What is living food?

Discover the living food that is at the heart of our activity.

Living food involves consuming foods derived from the plant kingdom without subjecting them to cooking at temperatures higher than body temperature. By definition, these foods are in their most natural form possible, raw and organic. They are prepared with gentle techniques: sprouting, soaking, lacto-fermentation, low-temperature dehydration.

Living food offers gentle transformation methods:

• low-speed juice extraction
• mixing
• low-temperature dehydration
• vacuum marinades
• freeze-drying (cold dehydration)

As well as methods that involve living organisms:

• lactofermentation
• germination

Living food, or "eating living," gets its name from the fact that the foods remain alive on your plate. Sprouted seeds and young shoots continue to grow, fresh vegetables and fruits are raw, filled with colors, and lacto-fermented preparations continue to evolve...

What is living food ? We will explore what living food is, where it comes from, what living foods are, which foods are considered living, and how it is possible to gradually integrate it into your daily life while respecting your beliefs and needs. Without ideology or dogmatism.

Eating raw: what it changes at the table

For me, eating raw is first of all colors, crunchy textures and bold flavors.

Eating mostly raw foods is like discovering a new continent, with vibrant colors, forgotten foods, and age-old unconscious habits to abandon in favor of new ones. This can all be done daily with pleasure, without deprivation.

What are the origins of raw foodism ?

A long time ago, men and women were nomads in the tropics, moving with the seasons and harvests in search of their food; it was the era of hunter-gatherers. The domestication of fire, the shift to a sedentary lifestyle, and the practice of agriculture allowed various civilizations to conquer territories located in increasingly colder latitudes, relying on increasingly sophisticated dwellings. Foods that were initially survival foods, festive foods, or transitional foods between seasons became daily and regular, to the detriment of foods available directly without processing, which were relegated to a secondary category or used as culinary decoration.

Watch our episode on raw food:

What are the origins of raw foodism ? Where does this movement of living food come from? We will go back 2000 years to the Essenes to trace it up to the pioneers of the modern era, Ann Wigmore, Viktoras Kulvinskas, and Cherie Soria, who have truly revived the ancient wisdom of this type of diet in a modern form.

Since the end of World War II, the way of life and food production have radically changed in terms of quality, with the massive spread of chemical use, leading to a diet based on highly processed industrial products. Living food has become a mode of consumption experiencing unprecedented growth in recent years in France.

What are living foods ?

Living foods are raw foods or gently processed foods, without pasteurization or strong cooking. In other words, these are raw foods, such as:

• fresh fruits

• raw vegetables

• seaweed

• mushrooms

• nut

• seeds

And it is also a gently processed food without the use of heat higher than body temperature:

• dehydrated vegetable wraps at 43°C

• salads

• lacto-fermented vegetables

• vegetable juice

• raw cakes

• crackers

"The early 20th-century work of Dr. Edward Howell, summarized in his book" Enzyme Nutrition, argue that foods contain the enzymes necessary for their own digestion when consumed raw. These enzymes, which are fragile and denatured by heat, would, according to him, transform the "macrobricks," or macronutrients, of these same foods:

• lipids

• proteins

• sugars or complex carbohydrates

"microbricks," or micronutrients:

• fatty acids

• amino acids

• simple sugars

Dr. Howell's hypothesis remains debated and does not allow a health effect to be attributed to these foods.

Which preparations does living food favor ?

Living food favors organic foods in their original form or lightly processed, using gentle methods such as sprouting, soaking, lacto-fermentation, low-speed juice extraction, and cold blending.

What living food changes day to day

1. A closer relationship with what we put into our bodies The colors, flavors, and textures are part of a much broader palette than in conventional food; all the senses are nourished and satisfied with living food.

2. Simplicity: preparations without cooking, using simple gestures.

3. Food autonomy: A good number of raw organic products can be easily stored for several months. It is possible to vacuum seal them with a quick and simple system for daily use, such as the Bocup.

• gluten-free seeds: sunflower, flax, buckwheat

• low-temperature dried seaweed

• nut

• dehydrated nori sheets

• sprouting seeds

The rest of the fruits and vegetables can be easily purchased as needed.

4. Speed of recipes The example characteristics could be the raw hot soup that can be made in less than 5 minutes, whereas it takes at least 25 minutes for a cooked soup.

5. The creativity of the recipes : since there is no cooking involved, it is easy to replace or substitute a food item or an ingredient.

6. You no longer burn yourself and the dishes do not get cold. : some preparations can also be eaten hot, such as raw pizzas and hot soups, in order to maintain that comforting aspect, especially in winter.

Does a raw food diet present a danger ?

Living food is based on sprouted seeds, fresh fruits, vegetables, algae... eaten raw or gently processed, in delicious dishes. Caution should be exercised for individuals prone to eating disorders or orthorexia: it is not about becoming a "purer" person but rather about taking care of oneself, with pleasure.

Our program on the limits of raw food:

What are the limitations of a raw food diet ? What are the limitations of practicing a raw food diet? How can one avoid the mistakes that every beginner makes? After several decades of practicing a raw food diet, we will reveal here the limitations we have observed.