Chile Forum

Hello Everyone,

I am relocating to Chile either last this year or in the Spring of 2011. This is my first post and it's a rather lengthy montage of questions; thanks in advance for any pointers.

Around the world, communities are overwhelmed with food, beverage, cleaning, and health products that are full of chemicals that are bad for us - leading to major disease. The last several months I've had a major personal awakening and have learned how to transform my physical and mental health by consuming organic and throwing "big brand name" daily products out of my life. I'm saving thousands of dollars by simply not buying into the Big Brand names that do a lot more harm than good.

My question is, in Chile, is it difficult to find Holistic Healing products, organic body products, Non-GMO and earth friendly products in the market? Things like: Toothpaste without Flouride; Shampoo/Conditioner without Sodium Laureth Sulfate; Grains and Pastas without MSG, Additives, etc. Or should I plan on establishing and importing my own products, Juicers, WheatGrass seeds, Noni Juice; Virgin Coconut Juice, etc?

Obviously, I can imagine that a lot of the things that we purchase and use to battle toxins in the big cities are no longer required in the countryside where we are back to nature and not surrounded each day by mass pollutants. Just curious if there is already a market for Holistic Healing in Chile, outside of the major cities.

I've been living in China for 15 years and CANT WAIT to get over there with you all! Not planning to reside in a major city but instead to head South and find a bit of land to set up my own little farm. Woo-hoo!

Thanks again for your time to read thus far.

All the Best,
Michelle

Hi Michelle
You'll need to be very resourceful to live the way you'd like.
There are a few products available at the larger grocery stores but you may find the perishable ones to be stale because of a lack of turnover. Overall, it seems that most Chilenos are happy enough with food that is loaded with artificial colors, flavors and preservatives. A large part of that may be simple unawareness of any alternative. And the scarcity of disposable income. The type of products you're asking about are generally more expensive.
But, with time and determination you can find raw ingredients to make your own alternative products.
In 12 years I've seen 3 vegetarian restaurants come and go in Pto Montt/Pto Varas. Yet there are some people
making pure foods for sale in a cottage industry way. My hunch is that you could find a market for such products but
not enough to support a storefront dedicated to them. There are a couple natural foods restaurants in
Santiago with a few shelves of dried foods and maybe some personal care items but the selection will be very very limited.
Regarding alternative health practitioners, again they are few and far between; for instance there is a chiropractor in Pto
Varas who also lives in the US for part of the year. It is said he is the only one in the south of Chile
By the way, did anyone ever find unbleached white flour?

There's an excellent natural foods restaurant called Trauen
in Pucon, and there is or was a Yoga center on Frutillar. Staff and patrons of those outfits ought to know where natural products can be found.

Although not officially organic you can buy frpm local small farmers at the feria. They are unlikely to afford to invest heavily in fertilizer, pesticides etc.

Michlava wrote:My question is, in Chile, is it difficult to find Holistic Healing products, organic body products, Non-GMO and earth friendly products in the market? Things like: Toothpaste without Flouride; Shampoo/Conditioner without Sodium Laureth Sulfate; Grains and Pastas without MSG, Additives, etc. Or should I plan on establishing and importing my own products, Juicers, WheatGrass seeds, Noni Juice; Virgin Coconut Juice, etc?

I appreciate your quest to avoid toxins in your food and hygiene products. In a big city, like Santiago, you can probably find any of the things you mentioned. But living in a big city isn't healthy/holistic and defeats the concept anyway. Away from there it will take some time to find.

I would bring a starter stock of fluoride-free toothpaste and shampoo. I personally haven't seen that for sale in Chile, although it is probably around if you knew where to look. I would also bring your own juicer. I've never seen a Champion Juicer, Vitamix or anything similar for sale in Chile. (Both Champion and Vitamix make 240V juicers. We brought one of each with us and they work great on Chile power) I've seen basic blenders but you'd burn one up in about 2 weeks trying to blend Wheat Grass. I don't know about Noni Juice and Virgin coconut juice.

We have found a small natural food store where we buy organic nuts, grains and other whole foods. The best thing is to grow your own vegetables and buy fruits and berries from your neighbors who don't use any chemicals. Where we live, none of the small-time farmers use chemicals. They don't need to and it would be an extra expense they can't afford. The big company farms use chemicals.

Thank you very much Everyone. I really appreciate your responses; tremendous help! Definitely planning to get into the countryside as soon as the relocation logistics are organized in Santiago. Sounds like I need to ship in the basic supplies I need and a juicer to last for a year and then take it from there. I've got heirloom seeds that I hope to be able to bring into the country for my own garden and will be attempting to learn how to feed myself and others off the grid. Sure to be interesting!

Challenging is the operative word. But with planning and some ingenuity...doable. As far as seeds go...forget it. SAG will NOT let you bring ANY seeds into Chile. If you try to sneak them in...big fines and not worth the hassle.
I buy up what I want/need each time I go to the US for visiting family. Natural toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, body products,etc. I found a good source for fresh tofu at a small 'intentional community'. If you use soy products a good deal you may want to invest in a tofu maker of your own. Chilean farmers generally don't use chemical on their crops...so their products are essentially organic by default. Just be sure to wash EVERYTHING well before consuming it. Especially vegies that grow close to the ground. Contaminated water (feces, etc.) may be used to irrigate. The reverse side of organic is the risk of salmonella.

