Letters to the Editor

PCC replies: Thank you for your suggestions on including more products using Einkorn wheat, which the Whole Grains Council says is “generally thought to be the most ancient of wheat varieties available today,” higher in protein, phosphorus, potassium and beta-carotene than most modern wheats. We agree and are actively looking for more wholesome grain options to use in our bakery products and for more ways to include such products in our prepared foods.

PCC replies: Thank you for writing in with this information and providing more great resources for community recycling. While Ridwell is a fee-based service and we understand the barriers that can pose, PCC members do receive 10% off Ridwell’s membership fee—click here for details on that partnership. Note that King County requires customers at Bow Lake Recycling Center to show proof they live or do business within King County’s 37-city and unincorporated service area, which excludes the cities of Seattle and Milton. Again, thank you for providing information on more recycling resources. 

PCC replies: Thank you for asking about monosodium glutamate (MSG) in nutritional yeast. To respond briefly, MSG is not an added ingredient in PCC’s nutritional yeast offerings, therefore you will not find it listed on the ingredient label. However, individuals who are sensitive to glutamate products may opt to avoid nutritional yeast due to the inevitable presence of glutamic acid. 

For a broader look at the issue and its background, nutritional yeast has gained significant popularity among vegan and plant-based diets, because, as the name suggests, it has nutritional value. It also serves as a good replacement for cheese, because it contains naturally occurring glutamate, an amino acid that gives cheese and other foods, their umami flavor. MSG is the salt form of glutamate and used to give foods without natural glutamate additional flavor and depth. While nutritional yeast does contain sodium as well as glutamate, it will not have MSG identified as an ingredient unless it is intentionally added to the final product. 

MSG was discovered in the early 1900s by a Japanese biochemist who sought to understand where the savory, or umami flavor, came from in certain foods. The concern around MSG in America stems from a letter submitted by a doctor to the New England Journal of Medicine in 1968, who described feelings of weakness, numbness, and heart palpitations after eating at a Chinese restaurant (leading to the term “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome”). During the 1970s and 1980s a number of studies were conducted on MSG, many of which have now been discredited as scientifically flawed. MSG is now recognized as safe among national and international health agencies; however, xenophobia and discrimination have contributed to the perpetuation of the myth that MSG, associated with Asian foods, is unsafe or unhealthy. Some individuals may have a mild reaction to MSG, or glutamate, but studies have found these symptoms only present at extremely high doses and without any other food.

PCC allows MSG in food products, as long as it is either organic or non-GMO verified, since it is widely recognized as safe for the majority of individuals. We always recommend that our shoppers choose the products they feel comfortable eating and to consult a doctor for health advice.

We appreciate your question and the opportunity to share this information.

PCC responds: Thank you for writing in with your question about the chocolate chips in PCC’s cookies. We have used high-grade Guittard brand chocolate chips for decades, with no change over that span of time. These are most certainly made of real chocolate. Recently, due to supply chain issues, our supplier has substituted a smaller chip (about half the size of our usual chip). However, the formula for the chips is exactly the same. 

We are not certain what may have caused that different reaction when melting the chips, but can assure you that if you try our cookies again you will be enjoying high-quality real chocolate chips.

PCC replies: Thanks for writing in with your questions about the PCC milk being used to make yogurt. PCC milk is the same as Organic Valley’s milk. We have a partnership where Organic Valley packages their milk in our private label cartons, so we were surprised to hear that you saw differences between the two. It’s possible that you used the PCC milk at a seasonally transitional time when the milk composition didn’t respond to the culture in the yogurt in the same way. Milk is actually quite a seasonal product, changing significantly with the temperature and with which foods are available to the cows.

When looking at the A2 milk, assuming the brand is Alexandre’s, the difference there could be that the A2 milk is vat-pasteurized, while the milk in the Organic Valley and PCC cartons is HTST (High Temp Short Term) pasteurized. The vat-pasteurizing technique is the gentlest form of pasteurization which may have positive effects on the yogurt making process. We hope this information proves helpful; please let us know if you have any other questions.

PCC replies: Thank you for writing about how best to dispose of PCC egg cartons.  

The City of Seattle recommends composting paper egg cartons because they “are not a highly valuable recyclable,” according to its website. It advises that it is OK to leave paper stickers on compostable food packaging, but plastic stickers or labels must be removed before the packaging goes in the compost cart.

For future reference, the disposal guide for all our PCC packaging will give you some good direction. Thank you for taking care to dispose of packaging properly!

PCC replies: Thank you for sharing this information and providing ways that individuals can make a difference.