The label seems clear enough. Your vitamin C supplement contains…vitamin C. But where, exactly, did it come from? How was it made? Unfortunately, many mainstream nutrition products contain nutrients that are fully manufactured in a lab. So that fresh, ripe orange you’re picturing when you chomp on a tart-tasting, chewable tablet? It’s probably not in there. Unless you choose MegaFood brand.
Fresh from farm to tablet
On a mission to provide authentic nourishment, MegaFood has been manufacturing supplements with real, whole foods for nearly 40 years. In order to create the highest-quality products, while also supporting the environment, MegaFood sources fresh produce from organic, family-owned farms across the U.S. for use in its many formulas.
Meet Uncle Matt
Tucked in a small commuter town just west of Orlando is Uncle Matt’s Organics, the nation’s largest and oldest organic orange juice company. MegaFood partnered up with Uncle Matt’s not just for the exceptional quality of their produce – which includes 15 varieties of citrus, blueberries, avocados, blackberries and peaches – but to their commitment to organic principles.
“Our number one priority is growing a nutrient-dense piece of fruit,” said Matt McLean, CEO of Uncle Matt’s Organics.
In order for that to happen, McLean explained, you have to have healthy trees. And healthy trees start with healthy soil. Uncle Matt’s Organics regularly performs both soil and leaf analyses to ensure the farm’s trees and plants are thriving. If not, various organic fertilizers, including compost, seaweed, rock dust and fish emulsion, are used to stimulate better growth.
This process, McClean noted, is quite different from today’s common farming standards, which are heavily production-based. Rather than focusing on nutrient quality, most growers focus on how many bushels of produce can be grown per acre. The result may be more food, but it’s food with a less nutrient-dense quality.
“We not only want production per acre, we want high-quality production and nutrient-dense quality per acre,” McClean said.
Transparency is key
MegaFood uses Uncle Matt’s citrus fruit any time vitamin C is used in a formula, such as in its Complex C, Ultra C-400 and multivitamins. Disclosing exactly where the ingredients come from creates a level of transparency that supplement users can count on.
“Being an organic grower, we’re very transparent about where our supplies come from and who our growers are,” McClean said. Uncle Matt’s Organics is thrilled that MegaFood also is passionate about honesty and sharing with customers what goes on behind the scenes.
Spreading the organic love
Improving supplement quality is a start. But for both MegaFood and Uncle Matt’s, supporting the efforts of organic farmers is a top priority. As part of their partnership, MegaFood contributes an annual royalty to organic growers. This January, the company donated $5,000 to Florida Organic Growers (FOG), a nonprofit organization and pioneer in the organic industry, on behalf of Uncle Matt’s Organics.
Tip: the best place to buy organic foods, supplements & snacks is at Vitacost.com!