A recent report came out by Consumer Reports that contains several factual errors and promotes misinformation about GMOs in food products. So let’s just get the facts out there. GMO products undergo extensive, rigorous testing prior to approval. Here in the U.S., there are two mandated steps to GMO approval, by the U.S. Department of […]
food
Big Business changing policies, “safe sourcing” for animal welfare
Nestlé, the largest food company in the world by revenue, has announced industry-leading changes to its animal welfare program intended to eliminate “many controversial-yet-currently-standard practices within its worldwide food supply chain.” Not surprising, but the the “Big Business” has pledged to overhaul the following practices: “confinement of sows in gestation crates, calves in veal crates […]
How much do you eat out?
… a new study says forty-three percent of our food budget is spent on food away from home. This is much larger that what my family does, but I don’t find it too surprising considering the fast-paced, convenient society we live in. In a recent article from Drovers CattleNetwork, in the 35 years from 1977 […]
The new(ish) form of farming
Semi-lately (new in relative terms) one of a farmer and rancher’s chore items is defending agriculture to the public. A recent AP article shows the efforts that farmers and ranchers are making to complete this chore: start up the conversation with their consumer counterparts about “what they do and why they do it.” Many of […]
Food prices after drought: less than expected
Last year around this time, I was writing about what Americans spend on groceries. This was right during the middle of the drought. I read today that drought has affected food prices less than expected. I’m thankful for this! However there has been a lot of talk of this in the news that last year’s […]
Food: A Farmer Isn’t a Farmer Without It – today on the RamZone blog
Food—it’s something that we think about, plan for and consume every day. But that simple word—food—has so much behind it. I love that we have so many movements around food in our American culture today. I love that I can grow my own veggies in my backyard garden or buy them from the grocery store […]
Making food biotech easier to understand
A new website was launched today – gmoanswers.com – to simply help provide answers to your questions about GMO’s (genetically modified organisms) otherwise known as biotechnology. Its goal is to make information about biotechnology in food and agriculture easier to access and understand. Some questions include: How can you be sure that GMO foods won’t […]
Local meat
“Locally produced” is one of the hottest terms in the food business today, according to an article posted recently on CattleNetwork. I’ve discussed “local” before with expanding our definitions of local, food trends and even “big beef”. But I guess I’ve never really defined (on the blog) my own definition of “local”. Local to Me: […]
GMOs and Environmentalism can work together
We all change our minds about things, right? I had the pleasure of interacting with a #SeedsofChange webinar from the Danforth Plant Science Center (@danforthcenter) featuring Mark Lynas (@mark_lynas) today. Mark jokingly started his talk that he is shamelessly known more for an apology, but is glad to share his story about his background of […]
FOOD: Transforming the American Table
One of the sites I was most looking forward to while in Washington, D.C. over the Memorial Day weekend was the FOOD: Transforming the American Table 1950–2000 exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. I had read about this exhibit from an ag blog (which I should have noted and cannot find now) […]
