YoNaturals Vending Products

YoNaturals Vending in California believes that poor nutrition is linked to lower academic performance. The brain is not able to function at its capacity when it is under-nourished. In fact, studies have shown that children who are iron deficient tend to be more anxious, less able to concentrate and more irritable. When sitting in class feeling anxious and unable to concentrate, students miss out on vital instruction. A correlation is seen between poor nutrition and lower than average scores on assessments of arithmetic, reading comprehension, and vocabulary.  Another by product of poor nutrition is increased absences, tardiness, and suspensions. Due to difficulty succeeding in school students often lack the knowledge, motivation and ability to engage in academic pursuits beyond basic education. 

While educators have long felt there was indeed a correlation between nutrition and performance, they also feel helpless. Teachers cannot control what kinds of foods and snacks children are eating. It is common that students have a sugar filled candy bar and soda for snack. Lunch can be just as bad. Many educators come to dread the teaching time after lunch. Many students have filled themselves with unhealthy foods and drinks. After lunch these students find themselves unable to concentrate. They usually experience a surge in energy followed by lethargy.  It is nearly impossible to learn and achieve when students are just fighting to stay awake. Needless to say classroom behavior in children who have surges of energy and then feel exhausted is less than ideal.

 In looking at the studies on the effect of nutrition and academic performance, it is obvious the importance of lifelong healthy eating habits. If children have proper nutrition they are able to learn and achieve, and that’s what YoNaturals offers in schools. Children and parents need fast, healthy alternatives to place in school lunches and serve for breakfast.  In addition students need to have healthy snack options at school. It appears a little education on nutrition and academic performance partnered with better on-the-go food choices and students can learn at their potential.  Clearly, better test scores, higher reading comprehension and vocabulary skills can be easily achieved.

By: Mindy Fullerton for YoNaturals Healthy Vending Business

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Nowadays many people are decidedly making smarter choices when purchasing food for themselves or their family. Organically grown foods have been increasing in popularity as people are choosing to live a smarter and healthier lifestyle. Organic farmers around the world are doing their part in preserving the quality of our ecosystem and to improve our health by growing food the way nature intended. Organically grown food gives us a naturally healthy and purely delicious food that is completely free of harmful chemicals and pesticides. Conventionally grown foods tend to carry a heavier load of pesticide than the organically grown food and these can be very harmful.

Here are five reasons why you should choose to buy organically grown foods.

Organic foods are free of additives and preservatives and therefore taste more delicious and pure.

Buying organic foods helps to reduce the dependence on all the non-renewable resources.

The organic food industry promotes healthy farmland and supports those small family owned farms that produce the organic food.

Growing organic foods help to keep chemicals out of the water supplies and help protect the farmers and other workers from having contact with harmful chemicals and pesticides.

Organically grown food is exceedingly safe for children because it is free from harmful pesticides.

Next time you’re shopping for groceries, think about how buying organically grown food can benefit you and your family. Think about choosing a food that was grown as nature intended, compared to one that had frequently been covered with poisonous pesticides and other chemicals. Would you buy food knowing that it had once been saturated with harmful chemicals? At one point in time, that was something you never would have thought about, but now today in the information age, people are more aware of what they are putting into their bodies. Now people are aware of how food is grown and produced and now people have a choice.

Some great organically grown foods to buy are apples, grapes (imported), nectarines, pears, peaches, red raspberries, strawberries, bell peppers, celery, potatoes and spinach. There are even many other foods coming to market as organic foods such as eggs, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, milk, juice, bread, soup, meat, nuts, pasta and many baby foods.

Being organic is referring to the way the agricultural products of fiber and food are processed and grown. The ecological system heavily relies on the rich soil to produce plants strong enough to withstand diseases and other pests. Organic farming means that the use of any chemicals and toxins are prohibited and work only in favor of the earth friendly habits that work with nature. In livestock, preventative measures are taken to keep the animals productive and healthy because the use of antibiotics is forbidden. Genetically modified organisms are also strictly prohibited in the organic production.

Only three categories are allowed by the USDA when labeling organic foods:

100% Organic - Means the food item is made purely and 100% of organic ingredients.

Organic Made - Means the food item is made of at least 95% organic ingredients with the remaining 5% heavily restricted and with no genetically modified organisms.

Made With Organic Ingredients - Means the food item is made of no lesser than 70% of organic ingredients with the remaining 30% heavily restricted and with no genetically modified organisms.

The USDA has set strict regulations when labeling organic foods. An organic food must contain at least 95% of organic ingredients in order for it to be labeled as “organic.” Any foods that have less than 70% of organic ingredients can not make any claims on the front of the package that it is organic in any way, but may list the specific organically grown ingredients on the side panel.

The primary barrier to most consumers of buying organically grown foods is the price. Eating healthier is sometimes more expensive than the chemically treated foods. However, as the organic food industry is steadily rising as the varieties and availabilities are increasing, the prices are becoming more competitive and more appealing. We all owe it to ourselves and our families to stay healthy by eating healthy, and it should not have to cost you an arm and a leg to do so.

Author: Francesca Black

he word “organic” may appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese and other single-ingredient foods. Certified organic requires the rejection of synthetic agrochemicals, irradiation and genetically engineered foods or ingredients. Literally, of course, the term is a redundancy: all food is composed of organic chemicals (complex chemicals containing carbon). Any materials used in the production or processing of organic food must be proven safe. Awareness is growing about the value of organic foods. But, whether organic chicken or pesticide-free lettuce represents “healthier” alternatives has long been a subject for debate.

