Whenever I enter a conventional grocery store, I get heart palpitations. You might think I am kidding about this, but I am not. My body gets heated, my face starts to scowl and I end up saying “WTF” about 18 times before I leave the store. You’d think by now, I would have my emotions under control – but I don’t and I think that’s why I am so passionate about fixing this food system. And I know you are too because you keep emailing, commenting and alerting me of all the messed up things you are seeing out there and I can’t thank you enough!
This investigation is one that you have been asking for, so here it is… And if you are new to Food Babe, you definitely want to read this before you ever go to the deli counter again.
You asked: Is Boar’s Head deli meat better than the other brands?
I’ve received emails and comments on social media expressing that you’ve been led to believe that Boar’s Head deli meat is healthier than other brands – but you wanted to know if it really is better or if they’ve just got really good marketing.
Their slogan – “Compromise Elsewhere” – sure makes it sound like they don’t add cheap additives to their deli meats, but is that really true? One of your emails said:
“I would love to eat Boar’s Head deli meats and cheeses as they are gluten-free and I have Celiac Disease and they seemed to be the leading company in the gluten-free deli meats. I called the company directly for ingredient lists on some of my favorite deli meats and discovered there is caramel coloring (which I know is not good) in a lot of their offerings. Could Food Babe investigate further and start a campaign to get them to take out the offending ingredients?”
Another reader sent me this photo of a big sign they saw at Publix grocery store:
Reading between the lines, this is what this sign says to me…
- “No Fillers”: This means their meats don’t contain carrageenan, soy concentrate, cellulose, starches, and other cheap substances that can hold processed meat together and reduce costs for food manufacturers.
- “No By-Products”: These are parts of the animal that we don’t typically eat, like lips, tripe, pork stomachs, and hearts. Even mainstream deli meat brands like Oscar Mayer (confirmed on the phone) and Sara Lee (via their website) claim to have deli meats that are free of by-products, so this doesn’t really set Boar’s Head apart as superior to those brands.
- “No Artificial Colors”: Here they are only referring to FD&C certified colors, as these are the only ones considered “artificial” by the FDA: Blue #1, Blue #2, Green #3, Red #3, Red #40, Yellow #5, and Yellow #6. I haven’t been able to find a single deli meat that contains any certified artificial colors, so this claim really doesn’t mean anything and is misleading because caramel color is still used.
- “No Artificial Flavors”: Another trick to make you believe their meat only contains quality ingredients, when in reality “natural” flavors can still be used. Natural flavors are not much different than the artificial variety and are made in a lab.
- “No Trans Fat”: Their meats don’t contain partially hydrogenated oils. Again, this isn’t a normal ingredient in deli meat… I’ve never seen it!
- “No Gluten”: Most deli meats are already gluten-free, so this isn’t a big shocker. But there are some deli meats that do contain gluten or may be cross-contaminated with gluten, and Boar’s Head’s claims their meats are free of gluten and thereby safe for people with celiacs.
As you can see, marketing messages like these on signs, ads, and on the front of a package tell you very little about a product. This is why I say to stop paying attention to these tactics and to always read the ingredients instead!
The biggest red flag that something was up at Boar’s Head was when I tried to find their ingredients on their website and they weren’t listed.
If Boar’s Head is so proud of the quality of their products, why don’t they publish what’s in them? How are we supposed to “trust” them if they aren’t being transparent? Even their fiercest deli meat competitor, Dietz & Watson, lists their ingredients online. Besides bugging the busy deli counter worker, there really should be an easier way to get their ingredients, and publishing them online is the best way to make them accessible to consumers.
My team called Boar’s Head to see if they would email over a list of their deli meat ingredients – and had no luck. The customer service rep told us that she wasn’t able to email us a list. She was only able to read off the ingredients over the phone for specific products, but wouldn’t send them to me via email (even for just one product). They won’t send them to us in writing? Again… red flag! I really began to wonder what Boar’s Head is trying to hide.
