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The 33 Healthiest Foods Aren't Sold By ADM or Kraft

by: Curtis Abbey

Mon May 25, 2009 at 15:43:45 PM PDT

David H. Murdock wrote a great piece over on the Huffington Post called A Recipe For Longevity: 33 Of The Healthiest Food On Earth. Murdock, Chairman and owner of Dole Food Company puts together a pretty fair list.

Pineapple, Blueberries, Spinach, Red Bell Pepper, Broccoli, Tomato, Apple, Artichoke, Arugula, Asparagus, Avocado, Blackberries, Butternut Squash, Cantaloupe, Carrot, Cauliflower, Cherries, Cranberries, Green Cabbage, Kale, Kiwi, Mango, Mushrooms, Orange, Papaya, Plums & Prunes, Pomegranate, Pumpkin, Raspberries, Strawberries, Sweet Potato, Watermelon, and Banana.

What did I notice about this list? America's largest food company Archers Daniels Midland doesn't sell any of this food.

Curtis Abbey :: The 33 Healthiest Foods Aren't Sold By ADM or Kraft

Here's the Archers Daniels Midland list from wikipedia.

Typical products include oils and meal from soybeans, cottonseed, sunflower seeds, canola, peanuts, flaxseed, and Diacylglycerol (DAG) oil, as well as corn germ, syrup, starch, glucose, dextrose, crystalline dextrose, High fructose corn syrup sweeteners, ethyl alcohol, and wheat flour. End uses are consumption by people and livestock, and fuel additives.

Of course many of the other large American food corporations don't sell these foods either, Kraft, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola and General Mills (about $300 Billion in market value) Why? The reasons are numerous but a big one is the Omega-3:Omega-6 ratio that Susan Allport writes about. Foods high in Omega-3s will spoil sooner than those with less. Foods with more Omega-6s tend to come from seeds while foods with Omega-3s tend to come from greens.

The Chairman of Dole Foods' list is a little fruit heavy and is vacant of healthy protein sources like cheese, pastured eggs, meat and wild salmon. But how nice would it be to live in a country where our top food companies were pushing fruits, greens and healthy meats instead of the factory farmed meats and processed corn derivatives? I hope to help push companies towards that vision, look for that topic in my next piece.

What's your list of healthiest foods on the planet look like? And why do you think these foods aren't sold in any significant quantities by our mega food companies?

Tags: Archers Daniels Midland, Huffingtonpost, David H. Murdock, Healthy foods, Kraft Foods, Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Factory Farms, (All Tags)

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The 33 Healthiest Foods Aren't Sold By ADM or Kraft | 6 comments

You could make a case... (4.00 / 4)

...that all whole foods could be on a "healthiest" list - if they're produced right and when you maintain variety in eating them. Big "if" there, eh?

Of course, I know what the "unhealthiest foods in the world" list would look like. Just grab a supermarket's stock / order forms. Heh...

Coming soon to a Philadelphia near you!

by: JayinPortland @ Tue May 26, 2009 at 01:23:16 AM UTC

by: you @ soon

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I agree with that (4.00 / 4)

a variety of whole foods. Yum! The book SuperfoodsRx has a list of 14 healthy foods as follows:
Blueberries
Beans
Oats
Pumpkin
Tomatoes
Oranges
Wild Salmon
Soy
Tea
Yogurt
Turkey
Spinach
Broccoli
Walnuts

He later adds more superfoods to his list like Avocado, Cinnamon, and Chocolate (provided it's 70% or more cacao). But after trying to eat his superfoods diet for a few mos when I first read the book several years ago i realized that a variety of mostly-plant based whole foods will always be good for you. No need to stick to a list.

"I can understand someone from Iowa promoting corn and soy, but we are not feeding the world, we are feeding animals and soft drink companies." - Jim Goodman

by: Jill Richardson @ Tue May 26, 2009 at 01:37:24 AM UTC

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My list isn't entirely fair (4.00 / 3)

but would include lamb's quarters, wild amaranth leaves, sheep sorrel, cattail shoots, wild lettuce and various wild mustards as well as under-appreciated fruits like highbush cranberries, nanny berries, mulberries, elderberries and choke cherries. I'd also throw in wild black walnuts and butternuts.

Despite these foods having considerably higher nutritional values than similar foods found in supermarkets, they would fare poorly in grocery stores because none of them have been bred for shipping durability.

I wish I knew half what the flock of them know
Of where all the berries and other things grow,
Cranberries in bogs and raspberries on top
Of the boulder-strewn mountain, and when they will crop.
--"Blueberries" by Robert Frost

by: wide eyed lib @ Tue May 26, 2009 at 04:17:05 AM UTC

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In all fairness to ADM (4.00 / 4)

they're a wetmiller. They don't actually produce food, they produce food and fuel components. So I wouldn't expect any of their products to show up an a list of foods, healthy or otherwise. Just like C&H Sugar. They don't produce food, they produce a food component - sugars of various types.

Now Dole, is a fruit distributor, I think they started out as a farm co-op? So of course someone heading that company is going to be more oriented to whole foods like the list the fellow from Dole endorsed. Just like, if you looked at my production, you wouldn't find any processed food, only whole, raw foods, produce, meats, milk, fruits, berries, etc.

The other companies like Kraft and General Mills are manufacturers, so it makes sense their products are going to be formulated in such a way that they'll be shelf stable.

My favorite/healthiest foods are just good old whole raw foods that I process into what ever dishes I feel like cooking/eating. I can make, from the whole foods, pretty much anything Kraft, GM, Pepsi or Coke can make, but I can make it in such a way that it doesn't have any of the additives those companies have to put in their products to make them shelf stable. Even for sodas, most beer/wine making suppliers sell the components to make your own soda pop. I think there is even a craft soda scene in Portland, not as big as the craft/home brew beer scene, but growing....

Regarding locavores as elitists - explain to me how supporting local business is elitist....

by: Joanne Rigutto @ Tue May 26, 2009 at 16:09:50 PM UTC

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Thanks for responding Joanne (4.00 / 3)

I mention ADM because they are the largest food company in the country... at least as far as total sales... do you think it's possible for them to move to a more localized model where shelf life and profits are not the only focus?

by: Curtis Abbey @ Wed May 27, 2009 at 00:51:12 AM UTC

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I wouldn't think so (4.00 / 3)

Asking ADM to move towards a more localized model would be like asking Alcoa Aluminum to only mine boxite locally or to mostly buy locally mined boxite. ADM is primarily a wet mill company. They take food crops like feild corn, and break it down chemically and mechanically into components - ethanol, corn oil, corn startch, etc., which is then sold to other companies that combine those products with other products. The closest thing to an actual food that ADM produces is oils from oilseeds, such as corn oil, canola, etc. Everything else is components for food, plastics and fuels.

Regarding locavores as elitists - explain to me how supporting local business is elitist....

by: Joanne Rigutto @ Fri May 29, 2009 at 00:25:32 AM UTC

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