Having saturated the rural landscape, shuttering local stores in small town America along the way, now, in the wake of stagnant sales and increased competition, Walmart desperately needs to expand into urban markets. Read rest at Food Safety News…
Big Food
Food Lobby Says EPA’s Dioxin Limits Will “Scare the Crap Out of People”
It doesn’t take much for the food industry to freak-out over potential government action, but this latest corporate outcry is especially galling and self-serving. After more than 20 years of “assessment” the Environmental Protection Agency is finally expected this month to release limits for safe exposure to dioxins, nasty industrial pollutants that cause cancer, among other health harms. You may have heard of dioxin as the military herbicide Agent Orange used in Vietnam, where it earned its distinction as “the most toxic compound synthesized by man.”
Lawsuit Alleges Frito-Lay’s GMO Snacks Aren’t “Natural”
In August, I reported on a lawsuit against ConAgra for deceptive labeling of its Wesson brand of cooking oils as “natural.” The case alleges that the products contain genetically-modified organisms (GMOs), which are not by any stretch of the imagination, natural. A similar case was recently filed in California (by the same class action firm – Milberg) against Frito-Lay — the snacks division of food and beverage giant PepsiCo.
2012: The Year to Stop Playing Nice
Instead of a potentially depressing year-in-review post, I decided to look ahead. (But do see Andy Bellatti’s amusing compilation of 2011 food news.) Given all the defeats and set-backs this year due to powerful food industry lobbying, the good food movement should by now be collectively shouting: I am mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.
If you feel that way, I have two words of advice: get political.
Take Action: Don’t let Big Food Market Junk Food to Kids
The following is from Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy with Center for Science in the Public Interest, which has been leading the fight for decades to stop junk food marketing to children. She writes in response to my previous post.
We need everyone’s help to make sure that the Administration does not use this as an excuse to abandon the guidelines. The industry lobbied hard and got the FTC stripped of its ability to regulate food marketing to kids in 1980. If it succeeds in keeping the government from issuing even voluntary recommendations, the government will never be able to go near food marketing to kids again. Let the Administration know you don’t want them to also cave to industry pressure. Take action here.
Front of Package Labeling: An Exercise in Futility?
Food industry cartoons intended to preempt FDA (FactsUpFront.com)
(The following is by Andy Bellatti, a Seattle-based dietitian, cross-posted from his Small Bites blog)
The current issue of the Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition includes a commentary co-authored by myself and public health attorney Michele Simon. The piece is a response to the recent – and ongoing – debate surrounding front of package labeling.
Twinkies for Breakfast? Kids’ Cereals Fail Industry’s own Lame Nutrition Guidelines
Today the Environmental Working Group (best known for its “Dirty Dozen” list of pesticide-laden produce) released a not very surprising report detailing the insane amounts of sugar in children’s cereals. Kellogg’s Honey Smacks, at nearly 56 percent sugar by weight, won the top prize, packing more sugar (20 grams per cup) than a Hostess Twinkie.
Don’t like the message? Shoot the messenger
As a writer who’s been exposing food industry deception and other underhanded tactics for many years, I’ve had my fair share of hate mail and other personal attacks. But on Monday, when I published my article, Dairy Industry Making a Killing, by Killing Cows? at Food Safety News, the comments threw me for a loop.
Dairy Industry Making a Killing, by Killing Cows?
If you think you’re paying too much for a gallon of milk these days, it could be the result of an elaborate price-fixing scheme, according to a recent class action that charges the dairy industry with federal antitrust violations, among other claims. The case was instigated by the animal advocacy organization Compassion Over Killing whose research revealed that, between 2003 and 2010, more than 500,000 young cows were slaughtered under a “dairy herd retirement” program, in an effort to reduce the supply of milk and inflate prices. The group also alleges that the program “bought out smaller farmers and instructed them to kill their entire dairy herds, unfairly increasing the profits of agribusiness giants.” Read rest at Food Safety News…
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