Babble

Strollerderby picked this up as well ..

http://www.salon.com/mwt/food/eat_drink/2007/01/30/annies/

I actually like the taste of annie's as cheap easy lunch options go... Don't make it all that often, but I like having a few boxes on hand. I'm now wondering if I should just buy the store brand stuff... i guess it seemed good to me that Annie's didn;'t use as many chemicals. Am i a dupe, or was that article over the top?

wow... great expose!

I do like the Annie's microwaveable stuff. It tastes better than Kraft (less mushy) and I usually throw in a handful or two of grated cheese, some butter and milk for creaminess. But I guess I'll continue with the Kroger Naturally Preferred for bigger batches!!

Or I could be a Good Mommie and buy macaroni in bulk and just do it all myself....

heh 

So is it not organic then, and only "natural"?  Or is it just not that different as a whole when compared to kraft?  It makes a difference to me if the nine ingredients are organic- milk,cheese,pasta,etc..   I really don't care that she made something before and made a gazillion dollars, or if she does it again,  She is entitled to make money after all.  

fortunecookies:

So is it not organic then, and only "natural"?  Or is it just not that different as a whole when compared to kraft?  It makes a difference to me if the nine ingredients are organic- milk,cheese,pasta,etc..   I really don't care that she made something before and made a gazillion dollars, or if she does it again,  She is entitled to make money after all.  

Well, there's a bit of this and that. Annie's Homegrown DOES make actually ORGANIC products, but if it's not labeled organic, it ain't organic. They also make "Natural" products, which means very little officially other than a lack of artificial coloring or flavoring (which is actually a big deal), but you have to actually seek out their organic products.

Here's their list of products on their website.

By their listing, they make Certified Organic Mac & Cheese (and it is available at several chain grocery stores, btw, along with the Totally Natural type), Certified Organic Canned Meals (I have never seen these....hmmm.....), and Simple Organic Skillet Meals.

One thing that they are trying to keep on the acceptable list for organic foods right now is annatto extract, which is a natural extract that is, according to the company, currently unavailable commercially in organic form. It would seem that the FDA is allowing them to keep the Certified Organic status for now even though they are using annatto extract in several products.

I personally don't like making mac & cheese from scratch because I simply am too lazy to stand there stirring a white sauce. And that is pathetic, because it's one of the easiest things in the world to make, really.

But Look! You can now buy your own organic white cheddar cheese powder in 1 lb. bags and make your own boxed mac & cheese! In this way you can side-step the whole Annie's "issue" (or non-issue, depending on how you look at it), and it will even cost you less in the long run. Also, Frontier is a good, solid company, and I have not ever heard a thing about them.

Go forth and eat more conscious-easing convenience/junk food! Or buy a box of Annie's organic. After all, she wasn't lying and saying the natural stuff WAS organic, and the organic option is there.

And remember, we all often think that organic always means "better for you," but it really just means "not grown with the use of pesticides."

Thanks for all that info and the links!  :)

My pleasure! It's fun for me, too!

Actually, I forgot to mention, Kraft has their own line of organic mac & cheese now. Only two of them don't have that pesky annatto that isn't organic in it, of course, and prolly only because they are white cheddar (no color needed, you see), but that's a pretty small thing, overall. So if you like Kraft better (and I do), you could try these.