Natural Foods Pioneer, Beatrice Trum Hunter, Dies At 98

Beatrice Trum Hunter, an early organic foods advocate best known for penning The Natural Foods Cookbook, died at the age of 98 on Wednesday in hospice care in Hillsborough, New Hampshire, according to her nephew Dr. Dan M. Granoff.

Trum Hunter was born in Brooklyn, New York, and started her career as a public school teacher, The New York Times reported. Her journey toward becoming a pioneering natural foods advocate started in high school when she read a book describing American consumers as test subjects for industries such as food and cosmetics.

Her first of 38 books, The Natural Foods Cookbook, was published in 1961, long before the food industry caught wind of the farm-to-table movement, according to Vita Paladino, director of the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University, The Associated Press reported. The book also marked the first natural foods cookbook from Rodale Press, now a health and wellness publishing powerhouse.

According to the Times, Trum Hunter credited her longevity to a change in eating habits as a teenager, which she made in a successful effort to fight fatigue and poor skin and hair.

The secret to a long life? Beatrice Trum Hunter had some ideas. Read her NYT obit (she lived until 98): https://t.co/3no7ejnZH5

— NYT Obituaries (@NYTObits) May 19, 2017

To read about 25 foods that you should always buy organic, click here.