Roxanes raw food in stores, is it really raw?

[rawfoodmommy#1]

So i finally went to my WF store in Sacramento, CA and was excited to see Roxane raw food but when I looked at the ingredients I was disappointed.
1. She uses non raw ingredients, among these are maple sugar, maple syrup, some soy and nutritional yeast
2. The food is manufactured on the equipment that uses milk, shell fish, soy, and peanut product .
So I am really frustrated and upset but tell me am I being too strict or do you agree that if the product says raw then it should be truly raw?
I want to write to the company and ask them why they put a raw label if their food is not totally raw and why in a world would you make it on the equipment that gives a lot of people allergies and makes them sick.
Please, if you agree with me write your comments to Roxane.
Thank you

[FloridaPatty]

to confuse shoppers into buying their stuff. Same problem with organic products. It depends on what the law says and I'm betting right now there is no legal definition for "raw". But I would say I agree with you. Raw should be raw. Nothing else. Same for organic.

[Marin Mom]

I agree. I literally just finished the "Sesame Essential Cookies" and I don't feel that great, although I did feel really good up until this point. I noticed too that many of the products did have maple syrup listed as an ingredient. Right now my head is pounding. :(

Still I am curious and as the store (Andronicos in San Anselmo) is only three blocks from my house and Roxanne will be appearing there in person on Friday with her free samples I may give it one more chance.

[maui_butterfly]

you should go on friday and encourage her to be truthful with her advertising. i notice a lot of bars in the health food say 80% raw or 50% raw. that kind of voluntary honest labeling in the absence of laws around the "raw" label is very helpful for consumers.

[pan.droid]

RawFoodMommy,

It depends on how much you'd like to subscribe to the raw foods lifestyle...

I identify myself as an ardent raw foodist and have no interest in any processed "raw" foods.

For me, the point is absolute health and I don't see processed foods, of any kind, in that vision. I would also define the foods a raw foodist eats as being simultaneously: RAW, VEGAN, WHOLE (UNPROCESSED) and, of course, ORGANIC. The whole foods thing gets dropped a lot, but I consider it really important.

Do you have the blender, dehydrator, juicer, etc? In other words, what do you have for a setup? I am just wondering what your biggest obstacle is to making snacks, etc, on your own. Is it time, energy, money, etc? You don't have to answer, but there are workarounds for all of this stuff depending on the situation.

Peace,

Pan.Droid

[Vegan Princess]

I was excited to try them, but the lettuce in my sandwich was all wilted and I had a mini binge on the granola - which I attribute to the maple syrup. I didn't feel great after lunch either - lunch was the sandwich and a few bites of her dry granola. I didn't buy the ice cream b/c it has locust gum and I don't even know what that is. That said, Cafe Gratitude puts soy lecithin in a lot of their desserts and I still eat them on occassion.

I do agree - it's easy enough to make stuff at home and much more cost effective. But sometimes it's fun to know there are options out there. I just am not sure certain things package up well as fresh is always best.

Cindy

[wyjoz]

I didn't buy the ice cream b/c it has locust gum and I don't even know what that is.

heck this out: Locust bean gum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Locust bean gum is a galactomannan vegetable gum extracted from the seeds of the Carob tree. It is used as a thickener and gelling agent in food technology. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locust_bean_gum

Cindy

Many people associate """Locust""""" with grasshoppers and claim that's what John the Baptist ate in the wildrerness there fore it's o.k. to eat the 'little' critters. BUT BUT it's Carob Tree seeds extract ! Joz

[Vegan Princess]

I did know it wasn't bugs. LOL. :p And it said on the package "suitable for vegans". None of the other products say that so I'm guessing they were anticipating people thinking it had locusts in it. Eww, what a thought. I guess they need something in it to keep it from freezing too hard like most raw ice cream does when it's in the freezer for a while. I still doubt it's raw though.

Cindy

[Marin Mom]

Yep, got the whole set up at home and many of the things Roxanne had packaged I already make myself and love (like the pates). I laughed when I saw her $10.00 take out container with cut up celery and carrots with a little bit of her "cheeze" at the top (made with soaked cashews). I too like to stay as 100% raw as I can (except the occasional unintentional slip up like today).

