Sustainable Dish

The Fooducate Blog has some fun looking at the serving sizes listed on junk food. Sure that Tazo tea may have only 90 calories per serving, but did you notice the ten teaspoons of sugar you’re guzzling down as well? Yikes!

School Lunch Talk reports that British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver is coming to America to curb obesity. Jamie has picked Huntington, Virginia as the setting for his latest reality show which will attempt to bring more healthy food options into grocery stores, office buildings, restaurants and schools. Huntington has over a 50% obesity rate, higher than the average U.S.  town.

Here’s some interesting back and forth for you. Ezra Klein, the food-politics reporter at the Washington Post, states in an editorial that we should eat less meat due to its high environmental costs. In a letter to the editor, president of the American Meat Institute, Patrick Boyle, fires back that his claims are not based in science. Next, Grist’s Tom Philpott responds in an article supporting Klein debunking Boyle’s stance. Who’s input will be next?

Weighty Matters blogs on a recent report by the journal “Appetite” stating that overweight children are more easily influenced by food branding. This means that all of those Trix bunnies, golden fish, and chocolate vampires are merely exacerbating their existing problem.

The brownie label says 250 calories, the granola bar says 300, but is the brownie really lower in calories? New Scientist reports on why calorie labels may sway 25% either way and how our old system to determine calories may be bogus.

By now it’s obvious that backyard gardens are one of this summer’s major trends. They’ve popped up all around the country on lawns, roofs, decks and fire escapes but the New York Times reports that chickens are making a comeback too!

H.R. 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act, may have just passed through the House, but it certainly hasn’t gone into effect yet! A massive beef recall linked to an antibiotic resistant salmonella outbreak was just announced for 825,769 pounds of beef.

I’ve read many an article about how to “go green” on a budget, but I find most of them trite. This article from Grist, however, brings some new points to light. Flax instead of eggs? I’d never thought of that one.

Gourmet Magazine isn’t entirely photo shoots of Parisian bistros and quick recipes for squab and lobster; they actually have some interesting articles on environmental and sustainability issues. In a series of email exchanges from the magazine’s editors, the ethics of eating corn are hotly debated. Good to know they are keeping these issues in mind!