About Us

Organic New Yorker is a resource for a healthy lifestyle that is minimally harmful to oneself
and the environment, focusing on the urban living of New Yorkers.

Orest and Serena met over ketchup. Let us explain: They were out with a mutual friend in
Chelsea Market. Serena was excited checking out condiments at a gourmet food mart.
Over her shoulder, Orest mentioned that it’s impossible to find organic ketchup in a glass
bottle; he further expressed how it doesn’t make sense that organic food manufacturers
would use plastic to package their products. Serena was completely impressed by this
comment. And that’s how we got started!

Since moving to NYC in 2007, Dr. Serena Ma, ND, MS, LAc,
has been practicing naturopathic and Oriental medicines
at Serenity Natural Health in SoHo. She attended Bastyr
University in Seattle (one of the world's leading centers for
natural medicine), where she obtained her Doctorate in
Naturopathic Medicine (ND) and Master in Acupuncture
and Oriental Medicine (MSAOM). She is currently a licensed
naturopathic doctor in Washington state, and a licensed
acupuncturist in the New York state.

Serena has seen improvements in her own health once she started eating mostly organic, eliminating harsh
toxic chemicals from the household, and reducing plastic (BPA) use. As a naturopath, Serena often sees
patients who suffer from environmental toxins, as well as toxins in food. Oftentimes, she finds herself
researching for local natural food stores in her patients neighborhoods, or recommending restaurants with
organic and/or gluten-free options. Realizing that there is no central source for all this information, she was
inspired to create the Organic New Yorker with Orest.

Orest Ludwig, CSCS, was born in Germany, into a family who valued fresh produce out of their own garden.
The rest of the nutrients on the table came from local organic farms. After arriving in the US in 1998, he was
shocked to learn that was no national organic certification. He soon started to buy most of his produce at the
farmer's market.

Since 2002, Orest has been buying USDA-ceritfied

organic whenever possible. He has adopted the

saying "

You are what you eat

" when working with

his personal training clients at

Einfach-Fit LLC

whether they want to lose weight, gain muscle

mass, improve endurance, or prevent fatigue.

Meeting Serena has strengthened his beliefs further. Now they are putting their knowledge into the Organic
New Yorker to make it easier for fellow urbanites to help the planet and themselves.