Thanks for visiting! For families, 2 adults + 2 kids with enough water to last 8 hours makes a heavy backpack. Now that you mention nazis/security, I've given much less information and had fewer bags checked crossing international borders than I did to get into the amusement park.
Just put a couple of bottles of water in your purse? Are the drink Nazis going to come and throw you out of the park? They've got bigger worries. Just don't flaunt it.
That is great information that I'm sure will help our readers better understand the issue.
"I think Horizon abides by the letter of the law (barely) rather than the spirit."
Since the "organic" label is so important, do you feel a need to challenge Horizon's practices in order to protect the overall integrity of the "organic" label?
I read your site because I am a mother of 7, and am always on the alert for frugal tips. Our family also produces organic grass fed beef at Alderspring, so I'd like to comment about organic production from an organic producer's POV.
1)Antibiotics: under the organic rule, animals cannot be given antibiotics at any stage. If an animal must be treated with antibiotics, it is removed from organic production. Under commercial production, antibiotic residues do show up in milk. Here is dairy webpage (not a pro-organic one) that discusses the reasons for this:
There are other reasons for wanting to avoid antibiotic use in animals, the primary one of which is the loss of antibiotic effectiveness from overuse, which causes the production of "superbugs" or antibiotic-resistant organisms.
Use versus non-use of antibiotics is a substantial difference in organic production, requiring a completely different production paradigm to grow organic that involves a comprehensive health care, immune-building, stress reducing approach.Organic producers use these other approaches because their primary goal is health, not the treatment of disease through antibiotics. You are right that big producers simply ship those sick cows and write off the loss; but small producers like us try very hard to maintain the organic status of each animal because it is profitable and because it is right.
Antibiotic use is not occasional in typical farm production; it is rampant. I'm not sure about the rate in dairies, but in feedlots it is not uncommon to treat 100% of the beef animals with antibiotics.
2)Hormones: Commercial dairies are allowed to use recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH) in production, which increases the efficiency of feed conversion to milk, and increases the amount of milk each cow produces; organic dairies are not allowed to use rBGH (similarly, most commercial beef is raised with growth-promoting hormone implants, organic beef is not). The Eastern Union and Canada have both banned rBGH. You can Google rBGH and learn quite a bit.
3)Pesticides, herbicides, etc. Commercial production allows for the use of these chemicals, both directly on the animal (insecticides and parasitides) and on the feed they eat (herbicides for weeds, pesticides for bugs, fertilizers for growth promotion). These are all regulated by the USDA, but as someone that has been involved in agriculture all my life, off-label and mis-label applications occur. In organic production, none of these things are allowed (although I know "cheating" occurs). Neither the animal nor the feedstuffs may be chemically treated under organic production.
Now, that said in support of organic, as an organic producer myself I think Horizon abides by the letter of the law (barely) rather than the spirit. Therein lies the reason for their high shipment/slaughter rates (a local organic dairyman here has an average age of 10 for his cows--more than three times the average age in the typical dairy, either commercial or large-scale organic--because his cows are healthy and long-lived). The access to pasture is a huge and important issue. Horizon primarily produces in big dairies, and the access to pasture is a joke (your squash court example is apt). Many of these dairies are in deserts--they may have access to pasture, but there's not a green blade on them.
i work in a movie theatre and ya, we give away free water, too. since the cups themselves are inventoried (and we have to account for each one at the end of the night) we use a special 12 oz cup for water. we charge for bottled water, of course, but if someone comes in with their own thermos and they want it filled with root beer i'll usually fill it at no charge (the soda is inventoried by just a weekly guesstimation at the weight)
Baby carrots are among the only vegetables I like to eat. I have severe food issues from my childhood. My evil grandmother would whip me with switches if I didn't eat vegetables. So I get physically ill when I taste most vegetables. Damn. What am I gonna eat now?
I like the idea that we should find the luxuries in our lives and decide if they're worth the cost, not just in the moment, but over the long haul. I think we can decide to screw the million for the lattes/whatever, but the we at least know we're doing it.
The only amusement park close to my house has been voted friendliest park in the world and they offer free unlimited soft drinks (Pepsi products plus water). You have to pay for bottled water but there are fountain drink huts everywhere. And they have free sunscreen. Holiday World is a bit small but they have a really cool water park and the regular park is decent. And the free drinks save me a lot of money.
You would not believe how much money I save per month by eating in! (And yes, that means making my coffee and taking it to work in my ultra nifty thermos.) And with all the great websites devoted to sharing recipies and tips like , it's easy to expand your know-how and save that cash.
I used to eat tons of them as they were very convenient. Then I started getting a CSA package and I remembered what real carrots taste like. I havent gone back since. I always take the trouble to peel regular carrots instead!
For the masses who seem to find it too inconvenient its nice to know they have a way of easily getting some vitamins...
That is not my only source. I actually have 20-30 different articles on Horizon that I used to write this post. All of them were negative, from a variety of different backgrounds and affilitiatons. I think the main worry is that the large organic organizations are not happy at all with Horizon.
