9/25/12

Organic produce usually costs more, but it doesn't mean you can't save on pesticide-free fruits and veggies -- just shop differently. The best thing to do is shop later in the day. Since produce -- conventional or organic -- is perishable, supermarkets often mark down prices in the evening, when foot traffic is slowest. If you time your visits right, you can save up to 75 percent on your bill.

9/24/12

Here's a simple way to clean up a dirty secret in the shower: Choose bar soap over body wash. Liquid body washes are packaged in plastic bottles that -- even if they are recycled -- are made from petroleum sources. Bar soap is usually minimally packaged in paper. The No. 1 ingredient in body wash is water, which adds significant weight to the package, which requires more fuel to ship from factory to store. Even if the body wash is an all-natural or organic brand, bar soap has it beat as the greenest choice.

9/23/2012

Always Buy Organic: potatoes. America's favorite vegetables have been found to contain up to 35 different pesticides. Since pesticides are sprayed on the ground, they can seep into the earth over time -- directly where potatoes are growing. More crops mean more chemicals building up in the soil. If you can't find organic potatoes, look for sweet potatoes -- they are grown with significantly fewer chemicals because they are naturally more resistant to insects and crop disease.