Just wanted to see what else was out there that I could grab for a change without having to prepare it myself.

Cindy

[rawfoodmommy#1]

RawFoodMommy,

It depends on how much you'd like to subscribe to the raw foods lifestyle...

I identify myself as an ardent raw foodist and have no interest in any processed "raw" foods.

For me, the point is absolute health and I don't see processed foods, of any kind, in that vision. I would also define the foods a raw foodist eats as being simultaneously: RAW, VEGAN, WHOLE (UNPROCESSED) and, of course, ORGANIC. The whole foods thing gets dropped a lot, but I consider it really important.

Do you have the blender, dehydrator, juicer, etc? In other words, what do you have for a setup? I am just wondering what your biggest obstacle is to making snacks, etc, on your own. Is it time, energy, money, etc? You don't have to answer, but there are workarounds for all of this stuff depending on the situation.

Peace,

Pan.Droid

I like to stay 100% raw that's why i was disappointed when I saw the ingredients on her food. Yes, I have everything I need to make this kind of food at home. It's like others said I wanted to have an option of picking up some already made raw foods. But with such high prices I will stick with making it on my own.
Wanted to thank all of you for responding and giving your honest opinion.
And please, it is not my intentions to put her down or that kind of thing. I wish her all the best in her business.
I guess her food would be great for people who are not 100% raw or some one who is trying to eat healthier.

[Bonnie33]

I'm a frequent reader, infrequent poster, but I need to jump in here.

I live just a few minutes from where Roxanne's restaurant was and ate there a couple of times (very expensive but an incredible treat!). I was disappointed when it closed and continued to shop at her take-out shop until it, too, closed. So, I've been very excited about Roxanne's food hitting a store near me.

It's here and I'm disappointed. I was expecting some true entrees, not just small scoops of pates for $10. I also don't want to buy a very small container of nuts for $8. I was hoping for so much more. I frequently make things more exciting, interesting and better tasting. The fact that she is shipping things to stores rather than having them delivered made me question things before the food even arrived. That means nothing can be perishable. Also, I agree with the issues of ingredients not being raw. I guess it was too much to think that Roxanne would be truly catering to raw fooders -- the delivery process would be too tricky, the cost too high, market too small.

Still, I'm glad the good is there. I'll probably buy the cheese occasionally and hope there isn't any milk or meat in it from the processing (Sigh!).

Roxanne will be at our store on Friday and I'll try to leave work early to hear what she has to say. I don't really feel like I want to confront her with a lot of questions -- these are her production choices to make. She certainly knows she's compromising on what defines "raw." I feel a little edgy and don't trust myself to ask without my "edge" showing. I am interested in hearing whether she talks about the food being raw and whether there are other, more interesting things coming. Supposedly there will be 34 items in the line and so far I've only seen about a dozen at our store. Roxanne admits that she is now primarily raw, but no longer 100% -- also her choice and a change since she had the restaurant and said she was definitely 100%. These foods are a nice option for people who want to try raw -- or mostly raw. Although I do wonder if people who don't have a raw commitment will be willing to pay the prices.

Just my unhappy, disappointed input. I'll share more if I do make it to see Roxanne on Friday.

Bonnie

[Marin Mom]

I got to meet Roxanne at Andronicos (San Anselmo) last Friday at her sample table. There were some foods that were raw according to her (like trail mix and the "cheeze" with the cut up veggies) but when I questioned ingredients like the maple syrup on the other stuff, she admitted to it not being really raw but using it because it "rounded out the flavor". It was fun talking to her though and she was really nice (and patient with some of the oddballs at her table).

Still, it was obvious none of the other people around the table were raw foodies (one guy wouldn't try the trail mix because of the "red stuff" (goji berries) but there was genuine interest so she is getting the word out for healthier food. I think to expect more from our group would be a dissapointment but I would buy if I were stranded and hungry with no food in my bag.

Cindy

[DivaInTheRaw]

I bought a bunch of Roxanne's food and most of it was really good the first day, but didn't taste so good after that. I decided that I will continue to buy the crackers because I don't have a dehydrator and they tasted pretty good and I believe all of the ingredients are raw. But I don't think I'll buy anthing else.