Food News
We think fresh is best. But to fight food waste, we need to think again
The Washington Post | Posted on February 23, 2017There’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. According to JoAnne Berkenkamp, senior advocate for the food and agriculture program of the Natural Resources Defense Council, freezing and canning can cut back significantly on produce waste — a huge problem, since slightly more than half of our fruits and vegetables go uneaten. The savings start within hours of picking. “The vegetables are typically shipped straight from the farm to processing facilities and frozen or canned within hours, and then stabilized for months or years,” she says.
Organic Food Sales Are Booming; Why Are American Farmers Crying Foul?
The Wall Street Journal | Posted on February 22, 2017Organic 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.
I grew GMOs in my suburban garden, here’s what happened
Medium.com | Posted on February 22, 2017There 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. Transgenic seed is more expensive and so far tends to only be economical for large scale farming where the increased costs are offset by savings in other areas. The smallest quantity I was able to purchase was a package of 2500 sweet corn seeds and 1000 squash seeds. I was not prepared for the squash. I planted nine seeds resistant to different diseases. Essentially they were vaccinated as proteins from the viruses were inserted to create immunity. This should allow farmers that plant these varieties to use less fungicide. Each squash plant just kept growing, invading a large chunk of my back yard. When the squash is harvested, more grow in its place. Next year one seed is all my family needs for a summer of squash it seems. The corn is a bit more controversial. The Seminis variety Obsession II is glyphosate tolerant and contains a gene from the naturally occurring bacteria bacillus thuringus (an organic insecticide). I was mildly disappointed to discover that I never even got the chance to spray glyphosate on them. These fast growing stalks quickly out competed the weeds for sunlight. The idea that farmers are out there “drenching” their corn in glyphosate is one of the greatest internet myths out there. The amount sprayed will certainly vary by climate conditions and month planted. But long before anything known as food emerges from the stalks the sun will be prevented from reaching the weeds.
Sargento expands cheese recall, cuts ties with Indiana-based supplier
Chicago Tribune | Posted on February 22, 2017Wsconsin-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.
Philadelphia’s Soda Sellers Say Tax Has Reduced Sales by as Much as 50%
Bloomberg | Posted on February 22, 2017Philadelphia’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.”
Tyson to convert all Tyson brand chicken products to No Antibiotics Ever
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted on February 22, 2017Tyson Foods executives announced that all Tyson consumer brand products would feature chicken with No Antibiotics Ever (NAE). The company also unveiled a new logo.
Perceptions of genetically modified food are informed by more than just science
The Conversation | Posted on February 20, 2017When 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. This is known as “the deficit model” of science communication. While there have been many attempts in science communication to move away from the deficit model, it continues to persist, partly because we still don’t really understand the different ways in which people interact with science in their everyday lives.Even the idea that there is a single body of knowledge known as “science” is problematic: various sciences have different ways of weighing up evidence or looking at things such as risk.Another issue is that people have multiple roles that affect the ways they make decisions: citizen, consumer, scientist, and carer, to name a few. And finally, the role of science in our “post-truth” world is more contentious than ever.
Arctic Apple to Test Consumer Preferences
Seed World | Posted on February 16, 2017The 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. food brands. “Organic, ‘clean label’ and natural foods — regardless of what those terms actually mean — are thriving, while GM foods are under fire,” according to Cindy van Rijswick, Rabobank fruit and vegetable analyst. “Consumers are skeptical when it comes to GM food, despite the fact that it already constitutes part of their daily diets in the form of GM food ingredients and animal feed.”
Kind snack bar founder to donate $25 million for public health
The Washington Post | Posted on February 16, 2017A $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. Kind, known for its fruit and nut bars, touts its use of “real” ingredients and has proven deft at mixing marketing with nutrition issues.
Cheap Eats, Cheap Labor: The Hidden Human Costs Of Those Lists
WUNC | Posted on February 14, 2017Everyone 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. And at the bottom of this system are the employees of the restaurants on these cheap eats list. American enterprise has long been a gateway to the American dream for many immigrants. But much of it was also built on exploited labor. Enslaved African-Americans built Southern plantations. Chinese immigrant workers built the railroads. Latino migrant farm workers are the backbone that turned California into America's agricultural powerhouse.