'Vegetarian and other food and health related questions' Shopping

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Vegetarian and other food and health related questions

Greetings group,

Last year I spend a month with my partner in Montevideo, because after having read about it we would like to have some factual experience before making a decision to choose Uruguay as our country of residence. (we have lived in Europe, USA and Panama and are now in Mexico)

At the end of the month of our stay in Montevideo I was very doubtful, and we left with the question unanswered in the air. My main concerns were about the availability of healthy foods. I'm a vegetarian but also on a lactose free, gluten free, sugar free diet. Of course on top of that all needs to be low fat. That I cannot find the right choice in a restaurant is not really the problem. However, when I went shopping in the grocery stores often I did not find what I was looking for and if I did the cost was much more than I was used to. Compared to all the countries I have lived, the selection in Uruguay was the worst I have experienced and that got me worrying.

Now so many months later and living now in Mexico we still see the advantages of living in Uruguay and Montevideo, and I wonder if my negative impression from a year ago is now growing out of proportion.

So how would you consider the availability (at a reasonable price) of

- regular fresh (organic?)fruits and vegetables. (I just noticed a posting by Lee with price comparisons and based on that it is indeed acceptable)

- good quality coffee without added sugar

- cornflakes, oat bran and other serials

- specialty foods as flax seed, soy milk, almond milk, amaranth etc etc

- coconut oil for cooking

- all natural soaps, toothpaste, shampoo etc etc

- nutritional supplements as you might expect in a health food store

Look forward to read about your experiences.

Paulus

Coconut oil I haven't seen.

I use a coco soap for soap and shampoo. Natural thooth paste I order via the internet. Scent free laundry detergent is a tough one.

Flax seed, sesame seed, soy milk is not a problem.

Wheat bran is not a problem. Not sure about oat bran. USA Brand cereals will be very expensive.

Nutritional supplements very poor selection and you buy them at the pharmacy.

Gluten free... look at this website:

• Nutriciencia (Sin Gluten)

Can I ask where you're from? I don't know how your experiences have been in Mexico regarding these things, or which parts of Europe you lived in, but in my experience I have found that these types of products only become more widely available when a country reaches a certain level of development (and a therefore a higher average income!).

The cities of Uruguay may appear quite developed, but as far as I am aware (and from what Uruguayan friends tell me) the levels of income are still very low and so there simply is not much of a market for obscure health products.

There are a few small places where certain products are available, but if you expecting these products to be widely available and your move to Uruguay is dependent on that, then I would say that (for now) this may not be the place for you.

People certainly do no move to Uruguay for the ease of shopping or finding what you need - in fact that is one of the things I have found very irritating about living here (I just spent 3 weeks searching for jojoba oil, something I could find in 5 minutes at home in Ireland). But it is the laid back lifestyle, the relative security, the beautiful trees in the city and the beaches all along the coast that draw them in.

As for the specific products you listed.....

- the fruits and vegetables at the feria are fresh, locally grown in most cases, and to a large extent are naturally organic simply because farmers here cannot afford the complex pesticides and chemical fertilizers we have come to depend on in Europe and the US. But "organic" produce is a trend that hasn't really caught on here yet, although there are one or 2 small stores (with limited selection)

- coffee is notoriously bad in Uruguay, lets just say people who like coffee go to Mc Donalds! There is fresh coffee available in Disco as Glen said, and if the smell is anything to go by it is lovely. I know a friend who pays a ridiculous amount of money for good coffee every month...it IS available but not widely and you will pay a high price for it.

- they sell plain cornflakes, rolled oats, etc in the ferias. I couldn't guarantee their "organic" quality, but as I said above most things are organic simply by default if grown here in Uruguay (which most things are it would seem). As Glen said any cereals in the supermarkets are way overpriced, you're better off buying your own oats, dried fruits, seeds etc and making granola or muesli at home. Bambu on San Jose in Centro also sells alternative cereals and grains.

- almond milk and coconut milk I have heard are hard to come by....there are a few small specialty stores (similar to old school health food shops before they became "chic") like Singer on 18 de Julio, they stock all kinds of grains, seeds, spices, and stranger things like lecithin etc....if you planned to be a regular customer you may be able to ask them if they could order it in for you?

