The Danish government apparently believes they can and should decide which foods are healthy and levy taxes on foods they deem unhealthy. While most of the world is realizing science does not back up the claim that high quality, organic, grass-fed sources of saturated fats are unhealthy (e.g., Siri-Torino et al, 2010), Denmark is moving in the opposite direction and proposing legislation to discourage people from eating saturated fats. Perhaps someone should remind Lars Løkke Rasmussen that human breast milk has one of the highest concentrations of saturated fat (including lauric acid found in virgin coconut oil) and is essential to human health and infant development. Is the Danish government proposing that nursing mothers should discontinue breast feeding?

An excellent resource for understanding healthy fats is Dr Mary Enig's book, Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils, and Cholesterol (2001). 

Below is an interesting rebuttal written by Stanley A Fishman, author of Tender Grassfed Meats. Organic, unrefined, plant-based sources of saturated fat, like virgin coconut oil, are critical to health for all of the same reasons provided below for grass-fed sources of animal fat. Furthermore, high-quality, organic, plant-based sources of saturated fats, like virgin coconut oil, are more readily available in the American marketplace over raw milk, raw butter, and animal food products from grass-fed animals.

“Denmark is a nation that is famous for its high-quality butter, cheese, and pork, which all contain large amounts of health-giving saturated animal fat. Now Denmark has decided to place a heavy tax on all foods containing saturated animal fats. The tax is scaled to the amount of saturated animal fat in the food, so lard would have a 35% tax on its consumption.

Saturated animal fat from healthy animals is a key part of the traditional Danish diet, but that was ignored.

Most of the Danish people oppose this tax, but that did not seem to matter to the Danish legislators, ninety percent of whom voted for the tax.

The legislators claim that taxing foods based on the amount of saturated fat they contain will force people to eat “healthier” foods, increase lifespan, and avoid disease. None of these things are true.

The basic human right of the Danish people to choose their own food was ignored.

Now, Finland, Britain, and Romania are all considering imposing a tax on saturated fat consumption. The goal is to force everybody to eat a “plant-based” diet.

Aside from the fact that no government has the right to control what we eat, this is a very bad policy. Saturated animal fat has been demonized, but is actually a vital nutrient needed by human beings. Since crucial vitamins such as Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, and Vitamin K are fat-soluble, our bodies need this fat to properly absorb the vitamins. Saturated animal fats contain substances that keep the mind sharp and functioning, and help the immune system. Saturated animal fats provide many other nutrients that our bodies need and expect, and modern vegetable oils just do not contain these nutrients. A detailed article explaining the truth about fats is The Skinny on Fats.

For most of human existence, humans ate a Paleo-style diet that was animal based, getting most of their nutrients from wild animals, fish, and shellfish, though many roots, fruits, nuts, and vegetables were also eaten. The whole animal was eaten, including all the organ meats, and the bones were chewed on and often made into broth. We and our bodies have evolved to thrive upon animal foods. All animal foods contain saturated animal fat, and that is what our bodies have evolved to use. By making it harder for us to afford the very food that our bodies need to stay healthy and thrive, the government will make people sicker and weaker.

The fossil record shows what moving to a plant-based diet can do. The skeletons of humans before the invention of agriculture showed tall, strong people with dense, healthy bones, often with no sign of disease. The skeletons of people after the spread of agriculture were often a foot shorter, with thin, fragile bones, and showed the mark of many diseases.

History shows that the ruling classes in agriculture-based societies often reserved meat and other animal foods for themselves, forcing the peasants to eat mainly grains and vegetables. Medieval Europe is a great example of this practice, where only nobles were allowed to hunt wild game, and most of the meat produced by agriculture was taken by the nobles, their soldiers, and the upper classes. The term “meat eater,” meant someone of importance. The meat- and fat-eating classes were taller, stronger, more intelligent, healthier, and lived much longer than the peasant classes, whose access to meat and fat were strictly limited. A common person who hunted wild game was considered a “poacher,” and would be hanged if caught.

