Don't Be Fooled: Know What's in Your Grocery Cart

Do you really know what's in your grocery cart?
You trust food companies to tell you the truth about the food they sell you.

But, you may be purchasing something other than what you intended.

Wild salmon are a point of contention. Most wild caught salmon we get in the United States comes from Alaska. There is no aquaculture allowed in Alaska, so your fish won’t come from farms. Wild caught and farmed salmon look different. Look at them side by side in the market. Wild salmon is more irregular. Almost all smoked salmon is farmed. Atlantic salmon is farmed.

Olive oil is also not always what it seems. The majority of olive oil sold in the United States as “extra virgin” does not meet the requirements for that definition.

The fresher and better quality it is, the better the taste.

The Greeks go through a bottle per person every two weeks. They’re very heart healthy so they must me onto something.

“Extra virgin” olive oil may be cut with refined olive oil, peanut oil or other oils. A lot of olive oil sold in the States is stale. The best quality olive oil has a shelf life of one year. Look for bottles that have a pressing or harvesting date. This is different from the bottling date. It’s best to buy it in the first few months of the calendar year. You’re pretty safe buying olive oil from Chile, Australia and California.

Honey is often adulterated. Adding high fructose corn syrup or beet sugar doesn’t change the color or the taste. Honey is made everywhere. It’s easy to buy local honey from a farmer’s market and get 100% honey.

Honey-flavored products don’t always contain pure honey. Read the ingredients on the label.

Lastly, beware the claims of Kobe beef. Less than 10 restaurants in the United States import actual Kobe beef from Japan. You can’t get Kobe beef from your butcher, and you definitely can’t get it in your hot dogs.

Buy your food in the wholest form possible so you won’t be fooled.

Listen in as Larry Olmsted, author of Real Food Fake Food, joins Dr. Mike to cut through the labeling nonsense in your grocery cart.

Additional Info

  • Segment Number: 2
  • Audio File: code_delicious/1633cd3b.mp3
  • Featured Speaker: Larry Olmsted
  • Book Title: Real Food, Fake Food: Why You Don't Know What You're Eating & What You Can Do About It
  • Guest Twitter Account: @TravelFoodGuy
  • Guest Bio: Larry OlmstedLarry Olmsted writes the “Great American Bites” column for USA Today and his food and travel column appears on Forbes.com. Olmsted was named one of the 10 Most Extreme U.S. Journalists by the Society of Professional Journalists, and his Forbes.com column was named one of the World’s Top 100 Travel Sites. His exposé on counterfeit Kobe beef for Forbes.com was widely covered by newspapers, websites, and radio shows around the world. Olmsted is the author of two books on golf and, most recently, Getting into Guinness (personally setting or breaking three world records during the writing process). He and his wife live in Vermont.
  • Length (mins): 20
  • Waiver Received: No
  • Host: Dr. Mike Fenster