Organic Foods

Organic Produce to Your Door: Green B.E.A.N. Delivery Service Expands to St. Louis

Indiana native Matt Ewer has farming in his blood. At the ripe old age of eight, he started selling sweet corn door-to-door for his family's farm. When he was twenty, he began working in organic farming and not long after moved to the West Coast to study organic agriculture. Then he returned to Ind ... More >>

Wait, Should We Be Eating Organic Food or Not?

Researchers at Stanford University published a study earlier this week that knocked proponents of organic food on their collective ear. Turns out that organic food, while far more expensive than conventionally-produced food, isn't any healthier. But now that the foodies have had a chance to read th ... More >>

A Greener Lawn

Chain Tidbits: Pita Pit, zpizza

- The fast-casual chain Pita Pit entered the St. Louis market last year, opening its first area location at 200 North Ninth Street downtown. Now comes word that the chain will open a second location at 215 Harvard Drive. According to a help-wanted post on Craiglist, the new Pita Pit has targeted Mo ... More >>

Produce Labels Reveal More Than Price: Is Your Fruit Organic or Genetically Modified?

When you are buying produce, you are most likely more concerned about the look and feel of the product than the Price Look Up (PLU) sticker. While squeezing, flicking, smelling and all those other tried-and-true techniques of examining produce work well, that little sticker actually offers some usef ... More >>

The Veggielante Visits Foundation Grounds

Destination: Foundation Grounds (7298 Manchester; 314-601-3588) Neighborhood: Maplewood Cuisine: American, Contemporary Overview: Foundation Grounds is a colorful coffee shop and café in the bustling Maplewood neighborhood that prides itself on serving fresh, organic food and quality coffee. The ... More >>

St. Louis Earth Day Festival Food Preview

With more live entertainment slated for the St. Louis Earth Day Festival on Sunday, April 22, than ever before, this year's celebration is bound to knock St. Louis up to the second largest Earth Day festival in the country -- after all we are world champs, at things both big and small (but mostly bi ... More >>

Schlafly Farmers' Market Opens Today

Given the unseasonably warm weather we've been enjoying of late, it's hard to believe we're not already several weeks deep into farmers' market season. In fact, that season gets going in earnest this very afternoon as the Schlafly Farmers' Market (a.k.a. the Maplewood Farmers' Market) opens at 4 p. ... More >>

The GMO Pig: An Idea Whose Time Has Not Yet Come

Does anyone remember Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel Oryx and Crake? It concerned, in part, unscrupulous scientists who bred genetically-modified chickens that were all breast -- no heads or tails or legs. Atwood's vision confirmed the worst fears of anyone who opposes GMO's. It's also, it turns o ... More >>

Pick a Peck of Peaches at Eckert's

Image via​This weekend marks the beginning of the peach harvest at Eckert's County Store & Farms (951 South Greenmount Road, Belleville; 618-233-0513). Beginning today, peaches are available from 8 a.m.-6:30 p.m. daily at a price of $1.89 per pound.Tom Dutkanych, Eckert's farm operations manag ... More >>

Self-Sufficient St. Louis to Hold Fundraiser for Dave Hagerty Community Garden on Sunday

​Self-Sufficient St. Louis is holding a fundraiser event on Sunday for the Dave Hagerty Community Garden. Sunday's fundraiser will be at Off Broadway, which neighbors the Garden. Admission is a $10 donation and will feature performances by Ellen the Felon and the Mattranome, The Airliners, Syn ... More >>

EarthDance Farms and Chipotle Teach Ferguson Kids About Farming

​On Monday, June 6, fifteen Ferguson middle school kids will get a first-hand lesson in farming from EarthDance. They'll partner with local Chipotle restaurants to introduce kids to organic gardening; they'll work in the fields of the oldest organic farm in Missouri and return to their classro ... More >>

Molly Rockamann, First Recipient of the Young Food Leader Award, on Organic Farming and Sustainable Urban Agriculture

Screenshot via​Molly Rockamann grew up in the suburbs of Creve Coeur, where vegetable farms consisted of small tomato gardens in backyards or a few pole beans creeping up the sides of fences. But it was there where Molly developed a real passion for vegetables at an early age. As co-founder an ... More >>

Apathy R Us: No Anti-GMO Rally Set for St. Louis

ethicurean.com​ On March 26, protesters plan to gather in twenty cities across the nation at locations including the White House, New York City Hall, Atlanta's CNN Building and the Los Angeles Federal Building. The reason? To demand honest labeling in foods that contain genetically modified i ... More >>

Monsanto's Roundup-Ready Alfalfa = Goodbye Organic Beef and Dairy, Says New Lawsuit

Image viaWill Roundup-Ready alfalfa render natural alfalfa extinct? ​Environmental groups and organic farmers alike have slapped the USDA with a lawsuit for its greenlighting of Monsanto's Roundup-Ready alfalfa grass earlier this year.The plaintiffs -- which include the Center for Food Safety and ... More >>

Slow Food St. Louis, Brick City Gardens and Schlafly Team Up for Organic Film Series

HBOClaire Danes as the title character in the HBO film Temple Grandin, which screens Monday, April 12, as part of the "Good Gardening - Good Food" series at Schlafly Bottleworks​It's hard to believe, what with the layer of snow covering the ground, but it's almost time for Slow Food St. Louis, ... More >>

Germany Faces Contaminated Meat Woes

The U.S. isn't the only country with food safety issues. The Agence France-Presse reports that contaminated animal feed in Germany has led South Korea to ban Germany pork and Slovakia to ban German poultry. Russia may be next to refuse German meat. The countries are concerned about elevated levels o ... More >>