Given our experience with customer service, I reached out directly to the President of Boar’s Head – Mike Martella to discuss this as well, but have not heard back yet. But, after obtaining some ingredients directly from Boar’s Head over the phone and from Publix grocery stores (one of their biggest retailers), it turns out that Boar’s Head is adding some pretty controversial additives to their deli meats.
This is what I think the Boar’s Head sign should really say…
“Don’t Trust Boar’s Head!”
“Artificially Browned with Carcinogenic Caramel Color!”
Boar’s Head artificially browns some varieties of deli meat with class III and class IV caramel coloring, which is linked to cancer (this is the same color that we successfully campaigned to get removed from Starbucks drinks!) Caramel coloring is in a dozen of their meats, including the Rotisserie Seasoned Roasted Chicken Breast, EverRoast Turkey, Seasoned Filet Roast Beef, and Maple Honey Ham.
“Made With GMOs?!?!?!”
Update 1/11: Called Boar’s Head again, and they said their meat is not non-GMO.
We asked Boar’s Head if any of their deli meats contain GMOs and they didn’t respond. Yet, they use many ingredients that are usually derived from GMO crops like sugar (sugar beets). Added sugar and/or dextrose (typically made from GMO corn) is found in a lot of their meats, even in ones that seem healthier like their “No Salt Added Turkey Breast”. Other meats that are “maple glazed” and “honey coat” contain more sugar and dextrose than real honey or maple syrup. They also told us that their caramel coloring is derived from corn and some of them are browned in cottonseed oil (the worst GMO oil on the planet and is regulated like a textile crop (more toxic pesticides!) – cottonseed oil is not food!). Boar’s Head claims that many of their meats are “Vegetarian Grain-Fed”, yet this is often code for “GMO-fed” animals when not organic.
“Raised with Antibiotics!”
To be fair, they do have a “Natural” line that is antibiotic-free, but they told us the others are given antibiotics for disease prevention. Now that Subway has made the commitment to stop using antibiotics to raise their deli meats, hopefully Boar’s Head will follow suit. Boar’s Head also told us that they have no organic deli meat. Organic meats are prohibited from using antibiotics and growth-promoting drugs and hormones in their animals. Organic animals also can’t be fed GMOs or given drugs like ractopamine.
“Flavored with Secret and Proprietary Ingredients!”
Several of Boar’s Head meats contain “natural flavors” or “Natural Hickory Smoke Flavoring”. Just because it doesn’t contain artificial flavors, that doesn’t mean the taste isn’t fake or engineered in a lab. The chemicals that are used to make “natural flavors” are kept secret from consumers and their “safety is sometimes declared based on scientific data that isn’t publicly available”.
What about their Preservative-free claims?
Boar’s Head sent me a list of their deli meats with “No Preservatives and Without Added Nitrates”, yet I found that some of these meats – like the Cajun Style Smoked Turkey, Lemon Pepper Chicken and All American BBQ Chicken – still contained sodium phosphate. This additive is on EWG’s Dirty Dozen list of ingredients to avoid because it can increase the risk of heart disease.
Maltodextrin has no place in deli meat that takes “No Compromises”.
I found the additive maltodextrin in some of their meats: Everroast Roasted Chicken, All American BBQ Chicken, London Broil Roast Beef, Virginia Ham, and Lemon Pepper Chicken, and most of these also contain dextrose and other added sugars. These ingredients are carbohydrates and commonly used as “fillers” in cheap processed food, like the taco “meat” at Taco Bell. Maltodextrin is also often a hidden form of MSG.
I don’t eat deli meats often, but when I do this is what I choose:
- 100% certified organic (preferably grass fed/pastured) – This ensures that the animals weren’t given antibiotics or growth hormones, weren’t fed GMOs, and none of the ingredients are derived from GMOs.
- I like to roast whole pieces of organic meat, and slice it myself. This way, I know exactly what’s in it and there’s no processing!
- Whole organic sliced deli meat without sodium nitrate.
- No fillers or additives like carrageenan or maltodextrin.
- Brands that list their ingredients online (if not already pre-packaged with ingredients).
Some brands to try: Organic Prairie, Kol Foods Oven Roasted Turkey, Nuna Naturals, Applegate Farms (some contain carrageenan and fillers – so always read the ingredients!)
