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Variety of whole and half multi colored beets
Fruits & Vegetables

All About Beets

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As part of fruits and veggies month, Thrive! is featuring fruit and veggies each week. This week the vegetable is beets - red, golden, Chioggia. A whopping ninety percent of adults and children don't get enough fruits and veggies, so add this one to your shopping list this week! HISTORY The beet comes from the wild sea beet, native to the Mediterranean and parts of the European and North African Atlantic coast. Only the leaves of the sea beet were eaten. The scientific name for the beet is beetroot or table beet also the sugar beet and the mangelwurzel. The…

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Laws & Regulations

How to Buy: 19 Food Labels You Need to Understand

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Food labeling has become an extremely big concern for consumers. In fact, an increasing number of consumers have been losing faith in food labels because of incorrect labeling and misleading terms. In particular, labels such as, organic, healthy, and natural are not always understood and can mean different things to different people, which can greatly impact the price of many foods. Many consumers confuse the term natural with a non-GMO product or an organic label with a product that is grown sustainably. Here are 19 of the top terms you might find on product packaging today so you can truly…

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blueberries
Fruits & Vegetables

Blueberries – 100 Years of Deliciousness

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Blueberry is one of the only foods that is truly naturally blue in color and it #1 in antioxidant health benefits As part of fruits and veggies month,  we are featuring fruit and veggies each week. This week the fruit is blueberries, my absolute favorite fruit out there. A whopping 90 percent of adults and children don't get enough fruits and veggies, so add this one to your shopping list this week! HISTORY Blueberries are native to North America, even though they still do have botanical relatives around the world. For thousands of years blueberries have been harvested by Native…

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Religious Dietary Practices

Ramadan: A Time for Fasting, A Time for Fast-Breaking

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It’s Ramadan, which is a time of fasting. This also means there are occasions for fast-breaking. While fasting lasts from sunrise to sunset, Iftar is the name of the communal meal breaking the fast and served after sunset. At the end of Ramadan, there is a three-day festival, Eid al-Fitr, where food is a celebrated religious and cultural experience. Whether you are planning a Ramadan-themed communal meal, a banquet, or a festival celebration, here are a few delicious foods commonly consumed for Ramadan fast-breaking.   Dates & Fruits: these are a very popular offering for the after sunset feasts because…

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Fruits & Vegetables

Great Grains – Corn to the Rescue

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As part of fruits and veggies month, Thrive! is featuring fruit and veggies each week. This week the veggie is corn, a surprisingly sweet treat and packed with nutrients. A whopping ninety percent of adults and children don't get enough fruits and veggies, so add this one to your shopping list this week! HISTORY Corn, or maize, is a grass native to Central and South America. It was most likely first cultivated in Mexico dating back to 5500 BC. Cultivation of the grain then spread North to New Mexico and South to Peru. Eventually, corn became an important staple food…

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Fruits & Vegetables

It’s Fruits & Veggies Month – Enjoy a Colorful, Crunchy, Healthful June

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It’s June. We are off to a delicious beginning to the summer. And we are celebrating Fresh Fruits & Veggies! June is Fresh Fruits and Veggies Month! The Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program (FFVP) is an initiative brought on by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) created to directly combat childhood obesity. The program has been wildly successful across the country. Schoolchildren in the U.S. have been able to sample a variety of fruits and vegetables in their schools with the purpose of helping to educate and inform children and their families about eating healthy, the variety of fruits…

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MeetingsNet Changemaker
Thrive! in the News

Tracy Stuckrath Named A 2016 Meetings Industry Changemaker

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I was recently honored and humbled to be named a 2016 Top Changemaker by Meetings Net Magazine. Wow! In the June 2016 issue, I’m named a changemaker for promoting awareness of food allergies and other dietary restrictions among meeting and event professionals. There are 20 other professionals named Top Changemakers for 2016 and I applaud their accomplishments, drive and passion for the meetings and event industry. While I know a few of the other honorees, the others I look forward to meeting. I’m proud of all the accomplishments of my peers and the advancements made across the meetings & events industry. May was…

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Fresh zucchini
Fruits & Vegetables

Zucchini – Vegetable of the Week

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To celebrate June as National Fresh Fruit & Vegetables Month, Thrive!, alongside the USDA, is promoting fresh fruits and vegetables. Ninety percent of adults and children don’t include enough fruits or vegetables in their diet. We also need to get more fruits and vegetables into meeting menus outside of the standard crudité. The first vegetable we're going to highlight this month is Zucchini. HISTORY The origin of the zucchini is not entirely clear. It was not widely eaten in Europe before the twentieth century and some sources say it was developed from the squash. Squash have been cultivated in Central America for more than…

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Peaches at the market
Food Allergies Fruits & Vegetables Recipes Things We Love

Peaches – Summer’s Sweet Bounty

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June is National Fresh Fruit & Vegetables Month. Thrive! is promoting fresh fruits and vegetables alongside the USDA to help focus attention on eating more fruits and veggies because 90% of adults and children don't include enough in their diet. The first fruit we are going to highlight this month is the fruit of my home state Georgia - the peach. HISTORY The Peach became first known in China where it got its start with the name “tao.” From China they spread to the rest of the world through the ancient silk route. The peach fruit belongs to the genus, Prunus;…

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