Former Employee of Brentwood Whole Foods Market Alleges Termination for Blowing Whistle on Bad Organic Practices [Updated]

​A former employee of Whole Foods Market in Brentwood claims that she was fired after alerting management of multiple instances in which the produce department had not followed the proper standards for handling organic produce, according to a lawsuit filed last week in St. Louis County Circuit Cou ... More >>

Chinese Yuppies Becoming Organic Farmers

The Washington Post profiles the small number of young Chinese professionals who've embraced organic farming. While most farmers have abandoned farming for industrial jobs, the island of Chongming has drawn a group of young urbanites who've given up the modern life for farming. What's bringing them? ... More >>

The Contradictory Link Between Poverty and Obesity

The Philadelphia Inquirer dedicated its Sunday front page to the link between poverty and obesity. They feature a family living in the second-hungriest congressional district in the country. "'One of our biggest misconceptions is that it's poor people's fault,' said Adam Drewnowski, a University of ... More >>

Giant Organic Egg Farms Come Under Fire

Not all organic eggs are created equal. Mother Jones looks at organic factory egg farms, which have been investigated by the Cornucopia Institute, an organic foods advocacy group. They've filed a complaint against farms for violating organic standards, and exposes the eleven major organic egg produc ... More >>

Costco Condemns Veal

Costco condemns veal producer at urging of animal rights group. The Associated Press reports that the Washington-based wholesale club was presented a video of Buckeye Veal Farm in Ohio, made by animal rights group Mercy for Animals. The video shows calves chained in pens too small for them to lie do ... More >>

Frankenfish - Coming Soon to a Fish Farm Near You!

Are you sure it's not Frankenfish? The FDA's on the verge of approving a Massachusetts company's bid to create a fast-growing genetically engineered salmon, according to McClatchy News. California takes organic produce seriously. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the state fined Valley End F ... More >>

The Morning Brew: 4.26

Although a $1.5 billion settlement was reached months ago for discriminated African-American farmers, the plaintiffs have yet to see the money. Roland S. Martin of CNN gives his take on the situation, and how the history of American racism has affected black farmers. The food safety bill's still ... More >>

The Morning Brew: 4.16

The FDA gives a boost to small organic farms with a variety of new efforts to improve conditions for farmers. "Guys, this is your window - use it," USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan told organic farmers and the companies that work with them on Wednesday. According to the San Francisco Chronic ... More >>

LA Writer Boycotts Monsanto (For A Month)

Image sourceApril Dávila happy and free after a month without Monsanto. (Not really.)​Like many people who have seen the documentary Food, Inc., April Dávila left the theater feeling pretty pissed off at Monsanto, the St. Louis-based agricultural company that has the distinction of being the ... More >>

The USDA's Long-Awaited Organic Pasture Access Rule: Only Two Months to Go!

image credit​Beginning in June, cattle across America will get a breath of fresh air. Last month the United States Department of Agriculture quietly issued a press release announcing that it had completed the five-year process of retooling the rules governing organic livestock practices. The ... More >>

The Morning Brew: Thursday, 7.30

The U.S. House of Representatives votes down food-safety legislation. (Reuters)A new study, which looked at older studies, finds that organic food is not healthier than regular food. (Reuters)President Obama has chosen Bud Light as the beer of choice for his summit with Henry Louis Gates and police ... More >>

Where's the Beef?: Has Allison Burgess created faux food, fad food — or a groundbreaking meat substitute?

Panera Ranked Healthiest Fast Food by Health Magazine

St. Louis' own Panera -- a.k.a. St. Louis Bread Co. -- has been dubbed the healthiest fast-food chain in the country by Health Magazine. How did the magazine determine Panera's standing?Using criteria that was created with the help of our expert panel, we scored the chains on such factors as the us ... More >>

The Noble Writ: Organic Wine and the Sustainable Secret

Dave Nelson is the author of the blog Beer, Wine and Whisky. He writes about wine for Gut Check every Tuesday.I like to think of myself as a relatively environmentally-aware guy. My family of four downsized to one car a year ago. We compost and recycle, pay a bit extra for wind power, buy a lot of o ... More >>

FoodWire: Pi Introduces Entirely Green Wine List

San Francisco-style pizza joint Pi (6144 Delmar Boulevard) has revamped its wine list to feature only "green" wines. The list denotes the specific practices each winery follows, including organic farming, sustainable farming, carbon-neutral efforts, solar power and biodynamic practices.Pi was inclu ... More >>

The Morning Brew: Friday, 10.3

Every Breath You Take

Let your lungs do the talking

Young agrarians at Wash. U. hope to bring us back to the garden

Fig-get Me Not

Love of food improves the world

The Well-Crafted "I Love You"

Taste the Difference?

Reminder: "Farmer's Market" Class

Beer, Garden

Whole Foods Market
Organic Gummy Bears

$5.69
Whole Foods Market
1601 Brentwood Boulevard
Brentwood

Compost This

The Natural Living Expo & Health Fair wants you to feel good

Expedition Reserve Pale Ale

Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest (at Manchester), Maplewood, 314-421-2337

Best Vegan Deli

Juhari's Deli

Food for Thought

The exchange between a chef and a Monsanto spokeswoman was civilized, but questions about what we eat leave a bitter aftertaste

A Summer Riddle

Andy Ayers presents inquisitive diners with new culinary experiences at Riddle's Penultimate Cafe & Wine Bar

Letters to the Editor

Published the week of June 28-July 4, 2000

Fertile Imagination

In the era of modern agribusiness, organic farmer Paul Krautmann faces a tough row to hoe, but his innovative natural solutions yield delicious results