By Cynthia Wolfe, agriculturalist and mom

I think it’s important to be thankful for the tremendous blessing of food that we have, not just on holidays but all days. I’m also thankful that it’s affordable! Well mostly it is, as we shall see. I have a degree in Agriculture Science and a healthy respect for farmers and ranchers who provide safe, affordable and abundant food.

By Amanda Hill

I consider myself pretty health conscious. Each week, my grocery cart is filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, whole grains and low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese. I like serving home-cooked meals made from fresh, flavorful ingredients. Cooking healthy food, for me, is a way to take care of my family.

Now that I have a little boy, it’s become my responsibility to teach him healthy eating, too. In the last few months, he’s started eating baby food and now that he finally has teeth, some table food.

By Gene Hall

Since I write on agriculture and food policy, I’m in a position to see a lot of nonsense that rolls down the road disguised as fact. It is both sad and amusing to see how the word “natural” is used by people who have no idea what it means. Then, there are those who know exactly what it means and mislead you—on purpose.

By Whit Weems

Open any magazine, turn on the radio or watch television and you will hear about GMOs, organically grown, all natural and other production methods versus conventional agriculture production.

As a beef cattle rancher, I choose to utilize conventional production practices for my herd.  Some of those management steps include giving vaccines to the cows and calves to help reduce the risk of illness which is very similar to the vaccines my family and I receive.

By Mike Barnett

So if food is labeled “natural,”  is the stuff I’ve been eating “unnatural?”

I admit I don’t always eat right but as far as I know the things I eat are just as “natural” as the products with that label on it.

I must admit I buy “natural” beef at times. But it’s always a function of price and how that particular steak lines up quality- and marbling-wise alongside its “unnatural” cousin.

Nonetheless, retail sales of food labeled “natural” totaled more than $40 billion over the last 12 months, according to Doane’s Agricultural Report, with a survey indicating that more than half of Americans look for “all natural products” when food shopping.