The Ultimate Guide On How To Avoid Roundup Weed Killer In Your Food

The other day I got an email from another concerned mom, “What are we supposed to eat when all of our food is contaminated with Roundup??!!!”

She had just heard the news…

Earlier this week, a federal jury unanimously determined Roundup weed killer is responsible for causing cancer (1). In this case, Edwin Hardeman claimed Roundup exposure caused his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and the jury has yet to award damages. This follows an earlier case in which Monsanto was ordered to pay $289 million in damages to a California man after a jury found them liable for failing to warn that Roundup causes cancer (2).

Despite the risk – Roundup is the most widely used herbicide in the world. It continues to be used on food crops, parks, playgrounds, and by homeowners everywhere. It is now so rampant in our environment that it has been found in honey, cereals, meat, drinking water, breast milk, infant formula, chips, cookies, crackers, oatmeal… the list goes on.

So, it’s pretty scary when you realize you are probably eating Roundup every day. Most Americans are. You’ve likely seen news headlines like these…

“Roundup Weed Killer Chemical Found in Cheerios and Quaker Oats, Researchers Say”

“Carcinogenic pesticide found in Ben & Jerry’s ice cream”

“Weedkiller found in granola and crackers, internal FDA emails show”

“Oat cereals, snack bars test positive for trace amounts of weed killer in Roundup”

“FDA Finds Monsanto’s Weed Killer In U.S. Honey”

“Cheerios, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes and Doritos among products found to contain GM crops WEEDKILLER that has possible link to cancer”

“Monsanto’s Roundup Found in 75% of Air and Rain Samples”

“FDA Tests Confirm Oatmeal, Baby Foods Contain Residues of Monsanto Weed Killer”

“Traces Of Weed Killer Linked To Cancer Found In 95% Of Wine And Beer”

It’s true. Roundup weed killer has found its way into the majority of our food.

It’s maddening to find out Roundup weed killer was found in your daughter’s favorite cereal, your baby’s food, and in the ice cream you like to treat yourself with on Saturday nights.

I dedicated an entire chapter to this subject in my latest book, Feeding You Lies, because this has become a major issue. In this chapter I explain how this happened, what foods we know are contaminated, and how to protect yourself.

Thankfully, there are ways to greatly reduce your exposure to Roundup, and I summarized my top strategies for you below.

How to protect yourself and your family from Roundup in your food:

• Choose certified organic food. Roundup is prohibited on organic crops. Although contamination is a real threat, the levels found on organic foods are minimal compared to what’s been found on conventional foods. It’s been shown that people who eat organic foods have less glyphosate and fewer synthetic pesticides in their system. If you have any doubts that organic food has less Roundup in it – keep reading.

• Eat locally grown whole foods. This goes along with the first tip, after you choose organic, it’s even better if those organic foods are locally grown, “whole”, and unprocessed. Many ingredients that go into processed convenience foods travel long distances (sometimes internationally) and may come into contact with conventional ingredients along the supply chain, which can then contaminate those organic ingredients. Simply put, the greater amount of distance and processing those ingredients go through, the greater the risk of contamination.

• Shop at your local farmer’s market. This allows you to shake a farmer’s hand and ask them what types of chemicals they use. If they are not organic, ask them specifically if they use Roundup on any of their fields, at any time of year.

• Grow your own food. It’s not feasible for most of us to grow everything we eat, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start a garden. Choose a few items that you buy every week to start with. Love kale, spinach, and leafy greens? They’re easy to grow. Spend a lot on fresh basil? Herbs are some of the easiest things to start with and take very little room. Just start small and work your way up each year to more produce.

• Eat at home. Instead of going to a restaurant where you have no idea where the food comes from, it’s always safest to cook at home with organic ingredients you pick out yourself. Remember that even most farm-to-table and vegan restaurants are not using 100% organic ingredients – if any at all. Even better, cooking at home allows you to use organic produce you grew yourself.

• Use a high quality water filter at home. Roundup isn’t just in our food, it’s in our drinking water too. Instead of buying expensive bottles (which in many cases are just bottled tap water), invest in a water filter for your home that filters out pesticides like glyphosate.

• Stop buying Roundup to use in your yard. This is obvious, I know, but you’d be surprised how many people who buy organic and eat healthy are still buying Roundup for their yards because “it works”. You may think it’s okay because you are not eating it, but actually it doesn’t stay in your yard where you put it. It ends up in our groundwater, rainwater, and air – where it drifts into our environment. This is how organic food and water gets contaminated. Let’s not contribute to the problem.

• Ask your local parks and school boards to stop using Roundup. Inform them of the dangers and ask them to find safe alternatives. Team up with other concerned citizens in your area and consider starting a petition in your town. It’s going to take grassroots movements to get Roundup out of our communities as fast as possible.

How much Roundup is REALLY in organic food? Let’s look at the data…

You’ve probably heard organic food contains Roundup too, which is so disheartening. This is true to some extent, but has been overblown. I have gotten SO MANY emails about this, so I think you’ll be happy to hear that it’s not as bad as you may have heard.

For example, in 2018 the Environmental Working Group (EWG) tested popular oatmeal products for glyphosate and did not find ANY detectible levels in most of the organic products tested (3). Nature’s Path Organic Granola, Kashi Heart to Heart Organic Honey Toasted Cereal, Cascadian Farm Organic Harvest Berry Bars, 365 Organic Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats, and Simple Truth Organic Instant Oatmeal all came out clean (3).

In contrast, the EWG found glyphosate in EVERY non-organic product they tested. They detected glyphosate in only two organic brands – Nature’s Path Organic Old Fashioned Oats (at 30 ppb) and Bob’s Red Mill Organic Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (at 20 ppb) – which is negligible compared to how much glyphosate they found non-organic brands like Quaker Old Fashioned Oats (at 1300 ppb). EWG’s child-protective health benchmark for daily exposure to glyphosate in food is 160 ppb – and the organic foods all fall well below this range (3).

As you know, I don’t preach “the dose makes the poison” mantra, as I believe any amount of Roundup of our food is TOO MUCH – but based on the evidence I’ve seen so far, it looks like the vast majority of whole organic foods are not contaminated.

So, if you know anyone who is worried about all the Roundup being found in our food, please share this post with them. Isn’t it good to know there are ways for us to protect ourselves from this cancerous chemical?

Xo,

Vani

P.S. For a detailed analysis of where Roundup has been found in our food and its health risks, pick up a copy of Feeding You Lies. What do you think it will take to finally get Roundup banned? Tell me your opinion in the comments!

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