I’ve been trying in a rather verbose and unsuccessful manner to explain what processed food is. You can check out my attempts bellow but this Blog post does an excellent and much more succinct job of doing so. The Blog itself is pretty outstanding too!  Here’s the Link: www.foodpolitics.com

And here’s my long and involved explanation . . .

So this is a big one . . . a huge question.  Most of our food has been processed in some form or another before it reaches our table.  Everything from pasteurization to pre-cut veggies, canned to frozen, crackers to bread . . . it’s all processed.

Here’s the big but . . . some of it is simply prepping the food for consumption and some of it is downright creating crap.  The crap is the stuff the big corporations have refined, added fillers, preservatives and chemicals to in order to sell it to us as convenient.  It has lost all relation to it’s original food form ages ago and is basically a box of chemicals, made as cheaply as possible, with ingredients that are questionable and chemicals added to make you want to eat more.  Because in reality . . . all the nutrients and flavour of the original product have been stripped and replaced with “enriching” nutrients and “natural” flavours.  I always have to ask . . . why take it out in the first place?

I think my biggest issue with this is that these corporations really don’t care about your health.  They could care less how healthy you are as long as you buy their product.  They have spent millions of dollars marketing these foods to you and convincing you that they care . . . if they really did . . . their food wouldn’t be killing us.

The pressure they’re putting on farmers and the mess they’re making of the planet . . . is a rant for another day!

Fortunately there are farmers out there that do care.  They want to bring your family really good, healthy food and they want the planet to survive long enough for you to enjoy it!

So here’s the short and sweet list: Anything in the center isles of the grocery store except for brown rice (not par-boiled or minute rice), other whole grains, some organic products, dried beans and plain popcorn kernels . . . Also avoid what you can in the baked goods section, the candy portion of the Bulk Bins and the “prepared food” counter . . . Think of the deli counter as  a Heart Attack waiting to happen!  The amount of sodium and nitrates in that deli case could give you a heart attack ten times over.  Dairy section . . . avoid the yogurt beverages, string cheese, processed cheese slices, sugar filled yogurt, and of course the pudding!

Avoid “Diet” food like the plague . . . if they’ve reduced the calories they’ve upped something else . . . like the salt or the chemical sweeteners or the refined flours etc.  Just eat real food . . . something in it’s original shape and form . . . Please!  I beg of you!

RSJ’s Big list of  Processed Garbage to avoid (it’s long . . . well at least it will be when I’m done ):

1. Cookies, Cakes, Chips, Pop, Desserts in General, Anything that says it’s “Only 100 Calories a Bag” supposed diet food that’s just garbage, if you really want cookies or cake etc., make them yourself with your family . . . you’ll know what’s in them and get to spend a little quality time together . . . you can also substitute the flour with whole grain flour and use organic evaporated cane juice for sugar . . . still sugar but at least it’s not High Fructose Corn Syrup . . .
2. Any Snack Food that comes in little bags that are 100 calories or less per serving – I don’t think I can stress this one enough.  Thinsations, little bags of doritos, 100 calorie chocolate bars, skinny cow ice cream snacks.  Any of these are just fillers and sugar and sodium.  There’s no real food involved at all and the sugar in them just keeps hooking you in . . . the chemicals involved are also dubious!
3. Any Kids Lunch Snack Food – Dora the explorer fruit snacks . . . there’s no fruit . . . if you’re lucky there might be juice listed in the ingredients and that’s just sugar.  These snacks are setting your kids up for a nasty mid afternoon crash . . . give them an apple!
4. Lunchables or any Equivalent Brand – Nothing but salt . . . all nutrients are put back in after they’re stripped out of the food to start . . . the point is . . . we still don’t know that our body absorbs these “enriched” nutrients!  The refined starches found in these products might as well be sugar!
5. Sauces - Tomato sauce, BBQ Sauce, “Ethnic” Sauces – tonnes of salt, tonnes of chemicals, crazy amounts of sugar, BPA in the can lining . . . make your own so you know what’s in it . . . make lots and freeze it so you have some when you need it . . . have a sauce making party, make a bunch of sauces and have something to dip in them, everyone can take some home, etc.  . . . get your family together and make sauce as a project for the weekend . . .
6. Crackers - read the ingredients.  All processed and refined, plenty of sugar and salt, tonnes of chemical preservatives . . . remember whole wheat is not whole grain (unless they state that it’s whole grain wheat)
7. Bread Products – Most commercial whole grain breads have a tonne of sugar in them to make them appealing to the general public.  If sugar’s not your issue . . . they’re not bad . . . if it is . . . think about cutting out the main brands . . . just say no to wonder!  Some brands use whole grain flour and sourdough recipes.  They’re usually found in the organic section of the store.  Better yet, if you’re lucky enough to have a local organic farmer’s market with a bake oven . . . run, hurry!  Get there early and grab a few loaves.  Dufferin Grove Farmer’s Market . . . best bread ever!
8. Flour Tortillas – Holy crap!  Literally!  I read the ingredients one day and couldn’t believe the number of chemicals in every brand!  Flour, salt, water, oil . . . how hard is that?  It’s rather fun and fairly simple to make your own . . .