If you know someone who is blindly trusting Boar’s Head meat, please share this post with them. Be part of the change, take a moment and comment on Boar’s Head Facebook page here or tweet them here – tell them we deserve better.
Xo,
Vani
Update 1/12/2016 – See new revealing ingredient pictures here.
Update 1/8/2016 – Reader obtained additional ingredient lists from Publix and it looks like Boar’s Head Virginia Baked Ham has MSG.
WOW! That was an eye opener! I have to RETHINK Boarhead deli meats!! Thanks for the effort and MY payoff!!
There are some YOUTUBE videos that show you how to make your own bologna and other sandwich meats. I make my own with fresh meats grown locally around where I live in Arkansas. When buying meats I head to my local butcher who always has local grown meats available. You can also sometimes get your name on a list when the local ranchers thin out their herds and share at a good price.
The Omnibus bill the house just passed guts our food safety labeling laws they just announced also. February 1st you won’t even know what country the meat in the grocer came from much less if it was grown next to an open sewer or what it was fed. It could come from China, Mexico, Japan, Anywhere! You’ll never know!
I have always bought Boar’s Head mostly because it tastes better than lots of other brands I’ve tried. But truly, this post shocked me! Not a big deli meat fan here either, but sometimes you need something quick and easy. I’m starting to feel like not eating altogether because everything seems so bad for you! I actually read that once ~ that the less you eat in general, the better off you are health wise.
I completely understand the frustration here! As a smaller farmer who does raise her own meats, sometimes it’s just nice to grab some perfectly thin sliced deli meat. I was wrong to blindly accept their statement and did know better. Now, it will no longer be an option.
BUT, Food Babe friends,the terms “grass fed” & “pasture raised” have now been taken over as well. All cows are grass fed, most all are pasture raised … it’s how they are finished that you want to find out about. The last 6 weeks of their lives in the feed lot are miserable where they stand eating grain to boost their weight 12-15 lbs a day. We market our meats, direct to consumer, as grass fed AND finished. There is a difference and I’m now a little more concerned about those deli meats being tauted as such. 🙁
Vani.I wish you could alert the thousands of consumers nation wide about the alarming increase of PARKINSON`S disease that has effected those persons who live near the 300 mile fertile strip of fertile farms near Bakersfield,California.In 2012 the article PARKINSON`S ALLEY was in the SIERRA magazine and the suspected cause were the two pesticides,Maneb and Paraquat that have been sprayed on the crops with the crop dusting planes.Two of the persons were highlighted in this article former Police Chief Bruce McDermott from Visalia,California and a Donna DeVries whose doctors told he to move away from this area as it was not a healthy place to live.And as you know a substantial number of fruits & vegetables are consumed nation widwide.Since 2012 the University Of California conducted studies on this issue and they confirmed that these two pesticides were indeed the cause of the increase of PARKINSON`S.What is the government doing about this? Not much!!This article can be read under PARKINSON`S ALLEY.
That’s what happens when you don;t grow GMO crops. You need more pesticides. Love how uneducated you are all, and then you contradict and create your own problems. Organic needs more pesticides. GMO’s do not cause cancer. That’s unfounded.
Good job, Carlo! You can go pick up your check now.
Now who’s uneducated? There are many of us running good sized farms in our area who, amazingly, have never used pesticides, and I’d challenge you to find better produce and meat anywhere! And we all know there’s enough research to drown you in, on the harm caused by GMO crops. Go troll somewhere else.
Troll = IGNORE
GMO is specifically made to require three times as much pesticide. That is not unfounded. In the case of insecticide GMO corn, the insecticide is implanted in the seed Geno. The seeds are then coated with an insecticide. After being planted, once growing, they are then sprayed with insecticide….if not once, then twice.
Keep up the Great work!!!
Thank you for your investigation. I often wondered what exactly was the deal with deli meats as I eat them often. I will have to reevaluate my lunches from now on! Thanks again
Thank you so much for everything you do, it is amazing what this Country does to its people, there should be a law against all the pesticides beeing used on food, and the GMO, etc, why isn’t there?? Karin
Follow the money! It all comes down to money. Sadly.
