Have a More Ethical, Humane, Turkey This Christmas (not for vegetarians!)

So , Organic non-veggie foodies….Christmas dinner may seem far away, but if you are an ethically conscious person, who savours slightly finer food, then this post maybe of interest to you.  

Most conventional turkeys are raised in small confined cages on Turkey farms, which not only affects their quality of life but also the taste of the meat.  Ethically raised free range turkeys on the other hand are fed real food, they are allowed to move around freely and have a happier existence.

Generally the breed of bird also differs on free range turkey farms, the turkeys tend to be heirloom or heritage breeds and therefore have a different flavour and a higher red to white meat ratio. As the bird has had time to grow and move around, it has a higher good fat to bad fat ratio, meaning that it won’t go dry  and bland so quickly when cooked ,  as caged birds do, but will instead keep a rich flavour when that essential gravy is added!

For ultimate flavour pick an organic turkey as not only will it not have been pumped full of antibiotics and growth enhancers, but it will have been fed a super healthy organic diet and had lots of fresh air and running around too. 

Post brought to you by www.buyorganics.co.uk

Spring Offers on Natural Organic Mattresses!!

Is your mattress all worn out? Is it saggy, stained or ripped? Or is it a brand new toxic smelling beauty that you really aren’t sure about? Then read on..

Our bed is the one bit of essential respite we get everyday. It’s the place where kids crawl in to join us in the night, where we can rest our days worries away, let passionate sparks fly or treat ourselves to Sunday morning breakfast. Either way our bed is an essential part of our daily lifestyle! Not only that it has to contend with looking after our back, supporting our spine and making us feel just right, just the right temperature, just the right firmness, just the right amount of blissful sleep!

If your bed is more than 10 years old then it really is time to seriously consider changing it. Not only will it have sagged, the covering may have ripped exposing the fabrics underneath, dips from lack of turning won’t be providing your back the support it should have to keep your spine in optimal health at night, and lets face it, the amount of dust mites it will have picked up from sitting there so long could probably house a mites zoo! Also old mattresses have a lot more chemicals in. Antimony, flame retardants and petrochemicals are common place in many mattresses sitting in homes for many years, even new mattresses have them in, so investing in the best available mattress can only lead to an organic choice. These harmful chemicals contain heavy metals and other toxins that can be absorbed as we sleep affecting our health in many negative ways.

So if there’s one really special thing you can do for yourself or your children this March its treat yourself to a new pure, natural, organic mattress and restore amazing, restful, supportive, healthy sleep back into your life.

As it’s National Bed Month again. How time flies! It’s time for our annual organic mattress offer again. So if you want a really pure, really exquisite Soil Association Certified Organic Pocket Sprung Mattress, or a pure Natural Latex Mattress at an amazing price then pick up the phone and ring us now to find out about our unbeatable offers, or email us with your requirements and we’ll get straight back to you to help you through making this essential purchase.

Email us at mail@buyorganics.co.uk or call on 0208 952 1424 Monday- Friday 10am to 2pm, to find out what fantastic offers we have in store with no obligation to purchase what so ever!!! Offers only on until end of March so email us now!

Natural ways to beat Cancer – Learning from Jade Goody

With all eyes on Jade Goody, many will not associate themselves at all with her experience, whilst others may find the idea of a young mother desperately trying to live up her last few days and sort out her children’s future a fearful prospect and one that, let’s face it, could happen to anyone of us.

As I look around I am finding increasing numbers of people being plagued by Cancers in various shapes or forms; it used to be people I didn’t know, now it’s friends and family, and as I have just prevented my daughter from taking the latest cervical cancer vaccine, I hope I’ve done the right thing by her.

Cancer is alarmingly common, with an estimated quarter of a million people being diagnosed with cancer each year - the figures are earth shattering. Now I’m not a doctor but part of me cannot help but think that this is a disease caused by our modern lifestyle. Stress, obesity, poor diet, poor lifestyle choices, age and alcohol all can be factors in the development of cancer. Evidence shows that the biggest problem people face is changing habits. Even if they know they have to change, or want to change, 8 out of 10 people would rather die than change their habits! With over 10,000 new synthetic chemicals in the Earth’s system in the last 10 years can we really be surprised that Cancers are not growing; with our stressful 21st Century lifestyles; with our food and air polluted, is it really that surprising that something’s come back to bite us!!