Just a point of balance. At least here in the UK, some things sold as baby carrots are just that - either immature or small varieties of carrots - and not the cut-down large carrots. How can I be sure? Because they don't come smooth and pre-cleaned in a bag and you can see exactly what they are. But I totally agree with the points you make in your post.
Yes this is true, I bought down my energy monthly bill by 50% by doing this. There was always something unnecessary bulb running somewhere in your home, switch off that. It saves a lot !!
Hi,
I am from India, and even though there is a lot of difference in our cultures, most of what you say, holds good for people anywhere in the world, who have a finite income and infinite desires.
Nice Read. Infact I also have similar advise for people (on my blog) especially on use of credit cards, saving more money and ofcourse keeping a small but fixed percent of money to spend on yourself. So that you dont get that slavish feeling!!!
;-)
I'm not sure I really want to trust stoplabelinglies.com . Check out the website of one of the coalition members: http://www.cei.org/. They seem to be another industry front group and hardly impartial. I think there may be better sources for information regarding "organic" labels.
#9.Reduce power consumption
Lowering your water heater’s setting from a very HOT 140 degree Fahrenheit to a just HOT enough 120 degrees can save you nearly $50 a year.
Lowering your thermostat by roughly 10 percent (for instance, from 73 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit) for eight hours a day can save approximately 10 percent off your heating bill.
Here’s another great heat saver, did you know that by reversing your ceiling fan in the winter can actually keep you warm for less.
The beloved of the Almighty are the rich who have the humility of the poor, and the poor who have the magnanimity of the rich. -Saadi, poet (1213-1291)
I agree with everything on this list except this one. Long-term, owning a home is far more financially sound than renting. Sure, you do pay for things that renters don't, but you also get to write off your mortgage interest (thousands of dollars a year right there), you can write off permanent improvements when you sell the house, and most importantly, once you pay for it, nobody is going to jack up your rent and kick you out. It's yours.
Renting is like flushing money down the toilet every month.
I think these are much better.
"Thirst leads to fatigue.
Fatigue leads to indigestion.
Indigestion leads to misery."
could outfit the whole crew with these .
Thanks for visiting! For families, 2 adults + 2 kids with enough water to last 8 hours makes a heavy backpack. Now that you mention nazis/security, I've given much less information and had fewer bags checked crossing international borders than I did to get into the amusement park.
A cool idea... but those fans aren't made for that kind of pressure. I'm curious as to how long they last before the motors burn out.
And yeah - where are the drives? :)
Just put a couple of bottles of water in your purse? Are the drink Nazis going to come and throw you out of the park? They've got bigger worries. Just don't flaunt it.
You've just got to be slick.
welcome to the wb!
That is great information that I'm sure will help our readers better understand the issue.
"I think Horizon abides by the letter of the law (barely) rather than the spirit."
Since the "organic" label is so important, do you feel a need to challenge Horizon's practices in order to protect the overall integrity of the "organic" label?
Your cows look great, btw. =)
I read your site because I am a mother of 7, and am always on the alert for frugal tips. Our family also produces organic grass fed beef at Alderspring, so I'd like to comment about organic production from an organic producer's POV.
1) Antibiotics: under the organic rule, animals cannot be given antibiotics at any stage. If an animal must be treated with antibiotics, it is removed from organic production. Under commercial production, antibiotic residues do show up in milk. Here is dairy webpage (not a pro-organic one) that discusses the reasons for this:
http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vetext/INF-DA/INF-DA_AntibioticResidues.html
There are other reasons for wanting to avoid antibiotic use in animals, the primary one of which is the loss of antibiotic effectiveness from overuse, which causes the production of "superbugs" or antibiotic-resistant organisms.
Use versus non-use of antibiotics is a substantial difference in organic production, requiring a completely different production paradigm to grow organic that involves a comprehensive health care, immune-building, stress reducing approach. Organic producers use these other approaches because their primary goal is health, not the treatment of disease through antibiotics. You are right that big producers simply ship those sick cows and write off the loss; but small producers like us try very hard to maintain the organic status of each animal because it is profitable and because it is right.
Antibiotic use is not occasional in typical farm production; it is rampant. I'm not sure about the rate in dairies, but in feedlots it is not uncommon to treat 100% of the beef animals with antibiotics.
2) Hormones: Commercial dairies are allowed to use recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH) in production, which increases the efficiency of feed conversion to milk, and increases the amount of milk each cow produces; organic dairies are not allowed to use rBGH (similarly, most commercial beef is raised with growth-promoting hormone implants, organic beef is not). The Eastern Union and Canada have both banned rBGH. You can Google rBGH and learn quite a bit.
3) Pesticides, herbicides, etc. Commercial production allows for the use of these chemicals, both directly on the animal (insecticides and parasitides) and on the feed they eat (herbicides for weeds, pesticides for bugs, fertilizers for growth promotion). These are all regulated by the USDA, but as someone that has been involved in agriculture all my life, off-label and mis-label applications occur. In organic production, none of these things are allowed (although I know "cheating" occurs). Neither the animal nor the feedstuffs may be chemically treated under organic production.
