USA Today ran this story Wednesday, as part of their breast cancer awareness coverage, about BPA in canned food. It was SO timely, as I had just pencilled in a great homemade soup for Wednesday's dinner and, yep, it's chock full of canned ingredients.
The recipe for this great Tuscan white bean and sausage soup came from Pinterest, of course, and I made it for the first time a few weeks ago. It was WONDERFUL. Tasty, hearty, just perfect for Fall. Super easy to make, too, so it got a quick spot on my list of go-to dinner recipes.
In light of the USA Today piece and last week's NYT article about arsenic in poultry, I was determined to make this batch of soup WITHOUT the side of toxic. So I paid nearly $10 for about a pound of two kinds of organic Italian sausage (chicken and pork, as opposed to the Italian-seasoned turkey sausage I'd used the first time around). I also decided to spring for BPA-free packaging for the canned tomatoes and found just the size I needed from Muir Glen. The tomatoes cost $1.99 -- about double their non-organic counterpart (in what is presumably a BPA-lined can).
A couple things that I can't stand here. First, I can't shake the feeling like I can't trust where my food comes from. Second, there is no value in buying food that is tainted. Gone are the days of buying a case of tomatoes at my local warehouse club because they seemed to be such a good value. The message here is that you can pay with your wallet or you can pay with your health.
My second take on the Tuscan Autumn Soup was definitely cleaner than the first time around, but sadly (or ironically?), we preferred the first version.
In the meantime, consumers need to take it upon themselves to pressure food companies to use BPA alternatives in their packaging. And pressure supermarkets to price better, healthier options in a more consumer-friendly manner. There's no such thing as cheap food anymore.
-- Jazzy
In the meantime, consumers need to take it upon themselves to pressure food companies to use BPA alternatives in their packaging. And pressure supermarkets to price better, healthier options in a more consumer-friendly manner. There's no such thing as cheap food anymore.
-- Jazzy
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Here at SMACK! we value decorum nearly as much as chemical-free living. Thanks in advance for keeping your comments clean and civilized!