Green Options » additives

Seeking a Green Job? Broaden Your Search

Jennifer Kho — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 01:39:14 +0000

Looking for a green job and wondering where they are? Well, as job hunters flood the usual suspects — such as solar and wind companies — with mountains of applications, you might have better luck finding your dream job in a more unexpected sector.

That’s the advice from Amy Vernetti, a managing director at headhunting firm Taylor Winfield. She says many of the green jobs are coming from areas that probably don’t leap to mind when you think of cleantech, such as companies developing fuel additives and air-filtration technologies. “These are hidden gems in the market,” she says, adding that some of them are “hiring like crazy.”

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Mushrooms, Grasses Could Replace BHT and other Artificial Preservatives

Gina Munsey — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:25:51 +0000

Recently my husband was reading the ingredients list on the side panel of a cereal box, and he asked, “What’s BHT?” His question got me thinking. Would consumers gulp down that box of ready-made breakfast cereal if BHT was listed “butylated hydroxytoluene, a potential carcinogen”, instead? My mind turned to this article from last year about Polish researchers who are using raspberry seed extract as a natural alternative to BHT. But are natural preservatives that much better? What is it with the obsession of extending shelf life through the use of additives, anyway?

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Let Them Eat Organic Blue Jeans

Tina Casey — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 11:51:20 +0000

Blue dye #1 is a food coloring that used to be made from coal tar, but apparently we don’t have to worry about coal in our candy any more. According to the FDA, blue dye #1 is now usually made from “raw materials obtained from petroleum.” What an improvement - you get a dose of petroleum derivative with your sugar fix.

If your kids are into eating blue stuff, might as well let them munch on a pair of organic blue jeans. At least the cotton is all natural. As for the blue dye - well, let’s go over the fold to see what’s up with that.

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A Bleak Outlook for Biofuel

Lisa Wojnovich — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 01:01:50 +0000

The downturn in the national economy has hit just about every major industry. And now it seems that ethanol is no exception. Yesterday, Archer Daniels Midland Co., or ADM, a major U.S. producer of ethanol, stated that ethanol production in the U.S. has dropped 21% since last year. Falling oil prices, a decrease in overall demand, and low profit margins are to blame.

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Building a Better Nugget

Beth Bader — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 05:22:36 +0000

There are times when I wonder if I am raising my child so different from the norm that her friends are going to think she is a geek. If she has friends. Usually these thoughts occur to me just as our lifestyle choices slam us up against typical American habits, especially food.

Like this moment from a couple years back. We’re at this petting zoo, like an educational farm. We still go there often. The kiddo gets to walk a lot and see lots of animals and plants that you find on farms, feed baby goats, ride a pony, drive little tractors … It’s fun, actually. Alright, I am a bit too tall for the tractors, but I get to push and make engine noises at least. The baby goats like me.

(recipe after the jump)

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Naturalpath Asks “What’s in Your Food?”

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 14:00:27 +0000

Plenty, it turns out… and not generally things we want. This week, Naturalpath takes a look at the many additives that enter our food supply. For instance,

Most of the crops in the United States are grown with the aid of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and fungicides, and some of these are potentially harmful to the environment and people. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 30% of insecticides, 60% of herbicides, and 90% of fungicides are carcinogenic. Evidence suggest that that these agrochemicals are present in our food supply, and even very low levels of these chemicals may be causing problems for humans, especially children.

Now, there are some answers you probably didn’t expect to the question "What’s for dinner?" Take a look at the article, and find our what else is added to your food as it moves through the supply chain…