Natural Cereals That Aren't

Grape Nuts and Post's "Natural Advantage Line"

Grape Nuts may carry that crunchy, earthy image—and food industry giant Post did form the "Post Natural Advantage Line," including Grape Nuts, Shredded Wheat, and Raisin Bran—but the conventional ingredients used in these cereals are still grown with chemical pesticides, and USDA data shows that wheat is often contaminated with residues of malathion, chlorpyrifos methyl, and chlorpyrifos, toxic bug-killing chemicals that could harm neurological development. "They are 'natural' only in the sense that they do not appear to contain artificial preservatives," explains Vallaeys. "But the ingredients are conventional ingredients, from crops grown on conventional farms which can use toxic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, genetically engineered crops, and a whole host of other inputs that are strictly prohibited on farms growing crops for organic cereal." For that reason, Post landed rock bottom on the Cornucopia Institute's Cereal Scorecard.

Organic Alternative: Cascadian Farm Organic Raisin Bran