I would definitely consider (if you can afford it) shipping a small container to Chile with some of the most important items you will want/need. Organic coconut oil (yummy stuff), coconut milk, a good juicer (have a Champion juicer...but haven't brought it down yet...too heavy), etc.

Good luck and keep in touch with the gang here on ALLCHILE. Folks on this site have been invaluable to me with their insight, comments and wisdom on living in Chile. Thanks to you all!

Not sure where people are getting the idea that Chile farmers don't use pesticides and herbicides. Maybe they're thinking of the campesinos with their little house gardens.The commercial scale farmers use plenty of chemicals and they are less regulated than those of the USA. Think there are no GMO veggies in the market? Have a look at those perfect, non-deteriorating, tasteless tomatoes.

In Santiago,

Weleda products (to name one that is well known and to my knowledge sulphate free) are freely available (they sell it at Jumbo for eg.) and there are a handful of reasonably good organic shops that sell organic grains, seeds, dried fruits, nuts, jams, flour, cosmetics etc. There are organic vegetable providers (see apiopalta.cl, lachakra.cl & organisk.cl, but getting organic meat and dairy is pretty much impossible still for us here in the city. It is improving though, I'm constantly seeing more organic stuff in Jumbo every time I go there, the Organic market is getting busier and more shops opening.

If you are after particular products, just let me know and I'll see what I come up with, especially food or baby/child related.

Wow. You guys are awesome; this is the best Forum I've ever seen. Thank you! The advice you're providing is so helpful, I sincerely appreciate it.

In trying to give a bit back to the community, I'd just like to share a bit more of what I've learned in the last six months. See if it helps you or your loved ones in anyway. Honestly, I am extremely pissed off with the amount of disinformation "out there" with regards to the safety of consumer products; as an example, most people have NO IDEA that Fluoride is Rat Poison and was first used in Nazi camps to subdue and sterilize prisoners. I certainly didn't know this until recently; it's branded as if it's an amazingly helpful product in 99% of toothpastes out there. Insane.

My weight was up and and down for years; major swings in weight. I've lost 30 pounds since February and am keeping it off just by eating truly natural foods, drinking more water, and cleaning the body of the chemicals that most of us are ingesting all day long.

I've learned that the vast majority of issues with weight and disease is directly related to the highly processed and chemically ridden products we're all consuming. Simple & Important Steps to improving health immediately:

- Drink a glass of water first thing in the morning
- always eat breakfast
- eat 6 times per day to keep metabolism high
- eat 2 - 4 organic fruits every day - ideally apples and grapefruits
- always get at least 2 liters of water every day to stay hydrated and ensure that your organs are working properly (never drink tap water)
- eat organic food as much as you can
- Read all of your food labels carefully – if you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it!
- never eat highly processed, chemically derived, or genetically modified food – absolutely must avoid:
Trans Fats
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Aspartame (Diet Sodas)
Nitrites (in all smoked and processed meats)
Farm Raised Fish
Fast Food
Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial Flavors
MSG
Ice cold drinks
Fluoride
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Parabens
Mineral Oil
“Additives”, “Spices”, “Flavors” --- all Cancer related.
proplylene glycol

Additionally,
Get pure Vitamin E and take once per day
Get a wholefood Daily Supplement – take once per day
Drink WuLong Green Tea – One cup per day
Drink YerbaMate Tea – One cup per day
Drink Chamomile Tea – One cup per day
Use Raw Apple Cider Vinegar for salads
Eat salads with lunch and dinner
Walk as much as you can throughout the day – try to get 30 minutes to 1 hour of slow, regular walking in each day
Get sunlight (suntan lotion is actually bad for us and leads to cancer. Sun is GOOD!)
get regular massage
Make sure your Insulin is balanced and regulated - I know we shouldn't advertise here so just look up products that regulate insulin; it's a Tea. or email me if you'd like to learn more
<EMAIL REMOVED BY ADMIN>

Make sure you don’t have a Candida problem – I can recommend a product off-line; this step is extremely important.

65% of the cancers and major diseases out there today are directly related to diet. they are absolutely preventable and reversible through diet.

Wishing you all the best. Thanks again!

I am on the same quest, to escape the toxic food and water of the USA. I want to establish a small farm in a nice, prestine piece of nature that is affordable, which is not possible in USA. For deoderant, try mixing up cocoanut oil, baking soda, and an essential oil called "theives' oil" for a nice smell. For shampoo, simply wash with a small amount of baking soda, then for conditioner wash with a small amount of Apple Cider Vinegar. Toothpaste can simply be baking soda. Instead of worrying about buying someone else's mixture of ingredientes stuck in a plastic tube or bottle, just make your own personal hygeine products. I have been using these for some time and my hair and teeth are just as clean as with the nasty store bought stuff. The deoderant is amazing. Also you can do the same for dish washer soap, just straight baking soda. For washing clothes a similar mixture of cheap, readily available products will yield good results and not be putting toxic chemicals on your skin. The only way to acheive health produce is to just grow your own, and raise your own eggs and milk, and if you must have meat you can buy a calf and feed it out for a while then take and have it butchered and freeze the meat for a year's worth of meat, easy.

Hi. MadTexan's wife here.

For deodorant I add cornstarch as well. About 1/3 baking soda, 2/3 cornstarch, then add just enough coconut oil to get it to the texture you want. It works great. The baking soda kills scent, the coconut oil is an antibacterial and good for your skin, and the corn starch works as a light anti presperiant.

I'd be happy to give you recipes for anything like that. I make all of our own household cleaners and personal products.