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I was on the road and stopped into a Publix (on the east coast). This aisle dedicated to natural and organic caught my eye and was well displayed. Had a wide array of products.
I am curious as to what natural & organic products you purchase for yourself and/or your family and what typically resonates with you on the "Green meter?" Will rising grocery prices make it hard to buy these type of products or will your dedicated lifestyle/values win out?
The mangosteen is here and is fighting its way into the fruit mainstream. If you search the web you can find countless articles of people searching high and low for this gorgeous tropical and slightly mysterious fruit. I was recently at a Asian market and found several products containing mangosteens from canned segments to pure mangosteen juice. If you do not have access to Asian markets try your local health food store, you may be able to purchase the juice. I urge you to go out and try to find the juice, combine it with apple juice or any other of your favorite juices to make your own signature healthy beverage. Don't be the last kid on the block to tried mangosteens and their products, go out and get it today.
It seems as though every day there is news about the economy, higher fuel prices & food costs. And it’s usually not good news. In fact, last week, the government raised its projections for how much the price of food will go up this year to five percent. This means a typical household may soon pay about $350 more for the same cart of groceries.
It seems more and more people are beginning to look for ways to save, without giving up those little indulgences many of us are accustomed to.
So how are you dealing with the effects of the economy? Going out to eat less and cooking more meals at home? Brown bagging it to work? Still going out, but ordering from the value menu?
For those that voted, the results show that the office environment is where most of the recycling is taking place. I am going to guess, that just like me, many people support recycling when it is made easy for them. Meaning there are clearly marked bins for paper, cans and bottles and easy enough to dump your stuff in appropriately. At home is another story. For me, I have the best intentions at home, but not the best set up and therefore I don't recycle. Poor excuse I know.
On another note, I became more aware of the commitment of recycling within our organization this past week. An associate came to me expressing her passion and commitment to recycling and asked very politely if I too would support the cause by not printing so much. If you recall in my initial post, I admitted I do tend to print a lot.
I can't promise I will change overnight, but I will admit that I am more conscious of my printing and it's effects and plan to do as much as I can to change/decrease my habit.
One of the coolest things we saw at the recent NRA show in Chicago was Aquarios Cereal...yes a cereal made the top list.
Keep your spoons ready and your eyes open for this across the country!
As of July 23, 2007 the FDA lifted the ban on the Mangosteen, but its actually been around longer. This strange and mysterious fruit from the South Pacific is starting to find its way into more mainstream beverages. The credit for first opening the eyes of the American public was a Utah based company that introduced Xango, a beverage consisting of Mangosteen juice. Before then the Mangosteen was only being served as a dessert delicacy in high end fine dining establishments. Even then restaurants had to source the fruit through a Puetro Rican company that handled small volume orders.
The debate is being waged in the scientific community as we speak about the health or non health benefits for the Mangosteen. The arils or seeds are said to have a high amount of Xanthones, which has anti-cancer properties. The mangosteen's arils only contain one of the qualities of the so called "Superfruits, that being Xanthones. Mangosteen's rind however has several properties. People in the South Pacific have used the rind for anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal and antiseptic reasons for centuries.
Whether or not it is found to have "Superfruit" qualities, the Mangosteen has made its splash among the health conscious public and we will continue to see more and more food and beverage products contain this mysterious and much debated tropical fruit. We encourage you to go out and try a Mangosteen flavored drink and send back your thoughts and a picture of that drink so we can share with everyone.
We spoke about innovation with Westin and Wii.
FOOD for THOUGHT: New product development keeps you in the game and relevant with your consumer audience. Pure innovation changes the game/landscape and positions you as an industry leader for others to follow.
Today I am feeling socially conscious. Yes, I am the person in the office that prints off more documents than I probably should, but I prefer to read and markup documents with a pen. Just my style. I am, however, aware of the impact of all my printing, so I do my best to recycle paper at the office.
At home is another story. My husband and I do not recycle, but the more I read and research the topic of sustainability, corporate social responsibility and plain old recycling, the more I think I need to get with the program.
Being socially conscious is all the buzz and I know of food companies that are committed to environment practices and I know of people that are loyal to recycling, but I also wonder how many people talk the game, but don't walk the game.