The meat shortage in Europe persisted well into the nineteenth century, when the high cost of meat made it too expensive for most people. In contrast, meat was cheap and plentiful in early America, with plenty of wild game, no poaching laws, and many domestic animals who thrived in the new land. Many people immigrated to the United States because they heard that even poor people could afford meat there. Of course, the meat was high-quality wild game, wild fish, wild shellfish, and grassfed and pastured animals. The curse of factory meat had not yet been invented.

Writers at the time of the American Revolution noted that the Americans were much taller, stronger, and healthier than the poor classes in Europe. Americans, eating a diet full of animal fats and meat, were noted for their intelligence, inventiveness, and ability to innovate and get things done. “Yankee ingenuity” became a common phrase because of these qualities.

History shows us that eating animal foods, in the form of grassfed and pastured meat and fat, is very beneficial to human beings. It is the food that is most natural to us. Dairy-based fats such as butter, unprocessed milk and cheese, yogurt, kefir, and others, have also been shown to be very nutritious, especially when eaten in their traditional forms, and made from pastured dairy animals.

Bad laws such as the Danish fat tax are actually moving us back to the Middle Ages, making it harder for us to afford the foods we need to support the natural functions of our bodies, and pushing us towards a plant-based diet that may be fine for herbivores with four stomachs, but not for human beings.

This tax will benefit large industries, and nobody else.

The food industry will benefit because it makes much more money on plant-based refined foods, such as dry cereal, which are very cheap to produce.

The medical industry will benefit because more people will be sick because of inadequate nutrition, which will mean more profit from medical services and drugs.

If the call for a fat tax reaches your nation, it is important to fight it and preserve our rights to eat the foods our bodies need.”

Hi Everyone! The Phil Lempert Report recently aired an interesting story on the increasing awareness and rising demand for functional foods. Functional foods are defined as food and components of foods that are believed to improve overall health, reduce the risk of specific diseases, and minimize the effects of other health concerns. To summarize, Americans want functional foods in their diets and feel they make a meaningful impact on their lives, but feel stymied by expense, unappealing taste, and lack of widespread availability.  In addition, almost half of all Americans do not feel they have enough information to understand which foods provide added benefit. In other words, Americans do not have complete information on how to choose, balance, and incorporate functional foods in their diet and need more guidance. This is understandable considering the widespread influence large, multi-national corporations have on availability of food products and the dominance of industry-driven marketing. I have included the story below for reference.

It is interesting to note that fruits and vegetables ranked the highest in perceived “healthiness” (70%) even though a well rounded, healthy diet includes other functional foods besides fruits and vegetables. In particular, fish oil is the only dietary oil that is mentioned as a functional food by survey participants. Thanks to the ground breaking work of Dr. Mary Enig and other lipids chemists, we know virgin coconut oil has great potential as a functional food. Virgin coconut oil does not just enhance the absorption and utilization of the DHA and EPA omega 3s in the aforementioned fish oil, but also provides a rich source of lauric acid and medium chain fatty acids. I have personally benefitted from virgin coconut oil on my journey recovering from a collection of digestive disorders and cannot be a bigger proponent of virgin coconut oil as a functional food.

IFIC Functional Foods 2011 Survey (available at: http://www.foodnutritionscience.com/index.cfm/do/monsanto.article/articleId/559.cfm)

Americans want to take advantage of the health benefits of foods, according to the2011 Functional Foods/Foods for Health Consumer Trending Survey. The survey asked questions from a random sample of 1,000 U.S. adults about various attitudes toward health and consumer awareness of 34 different diet and health relationships.

The majority of those surveyed (73%) say that food and nutrition are responsible for maintaining a healthy lifestyle, with exercise (63%) following close behind. Eighty-seven percent of participants believe that certain foods have health benefits that go beyond basic nutrition. An overwhelming 90% of those surveyed can name a food and its associated benefit (compared to 77% in 1998).

