Food

Vandana Shiva is coming to my hometown to lie. Not cool.For those unaware, Shiva is one of the world’s most famous anti-GMO activists, hailing from India. She’s giving a speech on Monday, April 16, at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, where I did a year of my undergrad. I found out that the university got a “good deal” since they had flexible scheduling for her, and Shiva is being paid just under $20,000 to speak.How would you feel if someone was paid tens of thousands of dollars to lie about your occupation? [node:read-more:link]

“To end animal agriculture the movement has to drive down demand and raise the costs and people will stop purchasing so much meat, thus bringing an end to the industry.”   One example of this tactic was the push in 2016 by several activist groups to pressure food companies to commit to only sourcing cage-free eggs within the next few years. A total of over 230 restaurants, retailers, hospitality companies, foodservice companies and food manufacturers ended up making such commitments. In order to meet that demand, 228 million laying hens (more than 75 percent of the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

In a move aimed at securing its future, Monsanto has invested $125 million in a gene-editing startup called Pairwise. The alliance could tee up Monsanto, long known for its controversial dealings with farmers and its role in popularizing genetically modified organisms, to introduce some of the first produce made using the blockbuster gene-editing tool Crispr.In a call with Business Insider, the company hinted that strawberries or another type of fruit would be among the first Crispr produce to hit grocery-store shelves — a development it expects within five to 10 year [node:read-more:link]

In November 2017, a series of two national surveys were conducted to evaluate market potential and consumer willingness-to-pay for poultry and eggs with various labels. The study, led by Jayson L. Lusk from Purdue University, gathered responses from more than 2,000 participants to determine if consumers are willing to pay more for particular product attributes in a retail environment. [node:read-more:link]

Nestle's structured sugar is claimed to help reduce sugar by up to 40% in confectionery. The sugar is said to dissolve faster in the mouth, the same as in cotton candy. The Swiss firm has released its first chocolate bar using the new technology. [node:read-more:link]

 A full-page ad in the New York Times, purchased by six animal activist groups, is calling for McDonald’s Corp. to source its chicken from suppliers who follow specific breeding practices. The coalition of activists includes Mercy for Animals, Animal Equality, Compassion in World Farming, Compassion Over Killing, The Humane League and World Animal Protection. [node:read-more:link]

n Owsley County, a 200-square-mile patch of eastern Kentucky, Trump’s victory was propelled by a full 80 percent of the vote—an unsurprising outcome, perhaps, for a county seated in a congressional district that has elected and re-elected Republican representative Hal Rogers by similar margins since 1980. [node:read-more:link]

Bartels Packing, a processor of grass-fed and organic beef in Eugene, Ore., has closed its doors, putting more than 130 employees out of work. he result of this abrupt decision is that 139 employees and their families are without jobs and benefits and this reality is very heartbreaking for us, as we owe our success to these hardworking employees whose work ethic, skill set and commitment brought us the growth and success we’ve experienced the past 18 years. We will be forever grateful for their contribution. [node:read-more:link]

An Arizona federal court jury returned a verdict in the amount of $6.5 million in favor of a 5-and-a-half-year-old child who suffered a brain injury because of a Salmonella Heidelberg infection from chicken produced by Foster Poultry Farms. The jury concluded that Foster Farms was negligent in producing Salmonella Heidelberg-contaminated chicken and that, based on epidemiological and microbiological evidence alone, it caused the boy’s illness. The jury attributed 30 percent of the fault to Foster Farms and 70 percent to family members for their preparation of the chicken. [node:read-more:link]

Cargill said the first three months of its Canadian beef sustainability pilot project produced encouraging results, proving the model works and showing significant potential to scale the program to bring a greater volume of certified sustainable beef to Canadian consumers. [node:read-more:link]