I am a firm believer that we should try and make things as natural as possible in our current synthetic lifestyles and help prevent illness in the future. I recently read a book called the Tao of Detox, fascinating book and in it the author points out that a grown man can carry something like 2lbs of sludge like residue in his bowels that resembles nothing organic at all. This is echoed by a friend’s experience who went for a colon cleanse treatment and found (sorry to be gross!) kernels of popcorn being cleansed from her system. She had not eaten popcorn in 3 years. So the amount of rubbish that lines our stomachs is not good for us, and it originates from poor eating and diet.

So here’s a plan to do your utmost to prevent Cancer naturally:-

• Turn towards a healthier diet of home cooked organic foods, raw foods, vegetables, fruit, organic staples, and as little artificial rubbish as possible. Make sure you’re only having organic dairy products, cut down on meats and eat as little processed food as possible.

• Regularly detox your body with a proper programme and ensure you are nutritionally armed with the right nutrients, probiotics and factors that lead to good health. Visit a nutritionist for the best advice. Just because you’re not ill, it doesn’t mean you’re healthy!

• Get rid of the multitude of chemicals that fill your house such as formaldehydes, triclosan, heavy duty detergents and bactericides. Ridding our environment of all germs is not healthy; it’s not good for us. The obsession with eradicating germs (good and bad) is the reason for MRSA and other super bugs! We need healthy bacteria in our environment to fight our daily fight for us. Switch to eco friendly cleaning products such as Bio-D.

• Throw your chemical laden toiletries and cosmetics in the bin. The multitude of chemicals we use in our daily routines lowers our immunity and creates more for a liver to detox. Switch to natural organic skincare products and cosmetics and makeup wherever possible.

• Respect your body clock and ensure that you are not overburdening your body.

Don’t forget to enjoy life. Laughter and joy, low levels of stress, and plenty of love are what the doctor ordered. Make time for rest and relaxation such as Yoga, walking and also finding and keeping your faith in a higher being.

Barack Obama - The Power of Good Will

Sounds hooky, but doesn’t it seem like the whole world is changing?

It feels like Barack Obama has entered the world stage just at a point when people wanted to hear his message. The false economy, the focus on all the wrong things, is life changing immeasurably for you? It may be good, or it may be bad, but one thing is for sure, if you have ever wished for change then consider it on its way for sure. I feel like we have to go through this enforced world detox, to make things better!

Many people, me included, have spent endless hours working and doing our bit to make a difference in this world, and for the most part it has always gone unnoticed. My last blog on Mamma Mia highlighted how the most prosperous individuals make massive change by putting power and money behind their cause, not everyone notices. This power and wealth is not something we can all lay claim to, but as a collective we make a massive difference, when we’re all moving in one direction the impetus is powerful, forceful and inclusive.

I’m inspired that Barack Obama is more willing to make choices and decisions to help protect our ecology and environment. His powerful words on the environment give me solace that for once, maybe this time, America has elected an intelligent man.



The video above is a great eye opener on his stance on the need for action to help the enviroment.

Instead of concentrating on all the problems, if we focus on the good will and good works being done by others, take time to celebrate them and take new inspired energy for them, get behind the causes and support them, pat ourselves on the back once in a while also for doing our best in the way we shop, live, recycle or do business, then I think the whole world will look Greener and brighter!

Mmm…Mamma Mia!!!!!

Come on! Don’t tell me you haven’t been struck by the Mamma Mia bug?! Of course you have, you’re a closet fan, I know you are. For everyone with a hopeless sense of romance, wanting some kind of summer loving feeling in the midst of this dull grey winter, Mamma Mia gets your heart skipping like a school girl. Well it did mine anyway, I have to admit it. I’m smitten!

Of course I’m a married woman who loves her husband very much, but I do have a soft spot and a smidgen of a crush on Pierce Brosnan. Colin Firth is oh so cute too!