The top ten functional foods named by participants in this study are fruits and vegetables (70%), fish and fish oil (18%), dairy (16%), herbs and spices (10%), whole grains (10%), fiber (7%), meat and poultry (7%), tea and green tea (5%), nuts (4%) and vitamins and supplements (2%). Fruits and veggies are overwhelmingly number one in terms of what consumers perceive as functional foods, but Elizabeth Rahavi, RD, Associate Director, Health and Wellness for International Food Information Council and Foundation, says we can broaden Americans' perspective about functional foods.

"When we communicate about health benefits, it's helpful to remember that the functional foods that aren't necessarily top of mind for consumers, like nuts, tea, fiber, whole grains and dairy, are also nutritious food choices. While important, it's not just fruits and vegetables. There are lots of healthful components in a variety of great tasting foods and beverages that can make a difference in our health," says Rahavi.

Functional foods are defined as food and components of foods that are believed to improve overall health, reduce the risk of specific diseases, and minimize the effects of other health concerns. The survey found that 87% (vs. 85% in 2009) are interested in learning more about foods with benefits, which makes sense when almost one in five Americans (19%) cite healthy aging as a top health concern, 46% cite cardiovascular disease, 32% cite weight and 22% cite cancer.

Consumers said calcium (92%) and vitamin D (90%) were the top benefits derived from functional foods for bone health; protein (87%) and B vitamins (86%) were mentioned as good for overall health; omega-3 fatty acids (85%) took the reigns for heart health; probiotics (81%) and fiber (79%) were identified as good for digestive health.

Still, even with all this knowledge out there – and the fact that consumer awareness of functional foods has significantly increased since 1998 – consumption levels of these key food components have generally not changed since 2005. The struggle to further incorporate functional foods, consumers say, has to do with expense, taste and availability. Also, only slightly more than half (57%) feel they have enough information to understand which foods provide an added benefit.

"The bottom line is that the solution to overcoming these barriers will have to be tailored to the individual and for each functional component. We can further motivate people by creating greater awareness about the functional foods that they may already be consuming, whether it's whole grain cereal for breakfast or yogurt as a snack. Let people know what they are doing well, and then work within a framework to identify their next step on their path toward better health,” says Rahavi.

Most consumers (78%) agree that functional foods can make a meaningful impact on their health when they consume them, and knowing that these foods are good for their health is a good reason (76%) for consumers to eat them more often.

"We still have a big mountain to climb in terms of changing consumers' purchasing behaviors. Providing practical and positive messages that connect taste with health will go a long way in helping consumers move toward better health,” adds Rahavi.

Please feel free to share your thoughts here or on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/meltbutteryspread.

-Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

For many decades I was comfortable with the illusion that my mother’s pie crust is indeed the very best in the land. My almost religious belief in this universal truth was shattered recently when my blackberry pie was pitted against Meg’s mother’s cherry pie. I am still firm in the belief that my pie-filling was better than hers (personal preference for blackberries). However, I was forced to expand my universe to include other people’s pie crust as equal, nay better, than my mother’s secret recipe. What was the critical difference between the two? They were both thin, flaky crusts made with Melt® instead of butter (my husband can’t even taste the difference between pie crust made with Melt® vs. butter); both crusts complemented the pie filling in a way that only homemade pie crust can do.  The critical differences lay in the finishing touches. While my mother has had a rather Spartan aesthetic with her pie crust allowing the superior texture to stand on its own, Meg’s pie crust was lightly brushed with egg white and sprinkled with sugar to make it sparkly. Damn her sense of aesthetics! 

Cygnia's Thin, Flaky Pie Crust (9-10” Double Crust)

2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 c Melt®
1/4 -1/3 c ice cold water with 1 tbsp of cider vinegar (to make the crust roll out more consistently)

Sift flour and salt into mixing bowl.

Using pastry cutter to blend Melt into flour.

Add ice cold water with vinegar and mix with hands to create dough.

Add water if too dry, add flour if sticky.

Create dough ball, wrap snugly with cellophane and place in refrigerator for ~60 minutes.

