by Wendy

They say an apple a day keeps the doctor away. Sweet and refreshing, they’re a healthy snack that is easy to eat at home or on the go. Nutrition wise, it’s low in calories and a good source in fiber and vitamin c. But sometimes apples start to brown too quick, forcing you to throw them away and waste money. Okanagan Specialty Fruits, a company dedicated to taking the tree fruit industry to the next level, has created a new breed of apples that solves this problem.

They’re called Arctic Apples. Using biotechnology, Okanagan Specialty Fruits has created a way to stop the enzymes in apples that cause brownness from triggering.  They’re raised and harvested the same way as all other apples. And keeping the fruit from browning helps retain some the antioxidants that are lost when bruising and browning does occur.

Arctic Apples are still under review with government regulators and should be available for purchase in the near future. In the meantime, here are some apple products you can purchase that don’t brown and are organic:

Bare Fruit Organic Fat Free Dried Cinnamon Apple Chips – lighted dusted with organic cinnamon; these baked organic apple chips are a great healthy snack that is low in calories, high in fiber and naturally sweet.

Organic Dried Apples – these dried apple rings are certified by CCOF and contain no additives or preservative.  They also make similar versions with other fruits. Enjoy and store them in fridge for up to 6 months.

Santa Cruz Organic Apple Sauce – Certified organic apple sauce packed in cute snack size containers, which make packing lunches a breeze

Cadia Organic Gravenstein Apple Juice – made from 100% organic Gravenstein apples from Somona County, California

How do you like to eat your apples?

****

Wendy Yu is a digital marketing professional living in New York City. When she’s not using the power of social media to share ideas on how to be more environmentally friendly, she is exploring the city, trying local foods, and learning more about how she can reduce her carbon footprint.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of Green Halloween® or our partners.

We had a great weekend at the Green Edmonds Festival! Not only was the weather perfect, but the vibe was great too – and we met so many wonderful visitors and vendors. Can’t wait for next year.

At the event, we had with us a display board of treat and treasure “alternatives” to conventional Halloween candy. As always, children and adults were excited to see some of the ideas we suggested and everyone wanted to know where they could be found.

While many Green Halloween suggested items are sold in natural food and/or craft stores, some require forethought or preparation, which is the subject of this post: now is the time to think about what you are going to hand out to your neighborhood trick-or-treaters. Waiting until the last minute means that you’ll pay more for products you may not feel so good about.

If you plan ahead, you can:

Make “treasures” that are low or no-cost, such as jokes, puzzles or fortunes (how about printing a bunch on recycled paper, cutting into strips and rolling up into little tubes secured with some orange and black wool yarn). Origami pumpkins might also be fun.

Save money by finding sales. For example, Sjaaks bite sized chocolate is organic, fair trade, shade grown and is sold in large or small tubs. If you order now there is still time to allow for shipping and you can save 15% by using the coupon code: GreenHalloween15. You may want to consider ordering with friends and neighbors – this way you can split the shipping and save even more.

Customize your goodies. How about ordering come temporary tattoos that say, “Happy Hallogreen from the Smith Family!” (of course, you’d want to enter your own name). Soy crayons, recycled content spinning tops, and recycled whistles are just some of the other fun treasures that can be ordered through Weisenbach Printing at www.recycledproducts.com.

For a list of dozens of healthy, healthy-er and eco-wise treats and treasures click here.

To see our featured products (from companies contributing a portion of their sales to Treeswing, our host organization), click here.

Items in photo:

• Recycled content stickers
• Soy crayons
• Organic, fair trade, herbal tea in kid-friendly flavor
• Clif Bar mini
• Larabar mini
• GleeGum mini
• Organic agave stick
• Repurposed confetti
• Organic chocolate