Eat Well Guide helps families eat healthy for the holidays

Consumers looking to buy meat, poultry, dairy and eggs from sustainable family farmers can now turn to the Eat Well Guide (www.EatWellGuide.org), a free online directory officially re-launched today by the Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE), the advocacy group behind the award-winning internet film The Meatrix (www.TheMeatrix.com). A join-project of IATP (the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy) and GRACE, the Eat Well Guide allows consumers to enter a zip code and be directed to farms and stores that sell sustainable foods in their neighborhoods.

“Often, families who want to eat sustainably feel locked into buying mass-produced meat from factory farms because they don’t know where to find healthier alternatives,” said GRACE President Alice Slater.  “As families prepare for the up-coming holiday season, the Eat Well Guide provides an easy way for them to exercise more choice in what they feed their families for the holidays.”

With listings for nearly 5,000 farms and stores, the Eat Well Guide includes sources for sustainable meat in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and many Canadian provinces.  An advanced search function allows users to search by types of meat (including exotic meats like bison, venison, and rabbit) or by production method (including categories like free-range, grass-fed and biodynamic).

The Guide also includes information on healthy holiday eating, including a history of “heritage” meats and holiday recipes using sustainable ingredients.

To be listed in the Eat Well Guide, farms and stores must declare that their production methods are healthy for consumers, do not harm the environment, are humane to animals and support local communities, standards that are often more rigorous than organic certification.

Why choose sustainable meat?

More and more health benefits are being found from eating meat raised sustainably. According to New York Times bestselling author Jo Robinson, grass-fed beef has two to six times more omega-3's than factory farmed meat. Omega-3 is a "good" fat that helps the cardiovascular system, increases brain function and may prevent cancer.

The concept of sustainability also involves eating food produced as close to the consumer as possible. This cuts down on the length of time between when meat is processed and when it is consumed, decreasing the risk that the meat will become infected with bacteria and other pathogens.  The less time between the farm and the dinner plate, the more nutritious the food is for families.

But better health is not the only reason to choose sustainable meat.

“Most people tell us that sustainably-raised meat just tastes better,” said GRACE Marketing Director Diane Hatz. “Take turkeys, for example.  Today, industrial-raised turkeys are injected with saline solution and vegetable oils to try to improve "mouth feel". Years ago, a cook only had to put a turkey in the oven; today, many people are marinating, deep frying or brining the bird to try and give it some taste,” she said.

Consumers can learn more about sustainable food at the Sustainable Table  (www.SustainableTable.org), a resource linked to the Eat Well Guide.  From the benefits of pasture-raised meat to the overuse of antibiotics by factory farms, Sustainable Table is a virtual encyclopedia of food to help educate consumers on how to shop smarter, eat healthier and enjoy the abundance of fresh, nutritious meats and produce grown by local family farmers.