Every week I have to go food shopping. My household consists of five people and that includes me. My ten-year old eats for two so I should say it’s six of us. One of the greatest thing about my children is that they love to eat fruits and vegetables. This past weekend, we’re at the farmers market. My daughter Lily (2) was out of her stroller shopping and picking up fruits and vegetables with me. Everything she picked up she took a bite out of it. It was so funny and I was in disbelief. This little girl picked up a broccoli and started to eat it. She took two bites out of it before I stopped her. Now the only reason I stopped her was because they were not washed properly. Lily loves broccoli so I didn’t think anything of it. But, then she went for the string beans, yellow cherry tomatoes and the peaches. It made me feel real good as a mother to see her at this age eating raw foods. My two boys are the same but they wouldn’t eat the vegetables raw.

Choosing to buy organic over conventional foods is very important to me. I know that my family is eating healthy and I’m also eliminating certain toxins from their diet by choosing organic. Now I don’t buy everything organic. I definitely follow the, Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen. The Dirty Dozen generally have the most pesticide residues when grown conventionally because they’re more prone to pesky bugs. Peeling fruits and vegetables or removing outer layers of leafy greens is also a great way to cut back on pesticide intake. That said, certain fruits and veggies might be more important to buy organic than others.

Buying organic can be very costly depending on where you choose to buy. I love to shop at the Farmers Market and Trader Joe’s. I’m very familiar with the conventional prices of goods because I use to be that shopper. Whenever I go grocery shopping most of my products in my cart are organic, and my bill comes out to be the same or even less at times. You would be very surprise by the prices. It’s really not that expensive for my family. Here’s two of my items. Look at the difference between the leading conventional brand and Trader Joe’s brand. The conventional brand applesauce cost $2.99 and the Trader’s organic brand is $1.99. Now take a look at the cereals. The Trader’s brand is made from natural ingredients like fruits, whole grains, and vegetables. The prices are very different as well. The leading brand goes for $4.99 or more and the Trader’s brand is $2.99 which is a big difference to me price wise and health wise. I think if you choose organic and natural products it should be able to fit into any budget. Do the research and take the time to compare.