Food products with market prices

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Introduction

A conscious, well-balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle, including physical activity, can help prevent diseases.^1,2,3

A core problem of our lifestyle is that all food should be available at all times. This demand leads to an oversupply of food, which in turn leads to a very high level of waste. A third of all food ends up unused in the garbage. In the EU, this results in a food loss of 180 kg per capita and year.⁴ In this context, it is important to also pay attention to one's own food waste, for example, by trying to buy and consume food consciously with good planning and organization.

The main focus of health-conscious consumers is on the natural functions of a food (the functional quality): that is, the presence of ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, bacterial cultures or unsaturated fatty acids. On the other hand, there is a focus on the service value (i.e., the convenience quality), for which the manufacturer uses food processing methods.

Unfortunately, the importance of material function (i.e., nutritional value) and health value (i.e., ability to prevent medical conditions)⁵ has increasingly forgotten. Thus, in western civilization, at least the people with a higher income, mostly eat for pleasure, not for health. For example, switching to a diet that is as natural as possible but varied and fully plant-based (vegan) has great health benefits if you know and take into account the needs of the body.⁶ In addition, this way of eating has ecological benefits. You can find further literature in the bibliography.^7,8,9,10

Be critical and, before you make your next purchase, acquire important basic knowledge about the products you have bought. In addition to possible preparation and shopping tips, we also provide information on origin and seasonal availability of foods. We also go deeper: In addition to the nutritional advantages and disadvantages, we report on the ecological aspects of food. In the German version you will find the prices for D-A-CH countries. This feature is not (yet) available in the English version for different countries.

With regard to disease prevention and because of the ecological urgency, it is very important to our foundation to provide objectively researched information, especially about health and about healthy and ecologically beneficial food.

How do I search for a food item?

You can search and find vegan foods, also called "ingredients (for recipes)" directly with the link below.

But first, let us explain the search options to you: If you are only looking for a specific ingredient, simply enter the first three letters, or more if the list turns out to be too long. As you can see below the search field, you can also filter or sort by various criteria (keyword: sorting according to health values). In this search window you will also find all the necessary explanations for your filter options. In addition, we provide various hints with "mouse-over" or clicking on your mobile phone.

Information about an ingredient

When you have found and selected a food (ingredient), you will be taken to an ingredient page which includes current food prices (only in the German version for D-A-CH countries available, additional information by clicking or mouse-over) and information about seasonality (if relevant). Below that we have placed a CLICK FOR with various nutrient tables. Usually it is followed by a detailed text about the food.

Here you can read details about our information structure on the ingredients.

Basic structure of information:

Right above the picture you will find basic information on the corresponding food or ingredient. From left to right, these include the water content, the percentage of macronutrients (carbohydrates, proteins and fats) and the ratio between the essential fatty acids linoleic acid (LA = omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA = omega-3).

Prices:

We list the prices only in the German versions for D-A-CH countries.

In the best cases, we list three prices for each of the individual countries (D-A-CH), i.e., market prices for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. We show long-term inexpensive offers, the normal price and the organic price, mostly standardized for 100 g or 100 ml (1 dl for liquids). If you are interested, click on the CLICK FOR for each country in order to be able to trace the numbers back over the years. In the case of exceptions, you will find explanations or you can view texts via pictograms.

Nutrient tables:

When you click on the CLICK FOR nutrient table under the food prices, you will find 7 tables with a list of the essential nutrients, including quantities and coverage of the daily requirement in percent (default is for 2000 kcal, i.e., for a woman). This applies to a consumption of 100 g (in the case of recipes, on the other hand, you can also see the nutritional values ​​per portion). These tables are described in more detail in the text "Nutrients explained in detail".

In addition, the details of the nutrients shown, with the exception of the first table, can be opened by clicking on the name.

Structure of the texts:

Although not for all ingredients, we offer extensive information on a large number of them. For a better reading experience and a contemporary presentation of this information, we are currently revising the structure of our ingredients. Detailed descriptions contain the following topics:

• Culinary use: Here we give examples of how the ingredient can be used in the kitchen, including tips and at least one healthy sample recipe.
• How to make: This section includes preparation methods, e.g., for sprouted ingredients, plant-based drinks, peanut butter, etc.
• Purchasing: Find out more about shopping over here. This section includes information on what to consider when buying (e.g., how do I recognize whether a mango is ripe?) and on seasonality.
• Growing wild: If there are wild collections of the food, either in our latitudes or in other parts of the world, then this section is included.
• Storage tips: We describe what needs to be considered when storing (including shelf life) and what preservation options are available (freezing, etc.).

In addition:

• Ingredients - Nutritional values - Calories: Here we list the well-known and most common nutrients in an ingredient. We compare these and other nutritional values ​​with other ingredients.
• Health effects: Provides an overview of the health aspects of the ingredient and backs them up with scientific studies. The section also discusses common rumors about Superfoods.
• Dangers - Intolerances - Side effects: This covers what people with certain diseases should be aware of. We also list ingredients that are toxic in high doses and refute false statements.
• Possibility of confusion: If confusion with poisonous plants or mushrooms etc. are possible, we list them here.
• Use as a medicinal plant: If the ingredient is used as a medicinal plant or in medicine, read about it here.
• Traditional medicine - Naturopathy: Here you get an insight into the effects of ingredients that have been used since antiquity, but are not included in "use as a medicinal plant", because it is based on knowledge transmission through non-medical population. We did not find any scientific studies that show any healing effects, but it does not mean that they don't work. Examples are: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and monastery medicine.

Also important to us, where applicable

• Ecological footprint: Where information is available, this section covers the CO₂ consumption, the water consumption, the area under cultivation in comparison with other ingredients and transport routes for imports out of season, etc. You can read more about the much-discussed topics of ecology and nutrition in the HP text "Basic knowledge".
• Animal protection - Species protection: This provides information on the benefits of the ingredient for pollinators (bees, etc.) or other plants and discusses the effects of pesticide use.
• Worldwide occurrence: Here you will find cultivation areas and possible gene centers (original occurrence).
• Cultivation - Harvest: This section includes, wherever possible, the distinction between organic cultivation and conventional cultivation and information on the local harvest time.
• Industrial production: This section is included in cases where we have information on industrial production of the ingredient.

More sections:

• Additional information: This section provides readers with brief information on general topics.
• Alternate names: Here we list other names that are used in different parts of the world.
• Bibliography: We list all sources used here transparently and strive to keep the texts as up-to-date as possible with new studies.

Comments:

Readers can post comments publicly (questions, comments, opinions, etc.). Wherever possible, we will respond to your questions and comments.

Vegan recipes:

Directly below the CLICK FOR Comments are vegan recipes that use the most of the ingredient discussed. You can read more about our vegan recipes in the text: Recipes with Ingredients.

Note: You can use the horizontal icon arrows to navigate between the posts (content).