna), it should be wild. If you’re eating herbivorous fish (like carp, trout, or tilapia), it’s not so bad to eat them farmed (and in some cases, it’s arguably better for the environment).
Cheers,
KristenM
(AKA FoodRenegade)
Check out FoodRenegade’s last post: Do You Eat Illegal Baked Goods?.
we get raw milk in CO directly from the farm and IMO it’s not any more expensive than most of the country. the coasts are the most expensive from what i have heard. i guess it depends on what you deem expensive, but we pay $7.50/gallon. the cream and butter are of course quite a bit more.
Great recommendations. I look forward to the day that raw whole milk is legal and available off the black market in Canada. Until then- I stay far far away from our dairy supply.
Check out Meghan at Making Love In The Kitchen’s last post: The Green Smoothie Formula.
I’ve been looking for raw milk for a few weeks here in MN, apperently they are pretty strict about selling it, theres a special secret handshake you need to know to get it. Raw goat milk is much easier to find, does anyone know if it has the same health benefits?
Check out bradk’s last post: Cobb Salad for Lunch.
Awesome post, Jenny. I love how it is organized and makes use of color to really make your points stand out. This is really practical advice for people who might not be able to afford or find some of the best choices. Just because you can’t have the best doesn’t mean you have to scrap healthy eating altogether!
Check out Haley W.’s last post: Spaghetti with Pancetta and Morels.
What if you can get eggs from local chickens that are free to roam in their coop, but are not feed organic material? Better than organic store bought?
Check out Tutti @ Tribal Talk’s last post: favorite things: kirkland brand (costco) organic all-natural peanut butter.
I love your list! It’s very succinct.. just the kind you want to print out and take with you shopping!
I don’t know of any place near me that offers pastured fat and lard from good chicken or pork. The most I have found is some rendered goose fat from Whole Foods and I’m not sure what the source is. I think I will stick to coconut oil and EVOO instead.
Check out Erica’s last post: The Best Boiled Eggs in the World!.
Thank you for this list. Little by little I am learning so much from so many of you about eating this way. This is becoming one of my passions. I am thankful to have the information.
Check out peg’s last post: Passion: The Beach.
Great list, so concise. I wish I could find raw milk around here.
Check out pam’s last post: Tolan’s Mom’s Potato Salad – Tyler Florence.
Jenny, I’m stumbling, and linking to this, too! Also, I tried subscribing via email and it only gives me the RSS form – can you let me know when it’s fixed so I can subscribe? Thanks!
Kelly
Check out Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s last post: My Tasty Flop! (More about Homemade Cheese).
Oh, one more thing. You said to avoid shortening, but I sometimes (for pie crusts and the like) will use Spectrum Naturals organic shortening that is made only from palm oil.
Kelly
Check out Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s last post: My Tasty Flop! (More about Homemade Cheese).
Good points and most fish farming is bad, but there are some operations that are learning to farm fish sustainably in enclosed tanks and use waste water to grow crops. It’s early days, but I think some farmed fish may become a better choice that wild in the future. As always, just my opinion.
Good point, Phil, but I think the problems associated with fish farming extend beyond the environmental factors of old-school farming methods; rather, my primary concern is that the fish from farmed operations are not fed a natural diet. Farmed fish are often fed corn and soy which is decidedly unnatural for aquatic species. Like meat from CAFO operations, farmed fish just doesn’t have the nutritional profile of wild-caught fish.
Tell me (or link me – you probably covered this already) why canola is bad and what alternative I should use to bake (cakes, cookies, etc.) with. Please and thank you!
Check out The Runaway Lawyer’s last post: A Cure for Asthma?.
Canola oil is on my no-no list (after years of being on my yes-yes list
) for a number of reasons: 1) it’s not a traditional food anywhere considering that it is a modification of rapeseed oil which is naturally toxic that made it edible; 2) it has a very high omega-6 to omega-3 ratio which is unfavorable; 3) it is processed at high temperatures (even expeller pressing can result in high temperatures) which oxidizes the fragile polyunsaturated fatty acids and introduces free radicals into the oil and 3) it has a very, very high chance of being contaminated with GMO. When it comes to baking, we stick with coconut oil which is phenomenal for its culinary properties, subtle flavor and fantastic nutrient profile. Coconut oil is rich in lauric acid (otherwise only really found in good quantities in breastmilk). Lauric acid is an antiviral. So that’s why we no longer use canola oil at all.
I don’t use oil in baking i use apple sause of any other fruit puree. If it calls for 1 cup of oil or butter i use 1 cup of fruit puree. I also use egg whites and no yolk to couteract this, 2 egg whites =1 whole egg. Sometimes it won’t have the same consitency as you were use to but if you mess around with the eggs (ex it wants 2 eggs i put in 1 whole egg and two egg whites) or add some butter/fat such as coconut oil for 1/2- 1/4 of the oil/butter needed to go with the fruit puree.
