Organic fruit & veg

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Dave H
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Organic fruit & veg

Post by Dave H » Mon Jun 17, 2019 10:44 am

Does the fruit & veg HAVE TO be organic?

Or can it be washed well enough/cooked?

What about tinned produce, like mushy peas, sweetcorn, etc

Icearstorm
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by Icearstorm » Mon Jun 17, 2019 6:31 pm

Dave H

It doesn't have to be organic. Contrary to popular belief, organic producers can still use some pesticides, and natural doesn't necessarily mean good (botulism is natural, but that doesn't mean I want to eat something contaminated with it). It's really unclear if there's any health or environmental benefits to organic, and if there are, it probably depends on what method of organic farming is being used.

I'm not sure how you would get pesticides off; I've heard that some plants only have them on the outside, while others have them all over. But washing debris off the plants is probably a good idea. Cooking will reduce the chance of contamination, but some nutrients may be destroyed or leech out (so don't boil, as nutrients will go into the water). Cooked food may also go bad faster in some cases. However, cooking can make some foods more digestible, and therefore more nutritious. It may break down certain pesticides, but I don't know much about this.

I don't know about canned food. Some is salted, which isn't great for birds since they can't choose not to eat the salt on the food. I'm not sure about unsalted canned veggies either. I use frozen or fresh vegetables, and store them all in the freezer so they stay good.

paul-inAZ
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by paul-inAZ » Mon Jun 17, 2019 8:24 pm

Agree with Dave.
I rarely buy organic for the sake of the organic label. There is insufficient hard data on health benefits to justify doing so.
I do wash things.

And the word "natural" is one of my pet peeves. That word is a purely marketing ploy with no legal definition when it comes to foods. Sheeple think it means sort-of-organic. Bosh. There are countless 'natural' things including potentially fatal toxins and infectious agents.

wildbird
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by wildbird » Mon Jun 17, 2019 10:43 pm

I buy organic USDA, produce of the USA only for the birds. If it doesn't have USDA on the label, they can use certain pesticides. GMO produce has been genetically altered and the pesticide is infused right inside the plant, so it can't be washed off. When you eat a GMO product, you are eating the pesticide. Earthfare sells frozen vegetables from the USA, organic and non-GMO. The cans that vegetables come in contain a toxic chemical and the vegetables have been cooked. Anything labeled "natural" has nothing to do with organic and could be anything.

Dave H
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by Dave H » Tue Jun 18, 2019 2:25 pm

As per the frozen veg, do you defrost a bit at a time & then refridgerate it, or defrost just enough to give them each time?

Thanks for your replies & the advice

wildbird
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by wildbird » Tue Jun 18, 2019 11:58 pm

I cook just the amount to feed them at the time of feeding. Only for 5 or 6 minutes simmer after it comes to a boil. Then I drain it, put the vegetables on a cold surface for awhile. It has to be cooled before feeding or it could burn their crop. While it is cooling, I shred the carrot and dice the apple. When you are sure the veggies are cool, mix with carrot and apple in a small saucer and place on the floor of the cage.

Icearstorm
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by Icearstorm » Wed Jun 19, 2019 8:24 pm

Dave H

I'm lazy so I take the softfood for the day out of the freezer, put it in a ceramic dish, then pop it in the microwave for 11 seconds if I serve it right away. I hate cooking and there's no way I'm doing that every day, so everything gets prepped once every few months and stored for later.


And I just realized there's more than one Dave and now I'm confused.

Dave H
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by Dave H » Thu Jun 20, 2019 2:51 am

Cooking? Whats that?? haha
Yea, me too. Ive got a load of them microwave steam veg packs so they'll do for now until I find what they prefer. I supose as long as they're getting SOME form of veg, it should be good. Tried them on cauliflower leaves last night & they jumped on em. Seemed to be more interested in the stalk though :?
I hope thats alright for em

wildbird
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Re: Organic fruit & veg

Post by wildbird » Thu Jun 20, 2019 11:33 pm

Be sure that any you give them is well rinsed off because it probably has pesticide on it. I don't cook it every day. I keep the veggies in the refrigerator for four days. I don't use a microwave for anything as I don't want my food radiated. Also, with birds, it would be easy to burn a crop since the food is heated from the inside out.

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