I’m coining a new acronym – F.A.E! Want to know what it stands for?
Depending on what level you’re at on your clean eating journey, it might be hard to find clean choices when it comes to staples like meat, eggs, and dairy. The deceptive marketing spewed in this area is often confusing, even for me! So, I get super annoyed very quickly when I feel that restaurants, farms and businesses are trying to convince us that their products are clean when they’re not.
A True Story
I recently went to a very popular ‘clean-eating’ restaurant in Southern California thinking I’d be able to order more than just organic spinach with olive oil. The wait staff were walking around with their branded t-shirts proclaiming, honesty, transparency, sustainability, and whatever other ‘buzzword’ you can think of. The place was packed, and everyone in the restaurant was ordering freely from the carefully worded menu. A menu with just enough mentions of the word “organic” that makes one think everything is organic and carefully sourced. Well, that’s the rub. It’s not the case…at all!
As the waitress sauntered over, ever so excited to take our order, I asked two very simple questions:
- Where is the chicken sourced?
- What are the ingredients in the GF pizza crust?
Her answer: Everything is of the highest quality and carefully sourced.
Me: Awesome, let’s find out the answers to my questions please.After a few minutes, she comes back with the name of the farm for the chicken (which was great) and only that the dough was a GF recipe and she didn’t have the ingredients (not so great). I was totally fine with that since I didn’t really want pizza anyway and asked for a few more minutes before we were ready to order. In this timeframe, I was able to look up the farm she said the chicken came from. That’s when my annoyance peaked.
The Website Said the Following:
“HOW ARE RED BIRD CHICKENS RAISED?
Red Bird flocks joyously roam spacious barns with an unlimited access to feed and water. They enjoy ventilated housing and soft bedding of wood shavings and rice hulls. Chicken growers work to promote natural behaviors in controlled environments. The goal is to raise healthy, wholesome birds. Rest easy, poultry patrons, as factory farming techniques have flown the coop.
Vegetarian fed: Although Red Bird employees love to eat chicken, we prefer our chickens eat grains. That’s not to say we think everybody should be a vegetarian: only our flocks! Our commitment to the food revolution starts at the source so we keep chicken feed simple, pure, and meat-free.
What’s on the chickens’ plate? 90% of Red Bird’s antibiotic free meal is made up of corn and soy. The final 10% is composed of added nutrients, enzymes, essential oils and vitamins. These include phosphate, limestone and a generous mixture of vegetable oils that holds it all together. Oddly enough, it tastes like granola!”
So, An Abundance of Problems
Can you spot ALL the deceptive marketing? I’ll give you a hint for one. Chickens are omnivores! If the description convinced you that the chicken is clean then you need to take my online course Get Food Smart, Get Real…pronto! It’s not even close to being clean. If you managed to spot a few of the deceptive marketing phrases and you’re ready to ‘up your game’, then you too are ready for my course!
As the waitress came back to take our order, I was left with asking for organic heirloom tomatoes, organic spinach and broccolini with a side of olive oil. Sadly, that was all this true clean eater was able to order at this establishment that touts clean eating!
So you can decide what’s worse. The eating establishment with their complete lack of understanding of what clean eating is? Or the farmer, who thinks raising birds on that kind of feed is something to boast about? After you ask the first round of questions, you then have to explore the answers even further!
That’s Why I’m Coining a New Acronym
Which takes me back to the title of this blog. Want to guess what F.A.E. stands for now? Frauds Are Everywhere! So, the next time you’re at your favorite ‘farm to table’ restaurant, or ‘sustainably sourced’ establishment, make sure to Ask Questions. Because things may not be as they seem.
If you want to learn more about clean eating and how you too can make it a lifestyle then I recommend you take my course: Get Food Smart, Get Real. It gives you all the information you need to finally make a lifestyle change to achieve lasting longevity.
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