- natural soaps and supplements are lacking (in my opinion) - not in quantity but in quality! There are many stores that claim to be "homeopathic" but really all they sell is bad incense and a selection of teas, its strange. There's one store that sells essential oils and makes natural cosmetics - shampoos, lotions etc. Supplements are available the potency (and quality?) is questionable.

I'm sorry if this comes across as negative, it is in NO way intended to be so. I also come from a country and a household where these things are the norm (my mother was coeliac and had a macrobiotic diet for years, most of my family are lactose intolerant, and my house is filled with natural and alternative medicines). When I came here and realized that these things are just not available (or available but only at a higher price and usually from only one place) I found it very irritating. But that is part of life in Uruguay, you learn to adapt and find replacements. If you want to live here you will find a way to overcome the things that are lacking.

My local shop in Colonia Valdende stocks oat bran. Oata are grown in the ROU.

Patrick.

Thank you very much for the time you took to respond to my question. The answers were in line with my experiences and expectations and since you also included some questions for me let me follow up briefly;

My partner and I are both from the Netherlands. We are currently living at the Chapala Lakeside in Mexico. All the products that I mentioned in my initial posting are available in this area. But I have to agree that this is not your average Mexico. Here we have a small number of villages at the Chapala lake shore that are very popular with the American and Canadian retirees. (we have the second best climate in the world here!) So this means that there is enough potential to carry products that are often too expensive/exclusive for the Mexican population, but requested by the expat community.

So where we will find these products quite easily and in abundance in western Europe or the USA, in Panama and Mexico you will have to go to the areas where the wealthy people live. When we choose Montevideo I expected to find a city with offerings a little bit comparable with Panama City. That was in the health food sector clearly not the case.

Lee, you mentioned in your posting that your order by Internet. That raises another question and maybe I should make a new posting about that, but here it goes;

Can you mail order products from outside Uruguay/Mercosur by internet and have them shipped to your address in Uruguay? Are there import restrictions and import duties? Do you have postal home delivery?

An very interesting statement was in the last life of Elaine her posting: "If you want to live here you will find a way to overcome the things that are lacking."

I fully agree with you, and from experience I can confirm you that 'paradise' is not to be found on earth and you have to make some concessions. If a place is the right place for you, will depend on your preferences, priorities and expectations. Where I live in Mexico I can find all these wonderful foods, but nevertheless I'm considering Uruguay, because there is more in the mix than healthy foods!

Reading the responds to my question, but also many other postings I recognize that many experience a lack of availability of (affordable) products in Uruguay and that makes me wonder. These products are being produced at least outside of Uruguay, so why is so little imported. Does this mean that import duties and restrictions makes it almost impossible or is it just the lack of real market potential that stores decide to carry only what sells quickly and easily to the mass market? I'm now going to brew a delicious cup of Mexican Oaxaca coffee and give this all some serious thought.

More questions surely will pop up and these will be posted with their own heading soon.

Paulus

Can you mail order products from outside Uruguay/Mercosur by internet and have them shipped to your address in Uruguay? Are there import restrictions and import duties? Do you have postal home delivery?

Yes, Yes and Yes.

I get most of my stuff sent by U.S. First Class Mail, Priority mail as a second choice. It is often delivered to my house without hassle. Sometimes I have to go to the Post office to pick it up. (possible 3 different post offices). Sometimes I have to deal with customs. Sometimes that means: 1) nothing, 2) paying tax (at an office 10 blocks away), or 3) seeing a customs broker and a big hassle.

I have never had a postal service package lost. Usually takes 1-2 weeks. Though its been as long as almost 3 months.

Tip: small packages.

DHL has always resulted in a high payment of taxes and fees.

Others have said they have good luck with FedEx.

Sometimes stuff people are looking for is here, but we don't know what to call it, or where to look. For example Colloidal Silver is available in every Pharmacy... just ask for "Colargentol Gotas". I don't think from an "N. American" perspective we think to look in a pharmacy for "health" items.

