11/25/24: Gift ideas: RD Swag & Dog Treats (w/a RD Spotlight); New Apple Varieties; Climate Washing Label Language; Ghost Kitchens & Contactless Food Service
Because Everybody Eats
Releasing this a day early since it’s a short week…🦃 Happy Thanksgiving!
Currently “The Grocery Cart” newsletter is free to read without a subscription, of course you can certainly pledge now.
The paid subscriber option will be turned on after the first of the year - on or about January 1st. The other Build Up Dietitians newsletter comes out on Fridays. and does have content for paid subscribers so you have the option of subscribing.
🎁Donut Season Gift Ideas
Check out some of the food-centric gifts from Donut Season, a dietitian owned business, her website is HERE. Whether you’re a dietitian or buying for a RD, RD2Be or NDTR friend - you can get a 15% discount by using the promo code: BUDHoliday (we get a 2% commission from this partnership.)
💡Spotlight: RD Side Hustle:🐶Dog Treats (& 🌟Special offer)
Meet dietitian Meg Bender - find her 🐕🦺dog treat website: BrewBaker's Barkery
🌟Special offer: Order by 12/10 to get your dog treats for Christmas! Use code BuildUp on their website and get 15% off your orders & we get a 2% commission.
Find Meg’s business on FB and IG @brewbakersbarkery
Q1: What’s your side hustle and why did you start it?
Answer: “My brother and I started the business in 2019… (he) came to me with this idea about dog treats. We found a basic recipe online and tried it out with our dogs and the dogs of some of our friends. Then, we just started kind of tweaking the recipe to give it a more “Memphis” flavor, so we added BBQ meat. Then, "Elvis week” was approaching and we came up with the idea of a treat we affectionately call “Fat Elvis”, which contains peanut butter, banana, and bacon…We’ve come up with over 30 different flavors over the last 5-1/2 years. We only sell our most popular flavors on the website…”
Q2: What are your long-term plans for this side hustle?
Answer: “I struggle with figuring out the direction of where I’d like to take the business. I would love to do this full time, but I think I would miss working as a dietitian and being around patients. At some point I think I’d like to have a brick and mortar. For now, my biggest goal is to get more products into more stores…”
Q3: Does being a dietitian help you with this business?
Answer: “…I do think because I know about nutrition in humans, it allows me to be somewhat aware of what I need to look for when researching ingredients. In the beginning, I knew right away to look for labeling laws on packaging. Honestly, I think it’s my love of dogs that helps me the most.”
Q4: What do you like best about doing this?
Answer: “Having this side hustle has provided me with so much fun…And bonus, I get to work with my…big brother a few times a week.
❓Are you a dietitian with a side-hustle? Let us know and we may feature you in an upcoming newsletter! We are especially looking for RDs who MAKE items that we can profile! Write to us at builduprdns@gmail.com
🍎🍏Take a Bite: New Apple Varieties
“…While there are more than 7,500 modern apple varieties, some are more beloved than others. For years, Gala has been the most popular choice for U.S. growers, topping out the country in total number of bushels produced, thanks to its sweet taste and long shelf life. But both it and the maligned Red Delicious are losing orchard-share every year as new varieties (and not just Honeycrisp) take on the fruit aisle…” 4 Up-and-Coming Apple Varieties That Are Making Honeycrisp Old News
New apple varieties often take years to develop through cross-breeding and horticultural research by agricultural programs at universities like Cornell University.
Have you seen and bought any new apple varieties at YOUR supermarket like: Cosmic Crisp, SnapDragon, Firecracker, and Pink Lady?
📝New Label Language
Nutritional info: (1 cup) - 230 calories, 3g fat, 200mg sodium, 46 g total carbohydrates ( 5g fiber, 9 g added sugar), 5 g protein. For more info on the KERNZA grain go HERE
The climate is the subject of some of the newish label language you may have been seeing on products like this Cascadian Farm cereal. Here are some terms that might be highlighted on labels:
climate smart
low-carbon
carbon neutral
climate friendly
climate positive
raised using regenerative practices
environmentally responsible
These types of unregulated label terms and language are an attempt to highlight specific crops or farming practices, but are they little more than “climate washing”, i.e. an attempt to make certain food products look better than they are? Will they end up confusing customers who want to support climate-friendly efforts? Will customers end up paying more for something that means less than they think or hope? Will customers think or assume that products bearing these labels are also a “better for you” choice nutritionally? Time will tell!
🍽Ghost Kitchens/Contactless Eating
Ghosts, Robots, Oh My! The No-Contact Takeover of the Food Service Industry
“…As we push toward efficiency in the food service industry, we lose the community aspect inherent in the provision of service and the recognition that the preparation and delivery of food is an act of love. When the people responsible for the delivery of food are hidden, and out of the customer’s line of vision, their existence can be too easily ignored, their rights too easily infringed upon, and the respect they’re owed too easily dismissed. Instead of championing efficiency, we should be advocating for better rights and wages for workers in the food service industry and prioritizing the social interconnectivity that is shared over the exchange of food…”
I have seen all except the Firecracker in some of my local supermarkets. I've tried cosmic crisp and pink lady and they're okay, somewhat crisp, sweet, tart.