Now, that said in support of organic, as an organic producer myself I think Horizon abides by the letter of the law (barely) rather than the spirit. Therein lies the reason for their high shipment/slaughter rates (a local organic dairyman here has an average age of 10 for his cows--more than three times the average age in the typical dairy, either commercial or large-scale organic--because his cows are healthy and long-lived). The access to pasture is a huge and important issue. Horizon primarily produces in big dairies, and the access to pasture is a joke (your squash court example is apt). Many of these dairies are in deserts--they may have access to pasture, but there's not a green blade on them.
i work in a movie theatre and ya, we give away free water, too. since the cups themselves are inventoried (and we have to account for each one at the end of the night) we use a special 12 oz cup for water. we charge for bottled water, of course, but if someone comes in with their own thermos and they want it filled with root beer i'll usually fill it at no charge (the soda is inventoried by just a weekly guesstimation at the weight)
Baby carrots are among the only vegetables I like to eat. I have severe food issues from my childhood. My evil grandmother would whip me with switches if I didn't eat vegetables. So I get physically ill when I taste most vegetables. Damn. What am I gonna eat now?
I like the idea that we should find the luxuries in our lives and decide if they're worth the cost, not just in the moment, but over the long haul. I think we can decide to screw the million for the lattes/whatever, but the we at least know we're doing it.
The only amusement park close to my house has been voted friendliest park in the world and they offer free unlimited soft drinks (Pepsi products plus water). You have to pay for bottled water but there are fountain drink huts everywhere. And they have free sunscreen. Holiday World is a bit small but they have a really cool water park and the regular park is decent. And the free drinks save me a lot of money.
You would not believe how much money I save per month by eating in! (And yes, that means making my coffee and taking it to work in my ultra nifty thermos.) And with all the great websites devoted to sharing recipies and tips like
I wonder if this works in Vegas. Because man, water in them hotels is darn expensive!
I used to eat tons of them as they were very convenient. Then I started getting a CSA package and I remembered what real carrots taste like. I havent gone back since. I always take the trouble to peel regular carrots instead!
For the masses who seem to find it too inconvenient its nice to know they have a way of easily getting some vitamins...
That is not my only source. I actually have 20-30 different articles on Horizon that I used to write this post. All of them were negative, from a variety of different backgrounds and affilitiatons. I think the main worry is that the large organic organizations are not happy at all with Horizon.
Just a point of balance. At least here in the UK, some things sold as baby carrots are just that - either immature or small varieties of carrots - and not the cut-down large carrots. How can I be sure? Because they don't come smooth and pre-cleaned in a bag and you can see exactly what they are. But I totally agree with the points you make in your post.
#11 : Switch Off lights
Yes this is true, I bought down my energy monthly bill by 50% by doing this. There was always something unnecessary bulb running somewhere in your home, switch off that. It saves a lot !!
#12 Conserve water
This will save another $$ on water bills.
cheers
Hi,
I am from India, and even though there is a lot of difference in our cultures, most of what you say, holds good for people anywhere in the world, who have a finite income and infinite desires.
Here's my Score:-
Already Doing: 1,2,3(Sometimes),5,6,8,10 (Oh yeah buddy!)
Seriously Thinking about: 4
May never do: 11
Nice Read. Infact I also have similar advise for people (on my blog) especially on use of credit cards, saving more money and ofcourse keeping a small but fixed percent of money to spend on yourself. So that you dont get that slavish feeling!!!
;-)
I'm not sure I really want to trust stoplabelinglies.com . Check out the website of one of the coalition members: http://www.cei.org/. They seem to be another industry front group and hardly impartial. I think there may be better sources for information regarding "organic" labels.
#9.Reduce power consumption
Lowering your water heater’s setting from a very HOT 140 degree Fahrenheit to a just HOT enough 120 degrees can save you nearly $50 a year.
Lowering your thermostat by roughly 10 percent (for instance, from 73 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit) for eight hours a day can save approximately 10 percent off your heating bill.
Here’s another great heat saver, did you know that by reversing your ceiling fan in the winter can actually keep you warm for less.
The beloved of the Almighty are the rich who have the humility of the poor, and the poor who have the magnanimity of the rich. -Saadi, poet (1213-1291)
it's one of my very favorites.
Sorry! All better now.
Something weird going on there - Sarah's been notified. Thanks for pointing that out!
If you're trying to be really frugal, don't have pets or children.
Ain't that the truth!
I agree with everything on this list except this one. Long-term, owning a home is far more financially sound than renting. Sure, you do pay for things that renters don't, but you also get to write off your mortgage interest (thousands of dollars a year right there), you can write off permanent improvements when you sell the house, and most importantly, once you pay for it, nobody is going to jack up your rent and kick you out. It's yours.
Renting is like flushing money down the toilet every month.