Ok so what have my aimless fantasies have to do with anything Green or Eco-Conscious? Well I thought I’d see what these guys and gals get up to in their spare time and share with you. I wasn’t disappointed!

Pierce Brosnan (thump, thump, thump) for one, is well into the Green Scene and spends time campaigning for environmental education, clean water and marine-mammal and wetland protection. He has been an environmental activist for quite some time and regularly recycles, buys eco products and supports environmental causes.

Read more at http://www.piercebrosnan.com/pdf/BonAppetitFeb2008.pdf

Check out Pierce’s guide – 10 things you can do to be green

1) Eat organic and buy fruits, vegetables, herbs, cheese, eggs, honey and other food products at farmer’s markets which support local farmers and growers.

2) Use eco-friendly products and services. Purchase all-natural, organic household cleaners, recycled paper products, organic cotton, and non-GMO food products. Locate an organic dry cleaner. Hire an eco-friendly gardening or car service.

3) Recycle everything possible, including printer cartridges, paper products, newspaper, plastic, glass, cans, etc... and cut paper consumption by using e-mail.

4) Give back – support individuals and organizations who are doing extraordinary work for our planet. Over the years The Brosnan Trust has distributed more than one million dollars to environmental organizations, schools, activists, and charities.

5) Plant an organic garden or a victory garden– for yourself or a friend and promote green living.

6) Compost kitchen scraps-- from banana peels to coffee grounds, and green waste. Purchase a rotating or stackable composter and start a green waste pile that can be used to fortify your garden naturally.

7) Promote environmental education. We currently fund environmental programs for kindergarten thru grade 12 (Roots and Shoots) in California and helped pass legislation which requires the state of California to design environmental curriculum for all its students.

8) Donate to off set your emissions (plant trees with Tree people; pay a carbon tax when traveling in environmentally sensitive areas, etc…).

9) Design an eco friendly home that features energy efficient appliances, low flow and/or composting toilets, state of the art solar technology, recycled grey water, reclaimed hardwoods, and non-toxic paint and building materials.

10) Speak up -- use your voice and speak out about important environmental issues (examples over the past 13 years: stopping BHP’s LNG Terminal off the coast of Oxnard and Malibu, Mitsubishi from building a massive salt factory in Lagoon San Ignacio, protesting the US Navy harming whales with sonar and the French Government nuclear testing in the South Pacific, promoting Dolphin Safe Tuna and supporting the Heritage Tree Bill.) One person can and does make a difference. What kind of difference do you want to make?

Colin Firth is also involved in Green issues. Without the luxury of being able to interview him at the drop of a hat, I have to rely on articles written about him and on the internet. Most of the history on his website points to involvement in Fair Trade campaigning, either to the EU, or on global and coffee issues dating back to the early 2000’s. He also has an Eco store in Chiswick surprisingly called ‘Eco’ which he owns with his wife the beautiful Italian documentary producer Livia Giuggioli, her 26-year-old brother Nicola, and friend and investor Ivo Coulson. The shop is cleverly lit by the sun, covered in plants and solar heated. In an interview on Times Online, Colin admirably said “if you have this many perks, surely you can help out. Rather than being a luvvie with a lofty opinion preaching to people, I prefer to do things, to get involved, put my money where my mouth is and learn along the way.”

Meryl Streep, last but not least is an amazing icon, involved in many health campaigns, especially in the fight against Cancer, Aids, America Forest tree replanting scheme- Global Re-leaf and in creating a healthy world for our children. In talking about creating a healthy world for our children, one of the main concerns she raises is regarding the toxins in our environment and foods. For more info see www.healthchild.org for an amazing read.

Looking behind the scenes of the romance and the glitz and the glamour of Mamma Mia are real people who although busy in their lives, take conscious time and effort to make a difference in the world in their small or big way, as we can all do from the comforts of our own home. With every negative element it is important to remember there is a positive element; one cannot be without the other, its just Yin and Yang!!

Has the last year been a time of pain or a time of gain?

Christmas comes at a time when it’s just nice to get a break, a solid good few days away from work. It’s a time as well as we approach the new year that we look back on the last year and decide whether its been a good year, a bad year or a down right ugly year!

