Desperately Seeking Organic Food in Castle Rock

My husband and I moved from Littleton to Castle Rock, Colorado three years ago. We absolutely love the town but during the winter and early spring we find ourselves back in Littleton twice a week to buy fresh organic produce. I am deeply envious of the large Vitamin Cottage that recently opened in Parker and we often go there to stock up on their non-limp produce.

But the more I learn about developing a sustainable life the more I become convinced at how ridiculous it is that we drive 15-20 miles each way to buy organic produce and antibiotic free meats. However, I am not willing to give up organic food to eat from my local grocery store just to save on my petroleum use.

One may argue that large local chains offer more organic foods than ever before. I agree, they offer more foods with the organic label; however, the strict guidelines for organic labeling are continuously being lowered thanks to the powerful influence of conventional food lobbies. This dilution of the organic label allows more companies to affordably get into the game but it means the consumers are left with less healthy foods. Organic labels are quickly becoming meaningless.

To try and avoid this dilution, I try to only buy from companies who have been in the business a long time and who have higher standards for their organic food quality than the government imposes. I tend to think that companies who only offer organic products and who have been in the industry for a long time have higher quality standards. I will share information about these companies as I research them further. So while large grocery stores do have more "organic" food, I rate those products as better than conventional but by what margin? I do not yet know. Whole food nutritionists urge us to eat locally grown organic foods for optimal nutrient content and minimal adverse earth impact.

Eating locally grown organic foods is challenging to do when you live in states with long winters. Our short growing season in Colorado and seasonal farmer's markets also makes it challenging to eat locally. So the winter and early spring months find me making my bi-weekly trek to larger suburbs to forage for the healthiest food available. Meanwhile I hope for and lobby for a small natural foods grocery like Vitamin Cottage or Wild Oats to take root in fast-growing town of Castle Rock.