I get an online newsletter from “The Green Smoothie Girl” (aka Robyn Openshaw) that usually focuses on the power of greens and how to use them. Today, though, Robyn’s information was on nuts. RAW almonds, to be exact.

We all know raw nuts are far more nutritious than processed. But what you might not know (I certainly didn’t) is that food manufacturers can legally say their nuts are raw, when in fact they aren’t.

Take Costco’s big bag of “raw” almonds, for instance. They’re always such a good buy, compared to the grocery store option. But here’s the deal: Even though the label says “raw,” they’re not. They’ve been flash pasteurized. In the retail grocery world, when it comes to nuts, “raw” just means “not roasted.”

The almonds you buy in a store are ALL heat-treated, and chemically fumigated. Why does it matter, you ask? Why go to the extra effort and expense to have fresh, non-fumigated, non-pasteurized nuts?

It’s all about high vibration. I know that term sounds a little hippie-ish—something a fanatical foodie might spout. But “high vibration” simply refers to available energy foods have to offer.

For instance, even though yummy, a deep-fried Twinkie is extremely low vibrational, offering no energy whatsoever. A bowl of salad greens mixed with all sorts of fresh veggies is off the charts, vibrationally. The energy raw foods offer provides the body with live enzymes and buckets of antioxidants—health promoting factors!

The fact is, if you want high vibration in your food, sustainable energy, and optimal health...you don’t want to heat your food above 116 degrees. So when nuts are pasteurized (by law today this is heat treatment above 130 degrees), you know every good health benefit they started out with has been destroyed.

In her newsletter, Robyn says “I’m passionate about teaching people to eat more nutrient-dense, raw plant foods. It’s frustrating that our government wants to pasteurize, irradiate, and fumigate everything with damaging chemicals and radioactive frequencies.”

I’m with Robyn. It makes me nuts (pardon the pun) that it’s perfectly legal for food manufacturers to sell genetically modified, chemically sprayed, processed food to adults and children everywhere.

Thank goodness, however, that there are a few almond growers who will reserve a portion of their commercial crop for those that want unprocessed, non-pasteurized nuts. This is the time of year to find these non-heat-treated nuts.

One example is Heron Fox Farm. I found them by googling “almond growers who sell unpasteurized nuts.”

And Sunfood is another company we can turn to. There are a number of growers to choose from. But now is the time to be looking. And as you look, you will notice the unpasteurized almond can run anywhere from $12 to $14 dollars a pound. But I always have the same response: “What’s your health worth?”

I’ll get off this soapbox by closing with one last thought. Besides their high vibration (high energy level), another reason you want to find unpasteurized almonds is because you can sprout them. They’re sproutable because they’re a live food. And this is a VERY important feature. Once sprouted, a raw nut goes from being a high-in-nutrition food to an incredible SUPERFOOD!

So let’s seriously consider ordering some unpasteurized almonds this month. Oh, and here’s an idea from Robyn: Make nut milk. Just soak your almonds and water and blend. You now have a non-dairy, anti-inflammatory topping for your granola or oatmeal that’s loaded with dozens of amazing nutrients.