food

Want To Forage In Your City? There's A Map For That

Kristofor Husted — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 18:58:00 +0000

If you really love your peaches and want to shake a tree, there's a map to help you find one. That goes for veggies, nuts, berries and hundreds of other edible plant species, too.

Avid foragers Caleb Philips and Ethan Welty launched an interactive map last month that identifies more than a half-million locations across the globe where fruits and veggies are free for the taking.

Gluten-free by popular demand

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:18:37 +0000

Six months ago, Kara Welter drastically changed her diet by eliminating food that contains wheat, rye or barley.

“I don’t eat gluten,” said Welter, a 41-year-old marketing executive in Kansas City. “I happened to just try it because I was having stomach issues for years. And it turns out within three days, I stopped having stomach issues.”

Welter’s gluten decision stemmed from what she read online. Medical tests showed that she did not have a gluten sensitivity or celiac disease, the disorder that causes the immune system to reject the gluten.

GMO labeling laws on deck in the Midwest

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 15:16:53 +0000

Just south of Hermann, Mo., Swiss Meat and Sausage Co. processes 2 million pounds of meat a year -- everything from cattle to hogs to buffalo to elk.

And everything gets a label.

“No antibiotics added, raised without added hormones, all natural, minimally processed," Glenn Brandt, the production manager for Swiss Meat, reads from a hefty roll of hickory smoked beef sausage stickers.

What this label does not indicate, however, is whether or not the sausage contains genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.

Mississippi Passes 'Anti-Bloomberg' Bill

editor — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 07:58:00 +0000

Mayor Mike and his public health edicts are having a rough ride.

On Monday, a state judge in Manhattan struck down New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's rule capping soda sizes.

Gluten Goodbye: One-Third Of Americans Say They're Trying to Shun It

editor — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 10:47:00 +0000

Sure, we know that gluten-free is the Jennifer Lawrence of food trends. But we were still startled to hear that one-third of Americans say they're trying to avoid gluten. Really?

So we checked in with Harry Balzer, the food numbers king for consumer survey firm NPD Group.

Exploring our global food system at the Natural History Museum

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 15:00:00 +0000

Can a watermelon be grown in the shape of a square? What do Olympic athletes like Michael Phelps eat for breakfast? Which island nation produces the most lamb in the world? Consumers interested in pulling back the curtain on our food system will get these and many other questions answered at “Our Global Kitchen: Food, Nature, Culture.” The exhibition, on view now at the American Museum of Natural History, explores how our food is produced, distributed and eaten.

Safety concerns threaten growing market for raw milk cheese

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 22:26:44 +0000

Raw milk cheese — which is made from unpasteurized milk — has gathered a small but fervent following for its taste, nutritional benefits and freshness.

Increasingly, Holstein beef is what’s for dinner

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 16:15:54 +0000

This blog is part of ongoing coverage from Harvest Public Media, a public radio reporting project in the Midwest that focuses on important issues related to food production and agriculture.

When I dig into a burger, I might think about how the cow the beef came from was raised -- whether it was grass or grain fed, locally raised or imported -- but rarely do I consider what breed of cow the meat came from.

Will the defeat of Prop 37 lead to a national food labeling push?

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 17:25:40 +0000

California voters defeated Proposition 37 [PDF] on Tuesday night, the ballot measure that would have required labels to indicate the presence of genetically modified foods. At the polls, 53 percent of Californians voted against the proposition, while 47 percent voted for it.

Indiana farm linked to contaminated cantaloupe also recalls watermelons

Abbie Fentress Swanson — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 21:04:05 +0000

The Indiana farm that recalled cantaloupes linked to a Salmonella outbreak that has killed two and sickened 204 is now recalling its watermelons. Chamberlain Farms issued the voluntary recall because the melons could be contaminated with Salmonella Newport.

Foodborne illness is always a danger for farmers, grocery stores and customers alike.