Tips on Shopping Organically for Snacks at Whole Foods Market

Cookies, crackers, and juice.

All foods that my children, ages two, four, and six years, would happily snack on all day long.

Since my kids love these types of processed foods so much, I'm trying to make an effort to choose them in their healthiest forms. I frequently shop for our family's snacks at Whole Foods Market. Their 365 Everyday Value Organic line of snack foods are trans-fat free, and contain no artificial preservatives, sweeteners, colors or flavors, unlike many popular name-brand processed snack foods that you buy at your regular supermarket. They also pass the picky palates of my children, while not being as pricy as some namebrand treats.

The cinnamon graham crackers are big favorites in my house. Priced at $3.99 for a 14.4 ounce (oz.) box, this snack is one of the higher priced foods in this line. I think they are worth the money because they're similar in taste to the kind that I grew up on - the ones filled with hydrogenated oils - yet, they're not unhealthy. I like to top them with yogurt and fresh berries for a treat after dinner.

My kids love the honey graham bears, which cost $2.49 an 8 oz. bag. These bear-shaped cookies are made of organic wheat and graham flours, real vanilla extract, and organic honey. Before I knew about hydrogenated oils, I would buy Nabisco Teddy Grahams. At Netgrocer.com, Teddy Grahams cost $3.85 for a 10 oz. box and include the ingredients high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. They were very popular at our house. When I made the switch to the 365 Everyday Value Organic version, my oldest child did notice the difference and actually liked the Whole Foods kind better than the Teddy Grahams. The chocolate graham bears, also $2.49 for an 8 oz. bag, are even better, in my opinion, than their Grammy Bear competition. The Whole Foods version contains organic cocoa and, as a die-hard chocolate fan, satisfies my chocolate cravings.