Cut dough ball in half, roll out (with tons of flour on countertop and on rolling pin) to 3/16" to 1/8” thickness (but no thinner).

Gently fold crust in half, draping the fold over the middle of pie dish; unfold crust and center it.

Add filling (e.g., apples, blackberries, raspberries).

Roll out other half, fold in half, drape over pie dish, unfold, center.

Cut away extra pie crust with knife, pinch crust together, cut slits into top pie crust layer and place in oven (usually 450 degrees F for 10 minutes, then 350 degrees F for ~35 minutes).

Tip: lightly brush top pie crust with egg white and sprinkle with raw sugar to make it fancy.

Please feel free to share your thoughts here or on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/meltbutteryspread.

-Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

For all of the bloviating over the Federal deficit and government spending, I would be interested in a healthy public debate on farm subsidies, especially when considering the vast majority of produce subsidized by the USDA ends up in junk food and factory farming.

What if organic produce, dairy, poultry, and beef grown by local small- and medium-size farms were as cheap by the pound as Big Macs, soft drinks, and Kraft Mac n Cheese? Mark Bittman of the NYT has repeatedly called for farm subsidy reform rather than its elimination in the hopes that the government will make it easier for Americans to afford healthy food: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/dont-end-agricultural-subsidies-fix-them/.

The report, “Apples to Twinkies: Comparing Federal Subsidies of Fresh Produce and Junk Food” by CALPIRG and the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, studies the interesting question of whether the nation's problem with obesity is fueled by farm subsidies (for the executive summary, see: http://www.calpirg.org/home/reports/report-archives/health-care/health-care/apples-to-twinkies2). According to the study, the federal government spent $17 billion of the total $260 billion spent subsidizing agriculture on just four common food additives: corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, corn starch, and soy oils. By comparison, the government spent only $261 million subsidizing apples, and far less supporting fruits and vegetables, like spinach, broccoli, and blueberries – which are reported to encourage better health. Corn and soy subsidies account for a whopping 40% (over $100 billion) of all agricultural produce subsidies. Consider these commodity crops are used to support livestock and poultry in factory farming (think “Food, Inc.”). (More reasons for Melt® to be organic, non-GMO, and soy-free!)

The Environmental Working Group has put together an interesting primer on farm subsidies, with fine-grained data on their allocation and the link is included here for your reference: (http://farm.ewg.org/region.php?fips=00000&progcode=total). It is interesting to note that 10 percent of all farmers collected 74 percent of all subsidies, amounting to $165.9 billion over 16 years.

To put things in perspective, the PIRG study states that if the government had given taxpayers the subsidies instead of the farmers, each taxpayer would have been given $7.36 to spend on junk food and just 11 cents to spend on apples per year. This does not include taxpayer dollars used to subsidize corn and soy used for factory farming and by extension the fast food, beef, and poultry industries, which is probably a far larger number. This is a key factor that makes junk food cheaper than healthy food, which contributes to greater obesity rates in the United States.

Please feel free to share your thoughts here or on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/meltbutteryspread.

-Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

I justified taking three years to finally watch “Food, Inc” – a well produced documentary on the meat, poultry, soy, and corn industries – because I changed how I sourced meat in my diet years ago, eating only organic, grass-fed meat. I wish I could call out the 4-5 companies this movie highlights, but I risk legal action because of some odd pro-industry laws that do not protect individuals. You would think I am protected by my right to free speech, but remember when Oprah was sued for sharing her views on hamburgers? If you have not seen this movie, I highly recommend it as it is quite an eye-opener.

Ultimately, “Food, Inc” is not about the disturbing dominance of GMO soy and corn, poorly raised and abused animals in unimaginable conditions, and unacceptable slaughtering and processing environments. “Food, Inc” at its core is about a lack of respect – possibly contempt – these companies have for the animals, the planet, the farmers, the workers who process the meat, and the consumers who eat this “food”. When you buy organic products like Melt®, made with EcoSocial and Fair Trade ingredients, organic meat and poultry, and or locally grown food, you are voting for respect, which translates into health and wellness. By the way, I am quite pleased to announce Melt® is now soy-free!

