Food firm favors antiobiotic-free poultry,
cage-free eggs, rBST-free milk

Food-service innovator Bon Appetit Management Company has made commitments to purchase cage-free eggs and antibiotic-free turkey and significant amounts of local and regional foods for its 190 cafes in 26 states. Cage-free eggs will be phased in to the sites in the next 12 months, with the eventual goal of having all eggs from uncaged birds.

Bon Appetit, which serves 55 million meals a year, made its move on antibiotic-free turkey meat based on its existing policy for chicken, with the goal of reducing antibiotic use in poultry. All of its cafes served 100 percent locally grown foods from within 150 miles of the serving point on an Eat Local Challenge day last fall.

To secure rBST-free milk in the upper Midwest, the company revived a plant in Bismark, North Dakota, that had been closed for two years. Great Plains Dairy Partners, LLC, took over the dairy and revived its Deja Moo brand, thanks to Bon Appetit’s contract to buy its milk for its regional school and corporate food service accounts.
Bon Appétit Management Co. Pledges to Sell Only Cage-Free Eggs in its Nearly 200 Dining Facilities

This news tip from the news page of Rodale’s The New Farm

In its February 2006 issue, Consumer Reports magazine outlines the best bargains in organic food. It says new studies show that by eating organic food, “you can greatly reduce your exposure to chemicals found in conventionally produced foods.” The coverage considers the “dirty dozen” crops where USDA figures show the highest levels of pesticide residue as clearly worth the average 50 percent premium.

The magazine says benefits in meat and dairy are clear, but premiums are higher, while buying organic seafood and health care products are not recommended because organic standards are vague. Shoppers are given a list of ways to cut costs, including “go local” and in season at farmers’ markets, join a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm operation and use internet guides for price comparisons.
Full story at Consumer Reports:
When it pays to buy organic