TINNED INGREDIENTS

[khp]

My partner and I have recently started the whole 30 diet, and I chose to start off with the salmon and sweet potato fish cakes.  I was very surprised that you use tinned products.  I chose to use fresh salmon and sweet potato and it was superb.  I noticed a few other tinned ingredients in some of the other recipes.  I do not use anything out of a tin - is it not more beneficial to use fresh? 

[Kbart64]

Fresh is always better.. absolutely.

But not always convenient!!  Some days you just dont have the time to shop for and prepare fresh.  Tinned is good for last minute.. but I wouldnt make a constant habit of using it.

Very important when using tinned products to read the labels.

Tinned foods are generally higher in sodium plus companies are sneaky with "added ingrediants"   Specially soy found in many cans of tuna fish.

 

[ShannonM816]

You can always use fresh instead of canned or frozen, that's your decision. Canned versions of fish or even vegetables that don't have added non-compliant ingredients are great options for people who want to be able to keep food on hand to use in a pinch, for instance if whatever they planned on eating for a meal went off faster than expected or was eaten by someone else in the house. Canned items may also be more cost effective for some people.

If you check the ingredients carefully to be sure there's nothing added that would make it non compliant, canned foods are good options, if you want to use them. The canning process itself doesn't significantly change the nutrition of the food being canned, although obviously adding salt or soy or sugar or other ingredients will.

[khp]

Thanks Shannon. 

 

[khp]

Thanks kbart64 - that is my opinion on canned foods too.  So many sneaky additives - I can understand that it is convenient and I am lucky enough to be able to buy fresh every day if I choose to. 

[slc_melissa]

If vegetables (or whatever) are canned right after they are picked ripe, vs. being picked early, stored somewhere to ripen more, then put on a boat and shipped from Chile to the U.S., put on a truck or train to be shipped to the interior of the U.S., then eventually put on a grocery store shelf, I think there are arguments to be made about "fresh" and "best."  Obviously everything depends on what's available locally, what's in season, where in the world you are, what your circumstances are, etc.

[khp]

I totally agree.  I was just surprised to see canned goods as the main ingredients.  I would have expected them to use fresh ingredients, and then say, "however, if you cannot get fresh, canned salmon/potatoes/tuna etc are acceptable to use".  Because of where I have lived and grown up, I have never seen canned sweet potatoes, for example. 

[SugarcubeOD]

39 minutes ago, khp said:

I totally agree.  I was just surprised to see canned goods as the main ingredients.  I would have expected them to use fresh ingredients, and then say, "however, if you cannot get fresh, canned salmon/potatoes/tuna etc are acceptable to use".  Because of where I have lived and grown up, I have never seen canned sweet potatoes, for example. 

I actually love that they default to things easily found for the majority of people such as canned fish... I don't personally use it because I am blessed to live on the West Coast of Canada where seafood is fresh and abundant, however food deserts and people with tight budgets may not have that access and I find the program more inclusive to say 'buy what you can afford' and instead of making the recipe 'fresh but tinned is acceptable' which could be considered exclusionary or derogatory to people without the access or funds, they write the recipe for tinned and then people who CAN sub up to fresh do and people who don't aren't writing on here saying that they 'had to use' tinned fish instead of fresh and potentially feeling judged or less than.

 

[laura_juggles]

As long as you look at the ingredients list (which you have to do on Whole30 anyway), there are no "sneaky additives". Because they have to list everything. 

There's also an affordability factor when looking at something like a canned salmon vs buying it fresh for something like the fish cakes. I will pass over a recipe calling for fresh salmon because I simply can't afford it. But I can buy canned salmon or tuna when it's on sale and hold onto it for when I want those fish cakes. 

"Canned is acceptable if you can't find fresh" really does come across as "sorry you're poor, but these probably won't be gross with canned" when you're looking for new recipes. 

[khp]

I disagree Laura - there are certainly sneaky additives in canned goods.  Canned is acceptable if you can't find fresh does not come across as "sorry you're poor".  I have lived in areas in Africa where all I could get were canned goods at certain times. I will choose fresh when and if I can get it. 

[khp]

Whoa - sorry everyone - I didn't realise I had touched a sore spot here.  My post was about not liking canned goods due to the additives and that in my opinion fresh is far better for you than canned.  I did not mean to start a debate about the affordability of goods.  I am doing the whole 30 for health reasons and do think that canned goods are not always that healthy.  Obviously wrong diet and site for me! My apologies I did not mean to offend anyone. 

[SugarcubeOD]

4 hours ago, khp said:

Whoa - sorry everyone - I didn't realise I had touched a sore spot here.  My post was about not liking canned goods due to the additives and that in my opinion fresh is far better for you than canned.  I did not mean to start a debate about the affordability of goods.  I am doing the whole 30 for health reasons and do think that canned goods are not always that healthy.  Obviously wrong diet and site for me! My apologies I did not mean to offend anyone. 