I am very disappointed in Boars Head. Our family has been loyal customers, under the thinking they were a company with high standards. We will no longer be buying their meats or cheese. AppleGate will be getting our service now. Buycott Boars Head!!!
“Natural flavors” and “spice” can include MSG>
That is a LIE, Martha. Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is not included as “natural flavor” nor “spice”. It is spelled out in the ingredient statement as compelled by the Food and Drug Administration in the Federal Register.
MSG is indeed a 100% natural flavoring ingredient and flavor enhancer.
MSG is not a naturally occurring ingredient. It was discovered.by accident during processing foods in China and quickly became the mainstay of cheap and overly processed, nutrient deficient junk foods…enabling them to taste better or be more palatable and have extremely long shelf life.
Lie is a strong word; if my assertion is incorrect or out of date, I apologize. However, the word “natural” on food labels or in ingredients has, according to our County Extension Agent, no legal meaning, and I see it as a red flag that whatever food processor is using it may be hiding something. As far as MSG is concerned, I don’t remember where I read that it can be characterized as “natural” or “spice,” and that situation may have changed. Most of my information about MSG and aspertame comes from Russell Blaylock’s excellent book, Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills. MSG may very well occur naturally in small amounts, but the origins of what is available commercially are suspect and the substances are used in amounts far in excess of what occurs in nature. Dr. Blaylock makes an excellent case that both substances destroy brain cells when they occur in excess by keeping the calcium channel from closing, flooding the brain cell with calcium, and ultimately causing it’s death. I avoid both.
Go Martha! Wonderful response.
Applegate uses Nitrites from celery. Nitrites are nitrites. You probably don’t want to eat any processed meat at all. Boarshead has chemical nitrites. Applegate has nitrites from a natural source. They are both still full of nitrites. Fresh sliced meat is best.
What about the turkey? You didn’t mention the turkey. I sometimes get the all natural turkey breast.
What a scam. All this time I would not buy any other deli meat because I was told their luncheon meats do not contain nitrates and fillers. Won’t be buying it anymore. Thank you for the information.
Oh, THANK YOU for finally exposing Boar”s Head for what they are…..I have been hearing for most of my life how great and natural their products are….. now I have PROOF to show my friends! I highly suspect that just because their PRICES were so over-the-top that people automatically assumed they were firat quality nutrition-wise. Our local grocery store also sells this great “natural” meat (sarc) that is only grass and grain fed…..but of course the GRAIN is GMO corn so what the heck!! GMO corn= poison!!! I just love ya for getting the truth out, FoodBabe!!
Applegate Farm is now owned by Hormel. I would not trust the quality, and yes they contain nitrates from celery as well.
Hormel bought out Applegate? Was this recent?? 🙁
Thanks again Vani! I’m so proud of the Food Babe for having the courage to stand up for us, the people. Isn’t that what our government is supposed to be doing. They are in their offices for the people, by the people. But unfortunately the majority of them, their pockets keep getting deeper and deeper for themselves.
GREED! I would like to think that one day their conscience will get the best of them.
No more Boars Head meats for me until they live up to what they advertise. Then they too can be on the Food Babe good go-to list. As fast as the food movement is going that should be at the very least one of their goals.
Wow! I thought Boarshead meat was better. Thank you for your due diligence in finding out the real truth. God bless you Foodbabe.
If we choose to plant a garden to avoid as much as possible all additives, where do we get truly natural seeds ? How can we protect our garden if there are planes spraying crops nearby ? We definitely need to continue awareness of a wider population .
Certified organic seeds. Protect from pesticides and chemtrails by using row covers, hoop houses, green houses
Look for “Heritage” seeds. These are varieties that have been around for decades, maybe even centuries,and, as an added benefit, produce viable seeds.
You can save your seeds and start to develop plants that do exceptionally well in your area; handing them out to friends and neighbours.
