Food

There’s a simple step consumers can take to cut waste: Rethink “fresh.” It’s a word we associate with food that’s wholesome and good-tasting. And there’s no argument about a just-picked tomato or a just-caught striped bass; those are the tastes that drive me to grow tomatoes and catch fish. But most tomatoes and fish don’t come to us just-picked or just-caught. They come to us after having been picked or caught, packed and shipped, warehoused and displayed. Because “fresh” signifies “perishable,” especially when it comes to produce and seafood, there’s a lot of waste in that system. [node:read-more:link]

Organic grain is flooding into the U.S., depressing prices and drawing complaints from domestic organic farmers who fear their harvests are held to stricter standards than foreign-raised crops.

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There is a lot of emotion these days surrounding the use of seed created with genetic engineering. Some groups have grown concerned about associated pesticides and what they see as corporate control. Scientists tell us that the technology is beneficial and poses no additional risk compared to other breeding methods.  I wanted to find this out for myself. In March I contacted Rupp Seeds, one of many suppliers of seed for farmers. The immediate problem I faced was that of scale. I live in a very small Annapolis duplex with a lawn that takes me about five minutes to cut. [node:read-more:link]

Wsconsin-based Sargento Foods Inc., is expanding a voluntary recall of some cheeses due to a possible bacterial contamination.  The company recalled some cheeses Feb. 10, but expanded the recall Friday to include products produced on the same line. Sargento says it also cut ties with Indiana-based Deutsch Kase Haus, which supplied cheese which may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. [node:read-more:link]

Philadelphia’s six-week-old tax on sweetened beverages is already taking a toll on drink distributors and grocers, with some reporting sales drops of as much as 50 percent. “In 30 years of business, there’s never been a circumstance in which we’ve ever had a sales decline of any significant amount,” said Jeff Brown, chief executive officer of Brown’s Super Stores. “I would describe the impact as nothing less than devastating.” [node:read-more:link]

Tyson Foods executives announced that all Tyson consumer brand products would feature chicken with No Antibiotics Ever (NAE). The company also unveiled a new logo. [node:read-more:link]

When people don’t seem to use science to make decisions, it is tempting to assume that it’s because they don’t understand the underlying science. In response, scientists and science communicators often just try harder to explain the science in the hope that eventually the facts will persuade people to change their behaviours or beliefs. [node:read-more:link]

The Artic Apple, an apple that has been genetically modified to prevent browning, saw its first commercial harvest this past fall and is now being market tested in 10 Midwestern U.S. stores.  Rabobank analysts recognize that the Artic Apple could truly test consumers’ willingness to purchase a fresh, GM produce item which delivers a consumer-centric characteristic. The World Health Organization has repeatedly stressed the safety of GM foods, but opponents continue to put the pressure on leading U.S. [node:read-more:link]

A $25 million pledge to fight the food industry’s influence on public health is coming from a surprising source — the CEO of a snack bar maker.  Kind founder Daniel Lubetzky says he’s pledging his own money to create a group called “Feed the Truth” dedicated to revealing corporate influence in the nutrition field, with activities like education campaigns and investigative journalism.  The move underscores the division between older “Big Food” companies and newer businesses that market themselves as wholesome alternatives aligned with health advocates. [node:read-more:link]

Everyone loves a cheap eats list. A treasure map to $1 tacos! $4 banh mi! $6 pad Thai! More often than not, the Xs that mark the cheap spots are in the city's immigrant enclaves. Indeed, food media is never so diverse as when it runs these lists, its pages fill with names of restaurateurs and chefs of color.  These lists infuriate me. Restaurant workers are already among the lowest paid workers in America. Many full-time workers rely on public assistance to make ends meet. Often enough, restaurant workers could not afford to eat at the restaurants where they work. [node:read-more:link]