I don't think anyone was being harsh or mean, just a discussion.  If you personally do not feel comfortable using canned ingredients, then that's definitely okay, I only use canned tomato products and everything else is fresh and that's a choice I make.

Can you share what 'sneaky additives' would be in canned goods that would not be required to be on the label in the country you live in? In my experience, Canada, US, Australia/New Zealand and most European countries are required by law to list every ingredient that goes into a product, canned or jarred or packaged/bagged/boxed.

[slc_melissa]

Just because someone disagrees doesn’t mean they are offended. You asked “is it not more beneficial to use fresh?” And the answer is “It depends.” 

[khp]

Thanks slc_melissa.  I am interested in nutrition and would like to know more.  Could you elaborate on "it depends".  I have always been led to believe that fresh is more beneficial than canned due to additives and other issues.  I am really interested to know more about all this.  Thanks. 

[khp]

6 hours ago, SugarcubeOD said:

I don't think anyone was being harsh or mean, just a discussion.  If you personally do not feel comfortable using canned ingredients, then that's definitely okay, I only use canned tomato products and everything else is fresh and that's a choice I make.

Can you share what 'sneaky additives' would be in canned goods that would not be required to be on the label in the country you live in? In my experience, Canada, US, Australia/New Zealand and most European countries are required by law to list every ingredient that goes into a product, canned or jarred or packaged/bagged/boxed.

I am being too sensitive to peoples comments I guess - I thought others were upset and thought that I was saying they were "too poor" to get fresh over canned.  My error. :-)  I shouldn't have used the word sneaky when referring to additives, as yes, they do have to label what is in the can of goods.  In my experience there is usually added sodium and sugar in most cases - sometimes soy which for me personally is a no no.  I will still continue to choose fresh over canned, I guess it is a personal choice.  I was just interested to see that they used canned goods in the diet plan.  I have never experienced this in any diet plan I have followed in the past.  As I said in a previous response, I would like to know more about nutrition and this seems like a good place to find out more from people in the know. 

[laura_juggles]

Yes, often there will be additives, but they're listed in the ingredients. I made canned green beans with dinner last night and the ingredients were: green beans, water, sea salt. And that was a can of green beans that I got for $0.88 in Walmart. There's already salt in them, so I didn't add any salt when I warmed them up. There are also no salt varieties. 

Nutritionally, unless you're buying super local and none of those fresh fruits and vegetables have been stored and shipped, canned or flash frozen may actually be a better bet. https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/27/really-the-claim-fresh-produce-has-more-nutrients-than-canned/

[khp]

Thanks laura-juggles - very interesting.  I have been reading a few articles about canned v fresh - all very informative and interesting!  Thanks. 

[SugarcubeOD]

8 hours ago, khp said:

I am being too sensitive to peoples comments I guess - I thought others were upset and thought that I was saying they were "too poor" to get fresh over canned.  My error. :-)  I shouldn't have used the word sneaky when referring to additives, as yes, they do have to label what is in the can of goods.  In my experience there is usually added sodium and sugar in most cases - sometimes soy which for me personally is a no no.  I will still continue to choose fresh over canned, I guess it is a personal choice.  I was just interested to see that they used canned goods in the diet plan.  I have never experienced this in any diet plan I have followed in the past.  As I said in a previous response, I would like to know more about nutrition and this seems like a good place to find out more from people in the know. 

Thanks for coming back and explaining where the miscommunication was... we do like to have these discussions and everyone is from different backgrounds etc... so there can definitely be differing opinions.

Because canned food has the same nutritional value as fresh (or sometimes better depending on the item) as you've started to research, it's a great option for people on this plan... I think the other thing is that this isn't a diet or a 30 day once and done type thing... we want these eating habits and consideration of ingredients and the food that goes on your plate to stick with you so having canned/tinned options and more affordable and available options like canned makes it somewhat more sustainable than if those things weren't included.  Just another way we are different than 'a diet'... we care about your health long term and want to make the program as accessible to as many people as possible!!

I would highly recommend you get It Starts With Food out of your local library because the science behind this program and the nutrition is well layed out, easy to understand and really a key in taking control of your health/nutrition going forward.

[slc_melissa]

In addition to the info already posted above about fresh vs. canned, I was also taking "beneficial" in a broader sense of where something fits in your life.

Fresh salmon vs. canned salmon: Fresh is often not beneficial to my wallet and where I choose to spend my money, so I pick and choose when and how I'm going to eat fresh.

Fresh salmons vs canned salmon, time of year: If it's not actual fresh salmon season, the only available salmon is farmed (probably chemically dyed) where I'm at.  I'd rather do canned wild caught.

In the case of something like salmon cakes, fresh vs. canned salmon: Fresh is not beneficial to my time spent in the kitchen.  (Cook something to then actually cook another thing?  No thanks, not me right now.)

Personal preferences: If I buy fresh salmon, I'm going to eat the entire thing and not re-purposes leftovers, because it's so darn amazing and delicious.