So let me know how you are supporting the environmental cause.
To complete this whole thought, I wanted to include this image and short descriptor as an example of social consiousness and perhaps as inspiration.
Feed up with the vast amount of food people waste, Vogels created SPROUT, a small-scale restaurant concept that recycles absolutely everything not consumed. In his attempt to create a zero-waste establishment, the Dutch design student went as far as using coffee grinds and herbs to create plates and bowls. This fully compostable collection has since been dubbed Wasteware.
I've had a few days to soak in the stories and photos of this book and contemplate just what my last ideal meal would be. As one thinks about their last meal, you sort of have to get philosophical. What do I want this meal to say about me or does it matter? Do you want it to be filled with dishes that you find comfort in or ones you never tried?
A proclaimed non-foodie and creature of habit, I'm not an adventurous eater by any stretch of the imagination and live my life according to daily routines. Many might find such existence too boring and uneventful, but it suits me. That being said, I would obviously not pick dishes that I had never tried before - what if I didn't like them and then my last meal would be a failure? I would choose comfort foods, including several from my mom, all sure to make my last meal a soothing experience filled with memories.
So here's my last ideal meal:
A bleu cheese bacon hamburger, where the bleu cheese crumbles have been melted under a few swiss cheese slices with crisp, thick applewood bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion straws and chipotle mayo on lighted toasted buns. My mom's version of a dinner salad and for dessert, chocolate peanut butter ice cream with my mom's homemade brownies. The beverage of choice would be a tall glass of soda with just the right amount of crushed ice.
As you thought about your last ideal meal, I hope you learned as much about yourself as I already knew about me.
Wii and Westin - kinda flows doesn't it?
This innovative partnership taps into many consumer need states: the experience, health & wellness, fun, the cool factor, reducing stress while on the road. Being a consumate road warrior, I can enthusiastically say that Westin gets me and they get people. Their ear to the ground and inherent gut check expertise seems consistently right on cue with consumer connection pulse points. This is yet another example of the innoavtive thinking coming from Westin.
Here is a snid bit of a recent article, speaking about Wii, in Business Wire, May 1, 2008 Thursday 8:38 PM GMT.
Nintendo and Westin Hotels & Resorts announced a partnership that will allow guests to experience the Wii(TM) sensation with a special version of the console ideally suited for use in the hotel environment. Westin Hotels is the first hotel company to partner with Nintendo for its Wii console and will feature this specially designed console as part of the brand's WestinWORKOUT program at 10 hotels across the United States. The special game console is pre-loaded with many popular games, including the groundbreaking Wii Sports(TM)game.
With this partnership, Westin will be among the first hotel brands in the United States to receive delivery of Wii Fit(TM), the highly anticipated interactive fitness game, set to release during the week of May 19 in North America. Using another Nintendo innovation, the Wii Balance Board(TM)accessory, hotel guests will be able to participate in a dynamic mix of more than 40 yoga, aerobics, strength training and balance activities.
"Delivering an active entertainment experience is what Wii is all about," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "We jumped at the chance to be the first hotel to partner with Nintendo and add interactive entertainment to our successful WestinWORKOUT program," said Sue Brush, Senior Vice President, Westin Hotels & Resorts. "We think our guests will be eager to make Wii a part of their workouts during their stay with us."
WestinWORKOUTwas developed inpartnership with worldwide fitness leaders to develop the travel industry's most extensive fitness and wellness program. Last month WestinWORKOUT was extended with the addition of BrainBody Fitness, a program connecting mental and physical fitness through a series of original exercises distributed at each Westin throughout North America. By placing expert-recommended mind and body stretches in a variety of strategic hotel touch points, including the front desk, guestrooms, public spaces and WestinWORKOUT fitness centers, Westin is providing guests with simple and effective ways to sharpen their thinking and calm their minds and bodies for better health.
The Food IQ team and Nourish the Thought applauds Westin for their perpetual innovative and consumer focused thinking - it's a long fly ball; it's outa here and a true home run! I would be curious to know if anyone had thoughts on how Westin and their innovation (Wii, SuperfoodsRX menu, wellness council, etc.) impacts the consumer; how it makes you feel, what you appreciate and what type of hotel programs resonate with your lifestyle.