In keeping with this topic however I will definitely say that Uruguay is NOT like Panama, or like any other country that commonly attracts expats for that matter.

The expat community is very small in Uruguay, and to a large extent well integrated with Uruguayans. So the fact that people here adapt themselves much more than in other expat-oriented locations, combined with the fact that Uruguay has a very small population (and therefore a very small market) makes the availability of luxury or alternative goods thin on the ground.

There are many ways to eat healthy in Uruguay if you buy fresh and cook for yourself. In fact I find it much easier to live and eat healthy here than I did when I was in the US! After a little while "settling in" you will eventually locate about 90% of all the things you are seeking, there's always one or two things people still miss but the rest fade away and you realize there are alternatives or you can live without them.

And Uruguayans in general are very friendly toward and intrigued by foreigners living here. There isn't a "take advantage of the gringo" attitude like in many other places. As such if you become a regular visitor to certain health food stores or certain stands in the street markets (ferias) people will often go out of their way to try to accommodate you and find whatever products you are looking for

• ORDERING ONLINE TO URUGUAY

The colloidal silver example is of special interest. It is a common product in Mexico. When I buy fruits of vegetables I always put them in a bath with a few drops of Microdyn (colloidal silver concentrate, inexpensive and very effective!) to make sure that they are completely 'clean'.

Do you have the habit of cleaning your fruits and vegetables with a special bacterial killer or do you just wash them with tap water?

Beside cleaning your fruits and vegetables, colloidal silver is also very effective in the current or upcoming flu season. But I will make a separate lead about the upcoming WHO-planned and hyped H1N1-flu and its (forced?) vaccinations.

Paulus

Pardon me dropping in on this thread so late.

Like Lee said, Nutriciencia is a good source for the wheat free (gluten free) dietary items. I'm sensitive to corn and my wife is sensitive to wheat. I'm the cook, so I have to really watch what we buy to make sure I keep us both on track. One problem for us with Nutriciencia is that they have a lot of corn starch in their wheat free items. We buy a lot of stuff from Nutriciencia for my wife.

We use El Naranjo for a lot of our whole grain purchases. They have two locations and one is a 4 block walk from our place. (They have a website that has been under construction for years, so it is useless. But you might ask them questions by email at elnaranjo@adinet.com.uy)

I cook a lot of fresh veggies and they are plentiful year-round. During certain seasons (or after flooding or droughts) some prices will be high. But you can see from the price listings from this site that there is ample variety.

Uruguay is a great rice producer/exporter so it does not cost very much and is always plentiful.

Meats, fish, cheeses, and eggs are plentiful (I don't know that part of your dietary program) and so there is a wide variation in healthy food you can prepare and eat.

I make a habit of bringing from USA those spices I cannot get here, such as chili powder, curry powder, powdered sage, and cumin. You can get them here, but the quality is not very good and/or the cost is unreasonable. Other herbs are locally produced and of very good quality.

I also bring from USA other supplies that I want to use that are not yet offered here (such as nano silver).

There are some health/wellness practitioners here who understand and work with sensitivities and intolerances, so it is possible to maintain a healthy lifestyle here.

I forgot to add one more thing:

There is a little organic produce stand that has a few natural products for personal hygiene and household cleaning. They also have organic fruits and vegetables for sale. Oh, and they have organic honey dulces.

I'll post their website URL so you can check out their offerings. In the fresh food section they have two prices (members and non-members). If you like what they have you can get the discounted price by maintaining membership.

Also they deliver to your home.

• Eco Tiendas

Its a good way to see what is easily available....

I've been tackling finding the health food stores here and more hard to find products like spirulina, natural soap without all the intense perfumes, nutritional yeast, etc.

I've decided to organize everything related to this on a blog - called The Natural Expat.

I'm just getting started with it, but hope to organize some useful information for people into these sorts of things.

If you live in Montevideo, it would be cool to share our tips and help each other find all the specialty foods.

Jen

Expert Page: Quick Tips for Getting Settled in Uruguay

Expert Page: Quick Tips for Getting Settled in Uruguay

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