Thank you for much for your work!! I trusted this company enough to feed it to my child. I no longer feel safe doing so. You are truly an inspiration and ARE making this world a better place. <3
I’ve enjoyed many of your articles and stand behind your missions. I eat as well as I can with the money I have to spend on food. I do not buy processed foods. I do, however, have to use conventional grocery stores. The closest (and only) natural store is an hour away. They are not that bad. Mine thankfully has a great organic produce section and a nice natural foods section. Most of us have to pick and choose because of location and/or budget. I make the best choices I can.
Thanks for this information as my kids eat deli meat for lunches quite often and while I don’t love them to, it’s better than our school lunches. I did switch from Boar’s Head about a year ago to Metro Deli, which I heard was better, although can’t seem to find much information online. Interested to hear what you know (or could find out) about this brand. My local Co-op that I frequent sells it so I was “assuming” it was OK. Appreciate your thoughts!
Thanks!
Hi Vani
Thank you for a great newsletter! I am intrigued by your ‘Indian’ name- are you are South Indian by any chance and Tamil speaking? VANI is definitely South Indian Tamil. I am a South African born Indian male and just love Tamil movies Kollywood) and music!
The only deli meat I eat is olive loaf, and unfortunately not many companies offer this.
I, too, bought into the hype and paid $10 a pound for Boarshead. Also, Boarshead deli dressing brags on the front of the bottle “made with olive oil” and it does have olive oil in the ingredient list, but canola oil is the first ingredient which probably means there isn’t much olive oil in it. Also, if we could work on eliminating soy (soybean oil, soy flour, etc.) from products. Soy is a hormone disruptor and is related to estrogen dominance, which also leads to insulin resistance, pre-diabetes and additional health problems. Soy is in so many products in some form. It is such a farce how the soybean farmers market this to women going through menopause and its benefits for hot flashes– so bad for you women!
Thanks for the great information. I don’t eat much meat but would really like to know which brands / products are ‘ok’ to eat in the lunchmeat category.
thank you for this, i already suspected years ago and i have never ate them as i am deathly allergic to any meats from the grocery stores, unless they say organic and grass fed and/or free range, etc. American is #1 in the nation for cancer and we wonder why?
next stop: their cheeses!
Hey Sandy,
The link below shows Denmark as the #1 cancer patient country.
http://www.wcrf.org/int/cancer-facts-figures/data-cancer-frequency-country
have a great weekend!
What a let down. Trust no one. Sounds like a Science Fiction liner note.
By the way, I notice that all the cartons of Soy, Rice, Almond milks no longer
list CARRIGEENEN (spelling) in their ingredients panel. Have they removed the Carrigennen or just the word. Can you Please investigate that. It’s suspicious.
Thank you for all you do. Stay safe
What about prosciutto di Parma (made in Italy) that is sold at Trader Joe´s and Costo? It only has pork and salt, Would this be a good product to consume?
So boar’s head makes no claim they don’t uphold? Great investigation
I bought organic freeze dried sausage on the internet. I think the brand was Thrive, which seems to be two similar companies. You can use a product like this to make a recipe that satisfies the same taste we have for these deli meats.
Everyone should find an organic rancher. In the area where I live, I just go to the church next door to buy grassfed beef, bones for broth. On my ranch, I am beginning to raise organic pork (not there yet, the feed is hard to get and expensive, so we are in the process of producing our own).
I am sure I’m not the only one who is in the beginning stages of producing decent meat, humanely raised. IT AIN’T EASY!
Apple gate is one of the meats you suggested, owned by clorox
Someone else in the comments said Hormel…? Same company?? Is this a recent buy-out??? 🙁
Vani – can you recommend a healthier brand of deli meat? This post was very eye-opening. Thank you!
Like Food Babe, I rarely eat deli meats. I was a vegetarian for over 30 years. When I decided to add meat back into my diet, I chose to only eat the highest quality pasture raised meats. This automatically eliminates almost all deli meats. Our local Wegmans carries a grass fed organic line of deli meats. I will occasionally buy those, especially on a week where I might not have as much time to cook. But other than that…no deli meats for this girl!