Organic farming is one of the fastest growing segments of the U.S. Gardening organically is much more than what you don’t do. In fact, sales of organics have surged more than 20 percent each year in the past decade. In terms of number of farms, acreage and value of production, the organic food industry is growing at a rate of 20-30% per year. As commodity programs are eliminated, more farmers have discovered that organic production is a legitimate and economically viable alternative enterprise. The growth in the number of organic farmers has increased steadily, similar to the growth of the U.S.

In current organic production systems, growers are not permitted to use conventional synthetic organic fungicides in their disease management program. Non-organic milk comes from farms that are allowed to use genetically modified cattle feed, along with routine antibiotic treatments and synthetic pesticides. Arguments have long raged as to the effects these hormones and chemicals have on the bioproducts. Growth hormones in cows, pesticides on produce and antibiotics in poultry are among the reasons many Americans are turning to organic foods.

Organically raised animals may not be given growth hormones to or antibiotics for any reason. Producers are required to feed livestock agricultural feed products that are 100 percent organic, but farmers may also provide allowed vitamin and mineral supplements.

The US Department of Agriculture finally put in place a national system for labeling organic food. The new federal rule guarantees you, the consumer, organic products that are grown without toxic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers. Pesticides derived from natural sources (such as biological pesticides) may be used in producing organically grown food. Limitations in relation to which pesticides may or may not be used, present the organic grower with some unique and very demanding challenges. Food that is at least 70 percent organic will list the organic ingredients on the front of the package. More than 40 private organizations and state agencies (certifiers) currently certify organic food, but their standards for growing and labeling organic food may differ. Even with these labeling rules in place, consumers should be prepared for some confusion when shopping for organic foods. For one thing, organic products are not uniformly labeled because many farmers using organic methods do not pursue certification at all. In addition, the language contained in seals, labels, and logos approved by organic certifiers may differ.

Author: Cecilia Valenzuela

It seems many are going organic these days, but are these products really that much more beneficial?

The Organic Trade Association defines organic products as a farming system that not only maintains the soil but nurtures the soil without any added fertilizers or harmful pesticides which have been determined to be harmful to our ecosystem. These foods or products have been processed very little without any artificial ingredients or preservatives, which more and more people are looking for.

Americans are becoming more and more environmentally aware these days and you likely have noticed that organic products are becoming more popular everywhere you seem to go.

The term organic also includes other items other than foods or organic products, such as personal care products like shampoo, soap, toothpaste and more that are also available in organic form. There are also organic products such as cosmetics, organic mattresses and even organic pet products such as organic cat litter.

Although there are a few laws that govern the personal care ingredients within personal care products, most personal care products are exempt from strict guidelines, so you really need to check the labeling to see what the ingredients are before choosing something that may not be all that beneficial.

The USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) allows products that contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients to display the the organic label. Certainly, there are organic farms that exist here in Arizona, but one of the more popular organic farms is Shamrock Organic Farms. I don’t know about you, but I personally believe that it can be quite confusing when looking for organic products.

Here’s the USDA Definition of Organically Produced Organic Products Regulations and tips to help you decide if these products are right for you.

In order for products to be able to display the USDA Certified Organic seal, each product is required to contain 95 to 100 percent organic ingredients.

Products can be labeled 100 percent organic if they contain 100 percent of organic ingredients.

Products that contain more than 70 percent, but less than 94 percent of organic ingredients are allowed to display a label stating that the item is made with organic ingredients. (These products cannot use the USDA Certified-Organic seal, however)

Stiff penalties as much as 10,000 dollars can result for any violators misusing these organic labels.

Farmers need to do their homework if they are to display an organic label. Farmers are required to document and prove that their products and farming operations actually comply with these USDA guidelines. In addition, farmers are required to submit their farming system plans along with their well documented records in order to remain compliant with the guidelines. In addition, farmers are also required to allow inspectors inspect their goods at any given time.

The reasons why so many people are choosing organic food and organic products are probably the same set of reasons that people prefer organic in any other state or country.

More and more Americans are in agreement that organic food and products made without pesticides and fertilizers are the best thing for the future. Many consumers and environmentalists firmly believe that going organic isn’t just about promoting better health. They also believe that organically grown food is good for the soil, the environment and certainly our children and others for many years to come.

Many people believe that eating organic foods is healthier because these products contain very little, if any, pesticides or chemicals that will harm you or your children.

Many people believe that choosing 100 percent organic products benefit consumers because these items do not contain any chemicals such as fertilizers or pesticides or any growth hormones and antibiotics.

Many people will agree that by supporting organically grown products, we are doing our part for a healthier environment for everyone. Organic crops do not require any fertilizers because of the fact that they are rotated, which in turns replenishes the essential nutrients needed for healthier and more nutritious fruits and vegetables.

To know whether you are really purchasing something that is said to be organic, look for the organic certification. If you do not know the difference between organic and sustainable, you are not alone. It can be very confusing trying to decide whether or not food without pesticides are better.

Just keep in mind that, organic farms must be independently certified every year and then approved by the USDA, to be officially identified as an organic farm.