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Wed May 13, 2009 at 15:15:00 PM PDT
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- The FDA has sent a warning letter to General Mills, telling the company to stop promoting Cheerios as a health food. (For a funny take on the Right Wing blogosphere's outrage (grrrr!) at FDA's "attack" on
America cereal, see here.) Meanwhile, Health Canada unfortunately seems to want to make it easier for food manufacturers to be able to market junk as "health food" in their country...
- Elementary school students are snacking on (and learning about) healthy local produce in Madison, Wisconsin.
- Can't say this is really a surprise - from Grist, Monsanto is now firing off their propaganda on National Petrol, errrrr, National Public Radio. Great article debunking Monsanto's claims, but it's not like the oil companies, ADM and other corporate interests haven't already been scrubbing themselves "clean" in their own greenshowers over the airwaves of NPR for years and years and years...
- Fantastic article from Ken Olsen at High Country News on the intersection of agriculture, business, politics, power and salmon - and what government ultimately needs to do to help restore wild salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest.
More below the fold... |
| JayinPortland :: Sampler Platter 05.13.09 |
- The State of Massachusetts today approved the toughest statewide menu labeling law in the country. The differences between the new regulations in Massachusetts and those in California are that more stringent local regulations will be allowed to supercede the state law in Massachusetts; and restaurants which fall under the law in Massachusetts will also have to display calorie information on drive-thru menu boards, which is where almost two-thirds of fast food purchases occur.
- Nine more harmful chemicals, including a few pesticides and a fungicide, have been added to the list of those prohibited under the Stockholm Convention. Make that the "Dirty 21", I guess? DDT, however, is still not yet targeted for elimination...
- Fun article on doing Portland frugally, from (where else?) the New York Times Travel section. Nice piece, touches on our beer, coffee, food, restaurants, food carts, culture, and more. Even had a few reviews of places I haven't eaten at yet, but would like to soon. Next time he's here though, I'd suggest a stop at Ristretto Roasters at NE 42nd & Fremont for the real best coffee in Portland. Btw - the NYT is here often enough that they might want to open a permanent Portland branch for their Travel section. I would like to officially offer my services here as staff Portland Beer writer, heh...
- Again, photographic proof that beauty in fresh produce is not only skin-deep. What would have happened to that perfectly good potato if it was ultimately destined for a supermarket? I think we all know it would have ended up in a waste pile somewhere...
- Is it a growing population, or is it climate change, that is responsible for the increasing reappearance and migration of blue whales to waters off the coasts of Alaska and Canada?
- The Chicago City Council today unanimously passed a ban on the sale of baby bottles and cups containing BPA. The ban will take effect January 2010. Chicago joins Minnesota and Connecticut, who've already passed bans, along with a number of states which are currently considering such a ban.
- I want this book - Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World and Salt: A World History, has written a new book based upon the files of a never-finished project of the Depression-era Federal Writers Project, which looks at food in America circa 1942, and how we ate just before frozen food and chain restaurants became our national "cuisine". A time in which, in Kurlansky's words - "What you ate told you who you were, where you were and what time of season it was."
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