I live in Rochester New York and go to a fantastic grocery store called Wegmans. Wegmans carries many organic products under their own name & they have organic deli meats which are fantastic!! I buy their organic oven roasted turkey breast and they have an organic uncured ham which is amazing. Wegmans has expanded their stores to Massachusetts Pennsylvania and soon Brooklyn New York. Very very conscious green grocery store that puts a high priority on organic products!!
I live in Rochester New York and go to a fantastic grocery store called Wegmans. Wegmans carries many organic products under their own name & they have organic deli meats which are fantastic!! I buy their organic oven roasted turkey breast and they have an organic uncured ham which is amazing. Wegmans has expanded their stores to Massachusetts Pennsylvania and soon Brooklyn New York. It’s very conscious green grocery store that puts a high priority on organic products!!
I’ve always trusted Boar’s Head and still will. All the other deli meats that are out there have to be much worse. I will continue to trust Boars Head for my family
Hi Gerry, I’ve read rebuttals and comments here & on other sites that disagree with Food Babe & her Army. Thank you so much for your candor and for stating your preferences simply and respectfully. It makes reading the comments section a more enjoyable read when people can disagree in a direct, honest and loyal (to the brand) tone of voice.
You are a real blessing for the thousands or millions of people trying to avoid all this crap they put in our food,THANK YOU!! I used to work at several delis (bodegas) in ny,and boar’s head brand is like crack cocaine for most people,that’s all they ask for!!! I’m an addict myself (just kidding;))…no seriously,i love haggen dasz ice creams and i already know for a fact that their product contains many ingredients that shouldn’t be there.i wish we could make a campaign on haggen dasz to help them remove all those nasty ingredients like carragenan. Thank you!!!
Happy New Year Vani,
Thank you for continuing to be on the front lines for all of us! I work in a little town with not many healthy prepared food options. I used to buy the 2 or 3 times a month deli sandwich from the fairly healthy market across the street that sells organic grass fed meats & locally grown veggies.
Their brand is Boar’s Head. Inevitably I would get a fairly immediate inflammatory reaction after eating the sandwich. Eventually I stopped eating processed deli meats. No more inflammatory response.
I never asked the butcher if I could see the ingredients list. I usually assume it’s going to have everything in it not considered to be healthy. Buying the sandwich was simply a lazy, convenience thing for me to do. Although their meats are super tasty, I no longer eat it & no longer have inflammatory crisis after lunch either. Truthfully, I wouldn’t have been able to guess at the real amount of every type of sugar known to man that is in the meat. In my mind, my rule of thumb is SuperTasty + SuperConvenient Eats= Super Health Risk.
I was so upset when I read this because I thought boars head is semi ok to eat. Now I can’t even have a easy sandwich lol reading your blog, Food babe, my fridge will be empty empty lol Just teasing:) i really do appreciate what you do!! I truly believe we all have to grow our own food , eat seasonal and cook ourselves.:))
Food babe, I’d appreciate it if you could do something to get Costco stores to be aware of the dangers of caramel coloring and get it out of their mocha freeze and latte freeze drinks they sell at their food bars in their stores. If you could make it happen at Starbucks, I have faith in you that you could also make it happen at Costco.
They also still sell cooked whole chickens that have antibiotics in them. They state “No hormones,” which are outlawed anyway in chicken, but continue to use antibiotics in them despite their having had major problems in the past year with people getting ill from resistant bacteria after consuming the chicken. This was a result of their indiscriminate use of preventative antibiotics. One of their employees (may have been a butcher) told me they will continue to use it since their philosophy is to make it as inexpensive as possible for the consumer and to keep their costs down. They obviously have been pressured by public demand to offer more and more organic or partly organic food. They now offer uncooked Foster Farms chicken without antibiotics as a choice, but their cooked chickens they sell in large quantities continue to have antibiotics. Most people are not aware I believe and they are convenient. They are also pumped up with a lot of liquid containing salt and phosphates, etc. Thanks for all your great work.
WOW!! I’m kind of surprised at the number of people who rely on others for their information. Come on folks, it is 2016, it’s time to take some responsibility for your own lives. Take an extra 1/2 hour in the market and read the ingredient labels. If it contains ingredients that you can not pronounce, DON’T EAT IT!!