Martie, it almost sounds like you’re trying to avoid fat and cholesterol, which is a common mistake. Applesauce adds basically a lot of sugar, and eggs, especially the yolks, are a great source of protein, fat and cholesterol, the nutrients we need to build healthy brains, neurotransmitters, cell walls, hormones, etc. Eggs also provide Vitamins A and D, at least if from pastured chickens. Don’t be afraid of fat and cholesterol. They have been wrongly demonized by people and organizations with an agenda that doesn’t support human health, however well-meaning they may be. Check out some of the articles at http://www.westonaprice.org for details on why naturally saturated animal fats and others like coconut oil are so good for you.
Hmmm. Where would one purchase coconut oil? Is this something one can readily come by?
Check out The Runaway Lawyer’s last post: I Missed Earth Day.
You should be able to get it at any health food stores, and many grocery stores carry it too. Choose the unrefined version (it has a subtle coconut flavor that I REALLY like). Alternatively you can get it online from amazon and even nutiva.com. Nutiva is the brand we use – it’s good stuff.
i got mine on amazon, since it’s great for baking, toothpaste and also diaper cream for cloth babies so i use a lot of it. FYI it goes to liquid at 80 degrees or so and doesn’t go back to soild form so don’t leave it in your car in the heat (learned the hard way!)
Thanks for the info – I may try it out.
Check out The Runaway Lawyer’s last post: ‘Hand of God’ rock being sold on eBay.
thanks for this article suggesting a handful of options!
Check out betsy’s last post: Hopefully Wednesday.
Regarding dairy products, as far as I know, A1/A2 casein is only a problem in cow milk, not goats or sheep milk. Any raw grass-fed goat or sheep milk would fall under ‘best’ category, is that correct?
That is my understanding too, Jola. Yaks, goats and sheep produce A2 milk so the casein issue one that only centers around cow milk.
What’s the difference between A1 &A2, and how can you tell which is which? The dairy I get my raw milk from has brown swiss cows. Is that A1 or A2? or does it depend on something other than the breed of cow?
Thanks for this info! It’s helpful to have second-best options for food when the best option isn’t available. I’m emailing it to my family now.
Kristin -
I’m so happy you liked the post! It’s important to realize that while optimal may not be achievable on every budget, or accessible in some locations there is always another option. No excuses not to eat well, eh?
Blessings -
Jenny
This is the kick-start I’ve been looking for! I have access to grass finished beef and pasture raised pork. I’m on the lookout for poultry and eggs. One item I haven’t seen on your posts (which I love by the way) is beef tongue. I may have missed it as I am new to the website.
This muscle is low in cost and a very dense protein. It does take some time to cook but it’s well worth it once you taste it. It’s very beefy and (once cooked)very tender. I’m curious to see if you have the nutritional value of it because I would like to keep it on my list.
My thanks to you and your readers for all the helpful advice.
Darcy
Darcy -
Thank you so much for your comment! Grass-finished and pasture-raised meats are such a joy in the kitchen. So deeply nourishing. I actually haven’t been able to come across a beef tongue yet. I remember eating it as a child (we were poor and it was cheap). Do you have a recipe for it you really like?
- Jenny
In California, I pay 8.99 a half gallon for raw whole milk
and 3.99 for low-fat raw milk
soooo I often get the lowfat raw
and supplement with low temp pasteurized organic whole milk that is not homogenized.
Uggh….get with it people. Fix our food system. this is so ridiculous.
We went to Ruth’s Chris steak house and I asked if they had any grass fed beef. The lady looked at me like I was crazy-why would I want grass fed when I could have corn fed? No, she didn’t actually say that but her experssion and tone said it.
Thanks for this list– I like the approach of “best,” “better,” “good,” and “avoid.” You give very clear and easy guidelines to follow!
You have to watch out about wild game. In many areas in the US the deer are very high in radioactive cesium. Wildlife from freshwater wetlands can pick up lead (from shot) pesticides (agriculture) mercury (coal power plants) and other toxins from industrial discharge into the air and water and onto the soil. Remember now that wild caught seafood can come from the Gulf of Mexico, which although it has been declared safe, it is far from it. I am chronically ill from eating wild fish and game. I worked tagging catfish for the California Department of Fish and Game 30 years ago, and ate the free catfish I got for lunch and dinner for the duration of the job. I also consumed a great deal of wild duck for a couple of years. I now am poisoned by mercury, lead, cadmium, DDT, organophosphate pesticides and other petrochemicals, and it doesn’t feel good!
Also remember that a lot of the deer stands the hunters put up are baited all year with GMO corn.
Maybe someone already said this but you might want to add to pasture raised meats/poultry/eggs animals that aren’t fed soy or gmo grains. Even among farms in the WAPF shopping guide I’ve had a hard time finding farmers that don’t feed soy to their animals.