Whats what in food????

[Nicos]

Go on beefy.....get a feeling it's not going to be nice BUT..did see something not long ago showing it was pretty good meat???!

[beefy]

Dont think so Nicos . Old sheep that cant be used for anything else are slaughtered and the carcasses hung in a large room on the floor of this room they put in stainless steel trays to cover the floor . Its actually a large oven so they then close the doors and turn up the heat .When the meat is cooked it falls off the bone into the trays .Its then taken to a mincer and then formed into what you see spinning inthe kebab shop window.

Kebab on the way home anyone?

[Palustris]

Still want to know why bought apples stay white for weeks and do not rot on the compost heap, unlike our own! If not iraddiation then there must be a reason! Same thing with bought strwbs, ours have to be eaten fairly sharpish, but shop ones last ages. No taste though.
Saw something about carbon thingy t'other day. Spanish toms despite travelling have a smaller carbon footprint than British, because of the heating needed to produce in Britain!

[Earthbabe]

Interesting thread. We took part in a study earlier in the year about food additives and children's behaviour. some of the early results and reports were very interesting. I note your comments about Sodium Benzoate (E211) but this is something we know flares up our daughter's eczema, interestingly cranberry juice doesn't. Not sure how that works. Somewhere in my "weird" filing system we have a list of the ones that had to be avoided and those that were "safe" ie naturally derived. I undertook a certain type of diet before I became pregnant and my nutritional therapist basically said, if you look at the label and there's more than one item that you can't picture, don't buy it it's too processed. Being someone who has to avoid wheat and knowing someone who is coeliac it can be quite difficult and things can be "disguised" in the sense that it is a derivative without it necessarily saying it is from a certain source - glucose-fructose syrup is a prime example.

The only way to be certain of what you are eating is to avoid all processed foods and make everything from scratch yourself, including bread, cakes etc. One look at a label on a gluten-free cake is enough. I remember reading also that the use of MSG (E621) or the related E635 indicates poor quality ingredients. Also did you know that aspartame is converted by the body into a form of formaldehyde (at least I think it is that one!)

Prefer to be preserved in wine thanks!

[dexterdoglancashire]

aren't we all really pleased we grow our own? DDL

[beefy]

Know how you feel Earthbabe, our five year old is borderline overactive and its not hard to tell when he gets something that sets him off.Any chance of a copy of that report?

[Earthbabe]

It's not out yet but I'll let you know. The doctor leading the team is going to forward a copy to every family that took part once it is published. Last time I spoke to her she was saying that some parents were saying that they didn't care what the overall findings were the changes had made such a change to their offspring they were sticking with it. When I find the list I'll post it for anyone who is interested. I'm "officing" tomorrow so will have a look then. Distraction after leg waxing. Ouch!

[beefy]

Ok thanks then Earthbabe.

Leg waxing thats a whole other thread

[Earthbabe]

E numbers to avoid

I've found my list so here goes:

Colours

E102 - tartrazine
E104 - quinoline yellow
E110 - Sunset Yellow
E122 - Carmoisine or Azorubine
E123 - Amarath (alcohol or fish roe)
E124 - Ponceau 4R or cochineal red A
E127 - Erythrosine (found in cherries)
E128 - Red 2g (some sausages and burgers
E129 - Allura Red
E131 - Patent Blue
E132 - Indigo Carmine (blue)
E133 - Brilliant Blue FCF
E142 - Green S
E151 - Black PN or Brilliant Black PN
E154 - Brown FK (kippers)
E155 - Brown HT
E180 - Litholrubine BK or Pigment Rubine (edible cheese rind)

Others

E211 - Sodium Benzoate (a preservative)

[Earthbabe]

E numbers that are safe

These are the natural and acceptable ones

E100 - Curcumin
E101 - Riboflavin (or riboflavin-5'-phosphate
E120 - Cochineal (or carminic acid or carmines)
E140 - Chlorophyll's (and chlorophyllins)
E141 - copper complexes of chlorophylls and chlorophyllins
E150 - Caramel (inc sulphite and/or ammonia caramel)
E153 - Vegetable carbon or carbon black
E160(a) - Carotene (alpha, beta or gamma), (also 160(e) and 164(f) related to carotenes) Apo-carotenal
E160(b) - Annatto
E160(c) - Paprika extract (or capsanthian)
E160(d) - Lycopene
E161(b) - Lutein
E161(g) - Canthaxanthin
E162 - Beetroot Red (betanin)
E163 - Anthocyanins
E170 - Calcium Carbonate (white)
E171 - Titanium Dioxide (white)
E172 - Iron oxides and hydroxides
E173 - Aluminium (used in sugar coatings on pills or cake decorating)
E174 - Silver (cake decs)
E175 - Gold (cake decs)

Hope that helps.

[rustylady]

If you grow your own and make your own, you're pretty safe.

I avoid all artifical colours and sweeteners as far as possible, and fizzy drinks are definitely a no no.l

It's bad enough for adults, but if you work with children you can actually see the reaction shortly after they have a commercially produced drink - it's horrendous - they go superhyperactive! Where I work we encourage mums to cook proper natural food (can't force them to), but they do notice the difference when they do.

[Earthbabe]

That's great to hear RL. We try very hard to avoid all artificial stuff but these things crop up in the unlikeliest of places. Hence putting the list up for those that may find it useful.

[Snadger]

Yep its true allright. Wild salmon get the pink colour from a diet of prawns . If your a farmed salmon swiming round in a cage at sea you arnt getting anything except what comes in the pellets that the fiish farmers feed you.

Snadger the problem with farmed salmon is that the cages cause a vast pollution problem where they are sited .If you want I can direct you to info on the problems as it would take up to much space here but as a keen fisherman I would not have farmed salmon in the house.If you remember a year or so ago there was a scare about farmed salmon being full of cancer causing chemicals etc . I would say that that would be the least of your problems eating fish that have been kept in cages so tightly packed that they start to aet each others tails and fins .

Anyone want to know how the big rotisserie of kebab meat that you see in the kebab shop window is made ?

Hi Beefy, I too am a fisherman and love fishing for wild brown trout which I usually return. I also fish for farmed rainbow, which as you say are usually blemished from the stock ponds with worn tails and other battle scars.The fish that overwinter grow back there tails if left in the water long enough
I don't think neither you nor I make a significant difference to the wild fish stocks. I do however think that factory fishing ships, trawlers and dredgers will one day lead to a total ban on all net fishing at sea as the stocks are so depleted.I think with salmon they net the estuaries as they come in to spawn don't they? I didn't realise that farmed fish were tightly netted and caused polution. Surely there must be a way to farm salmon in humane conditions without excess polution? Maybe government legislation is called for? I still feel that for Birdseye to say "We only use wild stock" is criminal and wonder whether their will be any fish left in the sea for our grandchildren?
If you could direct me towards any info on the problem I would be grateful!
Cheers, Snadge

[beefy]

http://www.nasfonline.org/home.htm
http://www.stopnow.ie/
http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/0...on-gmo-eco.htm
http://www.salmonfarmmonitor.org/problems.shtml
There you are Snadger a little light reading for you and anyone else who wants to know about farmed salmon.The first two links are campains that are trying to save wild Atlantic salmon. The last two focus on the problems with cages and what you are eating.

[beefy]

http://www.atlanticsalmontrust.org/
Another one