Yes, some deli meats contain nitrates, even “all natural” ones. Celery naturally contains nitrates, that is how manufacturers “cure” the product. The USDA doesn’t recognize this process and requires the product to be labeled as uncured.
Yes, nitrates can cause cancer, however the daily amount you’d need to consume is astronomical.
It is very simple…everything in MODERATION.
Happy Eating!!
I became sceptical when our new grocery store introduced Boars Head’s NEW All Natural line. The store only has 4 products and when you order them they have to take 5 minutes to clean the slicer because the other Boars Head meat will contaminate the All Natural line. This confused me because I was under the impression Boars Head meat was already safe. Even when I was pregnant my doctor told me to eat Boars Head meat. It all makes me sick to my stomach. I was wondering if you could look into this new Boars Head All Natural product please.
Thanks for all your research and keeping us informed! Researching the food industry is a full time job these days and I know how tough it is, so THANK YOU! On a side note, i almost had a boars head sandwich for lunch today. I’m so glad that i chose something else, i would have been so unhappy sitting here reading this as i was eating that sandwich. Keep up the great work Food Babe!
Below is a link for the Applegate lovers. Another one bites the dust, to the tune of $775 mil, But who knows maybe Hormel will keep Applegates high standards in place. Heard Daves Organic breads got bought out too by Flower Foods (Wonder Bread) cool 275mil to ole Dave. Hoping Ezekiel hangs in there…..
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/27/business/dealbook/hormel-foods-to-buy-applegate-farms-for-775-million.html?_r=0
http://waterhillnaturals.com/
organic
Dr. Mercola published interesting information on line about how our meat production process involves cannibalism of the animals and this may be a huge contributor to the rise in Alzheimer’s. It seems the monolithic food and chemical corporations are staying up nights figuring out how they can dupe us and keep themselves in the trillions of dollars. Meanwhile we sit back… Eat ourselves senseless… Because God knows it isn’t fulfilling a biological requirement (due to the engineering and gross mismanagement) and compromise our health and environment and that of our future generations. Look at all the damaged wrecked in the past 60 years…. How do we turn this around… Seriously… Enough already!
Do I hear class action suit? Where do we start? : ))
Very interesting post. I stopped eating all deli meats for a few months because of raging migraines. With the help of a migraine tracker app, I discovered that deli meats along with other processed meats (e.g., hot dogs, sausage, pepperoni, etc) were some of my food triggers. Reading this post reinforces my decision to stop eating it.
I do want to thank you for pointing out hidden MSGs in foods. I’m migraine sensitive to MSG as well as sodium nitrate. Thanks to you, I figured out maltodextrin is another trigger.
Thank you for your detective work. I did fall for the Boars Head mumbo jumbo. It all boils down to the same thing. Prepare it yourself. Clean, whole food always wins!
Great article!
I was curious if you’ve researched the ingredients in wine? Since they are not required to list. Thank you for all your hard work =)
Yes – I have, it’s Day 7 in my book The Food Babe Way – do you have it yet? http://foodbabeway.com
Hi Vani,
I thought I had already posted this question, but scrolling through the comments I don’t see it so I must have forgotten to hit “post”. Whoops.
Anyway, here’s my question: You refer to cottonseed oil as “the worst GMO oil on the planet”. What is it about cottonseed oil that makes it worse than other GMO-derived oils?
Thanks!
All natural what does it mean video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AftZshnP8fs
As a parent and child advocate, I praised Boars Head meats as healthier for children. They were recommended by an Organic store I shop. Applegate meats were the reason I went there, because big chain supermarkets didnt carry much of the Applegate line of meats. I recently went to that organic store and had once of the best tasting subs Ive ever had, everything was great. But it was made with Boars Head. I will ask for the Applegate meats next time. Thanks for opening up my eyes once again.
I now understand why I prefer their turkey so much — I’m addicted to sugar!
Apple Gate meat? Do you know they were bought out by Hormel??!! I wont ever buy from them again .