There was a time when I believed the highest road for combating the unethical and unhealthy beef and poultry industries was to become vegetarian. In fact, I was vegetarian for 7 years, long enough to find the smell of cooking meat to be revolting. Not only did vegetarianism not work for me nutritionally, as it turns out, I was also supporting the very companies I did not want to support through the purchase of food products containing non-organic soy and corn (and its derivatives).  I wasn’t just losing a source of protein, iron, minerals, and vitamin B-12, I was replacing meat with nutritionally inferior foods, specifically soy-based foods.  I was amazed at how much better I felt – almost immediately – when I began eating meat again (organic, grass-fed meat only) and practically eliminating the consumption of soy from my diet.

I respect that some feel vegetarianism and veganism are important political and economic statements against the industrialized beef and poultry sectors. However, I would argue that vegetarianism and veganism are choices that may only opt out of the discussion and are potentially very unhealthy. Purchasing sustainably and humanely raised and processed beef and chicken is far more efficient in changing a broken industry by creating demand; on the other hand, excluding meat and animal products from one's diet is potentially passive and ineffective for initiating measurable change. I welcome you to share your views.

Please feel free to share your thoughts here or on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/meltbutteryspread.

-Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

The topic of baking sticks has not always put a bee in my bonnet. Did you know that every butter substitute baking stick in the grocery store has partially hydrogenated oils? Look and see for yourself – even brands like I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, who have removed partially hydrogenated oils from their table spread/ tub version, still have them in their baking stick products. Why do I care? Consumption of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils (a synthetic, “lab fat”) have been linked to numerous, preventable diseases like obesity, heart disease, diabetes type II, digestive disorders, ADHD in children, and so on. Ingestion of small amounts of partially hydrogenated oils matter: according to Hu et al. (N. Eng. J. Med. 1997, 337:1491-1499), for each 1% increase in fat intake, trans fats (i.e., hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils) increase the risk of coronary heart disease approximately 46% versus only 3% for equivalent amount of saturated fat. When the front of any food package says “No Trans Fats”, yet lists partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredient deck, it is because the FDA allows a “No Trans Fat” statement when there is less than 0.5g per serving of trans fat (i.e., industry “loophole”). Baking sticks… who knew?!

What are we doing about it? It is my personal and company’s mission to offer meaningful choices to consumers that are truly enjoyable with the added bonus of excellent nutrition, especially where none exist. For better or worse, this could not be more the case when it comes to the margarine and butter substitute category (zzzzzz… ). I recently completed and submitted our first federal grant proposal via the Small Business Innovative Research program to fund the development of a butter alternative baking stick, based on our awesome, organic Melt® formulation. The key to developing a non-butter baking stick is formulating it to be resistant to oxidation, while continuing to provide the high level of nutrition we value so deeply with our products. Oils like soy, canola, and safflower (oils high in polyunsaturated fat) are highly prone to oxidation in high heat, and therefore inappropriate for frying, baking, and sautéing (I hope this isn’t the first time you have heard this). Oxidized oils undergo numerous, complex changes at the molecular level and their consumption has been linked to very serious diseases, much like hydrogenated oils (www.mercola.com has great information on this topic if you are interested in more details). Our goal is to develop an organic baking stick that is stable for one-time baking and sauté uses without using “lab fats” or synthetic preservatives (e.g., TBHQ), while continuing to deliver on great taste and improvement of overall health.

Please feel free to share your thoughts here or on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/meltbutteryspread.

– Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

Hi! It is hard for me to believe it has been already 5 years since I cashed in my retirement savings to start the Melt® business, working three jobs and figuring out the food industry on the side. I had no prior experience in the food industry (or business!), with my education and professional experience in fluvial geomorphology (sub-discipline of geology in river processes). My husband and I packed everything to move from Seattle, WA to Hailey, ID with a dream of a better life. I feel very lucky to live in the Rocky Mountains of Idaho, mountain biking and skiing as much as time allows. Have you ever thought of starting a business? If so, I can understand your trepidation: startup takes an abundance of courage, tenacity, and willingness to grow on a personal level. While the learning curve seems at times infinite, here are a few tips I have learned along the way:  

It is critically important to use challenges and obstacles as opportunities for finding better solutions and outcomes. This pulls your attention and energy in the most productive direction and if you don’t, then you miss out on better solutions and outcomes.

It takes a village to build a business; take a moment to express your gratitude and appreciation for your village.

If your product is an authentic expression of who you are and solves a genuine need in an innovative way, that grounding will see you through the nay-sayers. If the product truly works for you by solving a problem that is unaddressed in the marketplace, then it probably works for a lot of people.

Coachability is critical for attracting the mentors and connections you need to move forward.

How much money do you need to raise? Triple that number and you may be closer to reality.

Your management team is the most important part of your business – with an outstanding team, any problem or challenge is potentially overcome. Without it you will eventually fail.

The book I wish I read before starting this business: “Eating the Big Fish” by Adam Morgan.

Please feel free to share your thoughts either here or on our facebook page: 

–Cygnia, Founder of Prosperity Organic Foods

In Michael Pollan’s Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual, Mr. Pollen asserts “Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.” Of course the rules are that eating healthy is really a matter of eating “real foods.” Junk food or what we think of junk foods tends to be highly processed. In a New York Time Review talking about eating junk food, Pollen clarifies, “One of our problems is that foods that are labor or money intensive have gotten very cheap and easy to procure. French fries are a great example. They are a tremendous pain to make. Wash the potatoes, fry potatoes, get rid of the oil, clean up the mess. If you made them yourself you’d have them about once a month, and that’s probably about right. The fact that labor has been removed from special occasion food has made us treat it as everyday food. One way to curb that and still enjoy those foods is to make them.” (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/08/michael-pollan-offers-64-ways-to-eat-food/)

If you make the cakes, cookies, ice cream, fried chicken and donuts at home, you’ll know exactly what is in each of them. In the time it takes to cut, chop, mix, heat, fry, batter, and fill those kinds of foods, you’ll realize you won’t want to make them every day and then you won’t eat them every day. One option to making treats healthier is to substitute Melt® – a great tasting organic butter alternative – for margarines or butter.

Melt contains the perfect blend of the healthiest fats and oils that are good for you! Melt is the first to feature organic virgin coconut oil as its leading ingredient combined with organic flaxseed oil, providing an optimal 2:1 balance of Omega-6s and Omega-3s. Each serving of Melt is a rich source of the “good Fats” (Medium Chain Fatty Acids) that are not immediately stored as fat but burned as energy, and has 425 mg of Omega-e ALA (26% RDA) and Vitamin E (15% RDA). Melt spreads, cooks, bakes and melts just like butter but with half the saturated fat (from a rich, plant-based source of MCFAs) and fewer calories. For more information, visit Melt 

In Michael Pollan’s Food Rules, he recommends that you can “eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.”  The idea behind this is that if you make the cakes, cookies, ice cream, fried chicken and donuts at home, you’ll know exactly what is in each of them.  You’ll also find that before the food industries made manufactured foods inexpensive and easy to find, junk food was hard to prepare.  In the time it takes to cut, chop, mix, heat, fry, batter, and fill those kinds of foods, you’ll realize you won’t want to make them every day.  And then you won’t eat them every day.

But there is nothing wrong with having some sugars and fats in your diet.  Remember the food pyramid and how all the good-tasting food was up at the top under use sparingly? As long as portion control is kept in mind, and exercise is a part of your lifestyle, a donut isn’t going to hurt every once in awhile.

And if you make all those tasty treats at home, you can make them with a butter substitute like Melt, which doesn’t have the same fat content as butter and has all the coconut oil health benefits.  Melt is the perfect alternative to butter in baking all those delicious cookies and cakes, as long as it’s not every day!