One of the things I love about South Africa is that the food
seems to contain less crap than in the
U.S. And by crap I mean preservatives and other artificial ingredients. Most of
the time, I can pronounce all the ingredients on a label without paying insane
prices to do so. Nice!!!
Take a look at the labels on a few items we have
around the house.
Nacho Chips:
Salted Caramel Ice Cream (aka heaven in a plastic carton):
Strawberry Jam:
Peanut Butter:
Fruit, veggies, meat, milk, bread and eggs have a short
shelf life because they rarely contain preservatives. At first, this was
irritating because we were running to the store to replace ingredients way more
often than we did at home. However, after thinking about it, I realized it’s
the way it SHOULD be!!! If you ask me, bread and milk were not meant to last
more than a week. It makes me wonder what kinds of crap they put in our food in
the U.S. to make it last such a long time.
This is not to say that preservatives and artificial
ingredients are never used here. Of course they are. But it seems to be used in
fewer products. Just like the U.S., you will pay a premium for products certified
as GMO free, hormone free, cruelty free, organic, free range, pesticide free,
etc., but the normal products are still quality, which I appreciate.
South Africa is surprisingly self-sufficient, producing a
large percentage of food and food products here in the country. If you read the
labels, most things are “made in the RSA” or “a product of South Africa.” Note:
RSA is the Republic of South Africa (its official name). I would say that food
prices are slightly less than the U.S. if the item is produced here in South
Africa. However, the prices skyrocket
when the item is imported. And by skyrocket, I mean $32 for a pound of
Starbucks coffee beans (just criminal!) or $12 for a small package of double-stuffed Oreo
cookies. And, if you decide to splurge on the item, it might be stale or taste
different than you expected.
I will be doing more posts on food soon. J
Love,
Jess & Mat
1 comment:
I found your study on food commodities to be very interesting Book back in the day before planes trains and automobiles that is how all food was produced in manufactured Simply was not processed shipped around the world and have a very long shelf life Thanks for the info I love you!
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