It’s been an odd year for me, I’ve had low’s, especially when one of my closest friends was diagnosed with cancer. It made me really see how fragile life is and how dear our loved ones are to us. It’s also been a time when I had new experiences in my personal life….I went on a holiday with my husband and kids for the first time in about 5 years. It was fantastic and awful all at the same time! Lost hotel bookings, lost tickets, upgrades, family arguments…argh!!! My husband lost his job with Lehman Brothers which was so stressful! But out of all these things that have happened there has been a silver lining to all of them. My friends cancer is nearly cured and the Chemo has been working, if it hadn’t have been caught in time she wouldn’t have been here now, my husband found another job, a better one! And as a family, the holiday made us closer and able to see our faults better.

This last year has been a closing for an old way of life, globally too. The false economy we’ve been living on has crashed! One of the biggest obstacles to doing something about climate change…George Bush, has been shifted. Barack Obama provides a new hope that has not been presented by any other for a long time. More and more people are buying eco friendly household products, green, organic and natural personal products, organic bedding and latex mattresses, despite the economic down turn, which shows an increasing commitment to what really matters. Hi fuel usage cars are not selling, but instead are being outsold by their green counterparts! This will force manufacturers to come up with viable alternatives or bite the dust.

So, this Christmas season seems different to me than most. I feel more contemplative, more hopeful and as if I’m on the verge of a whole new beginning.

Think of current painful situations as an opportunity for growth.

So if you have lost your job, like countless members of my family and friends, or business is tight, it will no doubt be a seriously worrying time. It may even be a sign that your old way of being was not right for you any more, and that however painfully its happening, its time to embrace something new. Whether it’s a new course, a new interest, a new career doing something that’s going to bring more into your life, than what you were stuck in previously, or re-evaluating how you do things currently.

Change is always painful, I know that, because I’ve been there, not once or twice, but many times, we are going through global changes, and personal changes all at the same time. I’m sure many of you have too. Even if you’ve not had a bad year, and have had a brilliant year, there it’s always good to re-evaluate your strategies and lifestyle. Is there another area of your life that could do with improvement, your friendships, love life, or health? James Ray Philosopher and Life Coach, likens this economic climate to winter, everything that is old and unwanted is dying. This is a time for contemplation so that when the new spring comes we are prepared to create a new spring in our own lives. Astrologically it is the end of the celestial Piscean age and the dawning of the Aquarian age, which is an age of greater spiritual awareness and growth. Whatever is created now will be deeper, more rewarding, richer and more fulfilling than ever before because it will come from a deeper level.

I wish you all the greatest happiness for the New Year

Sonia

Eco Friendly Christmas Gift Ideas

What do you get a loved one who spends most of their time up a mountain, on safari, out on location or generally miles away from home? It would be lovely to get them something really useful to make sure they can stay in touch with you come what may. Well we’ve found the most fabulous gift that will blow there socks off as well as yours too!

It’s a completely must have travel accessory and totally eco friendly!

In this day and age it’s important to be able to stay connected through phone or laptops, and the gadgets we take with us, require so much juice that it’s difficult to be far away from an electrical socket for long. That’s why we totally love the Solar Gorilla and Power Gorilla by Power Monkey. The first – Solar Gorilla - allows you to charge just about anything just using the power and energy from the sun and the second ( the Power Gorilla can be charged up by the Solar Gorilla or the Mains for added power to keep all your mobiles, iPods, PDA’s and laptops charged wherever you are.

Proof is in the pudding as Award Winning Photographer Nick Garbutt recently informed the Power Monkey Team about his amazing 4 weeks trip he used the Solar Gorilla and Power Gorilla for 4 weeks to run his computer without the need for a mains charge!

Not only have we got these fab items in store now, but we also have the Solar Monkey, a smaller solar powered charger just for all your handhelds that even works if the sun isn’t shinning so hard! And we have the Extreme Eco Torch which provides emergency charge for your phone and instant light all without batteries!

Hope you love it as much as I do, imagine how much electricity you’ll save.

For even more eco friendly gifts and gadgets visit buyOrganics.

Love
Sonia x