Category: Food
We need an Integrated Farm Bill now
The NY Times recently held a “debate” titled The Farm Bill, Beyond the Farm. I put debate in quotes because there weren’t any pieces that directly opposed each other. Instead, each discussed different parts of the farm bill so we didn’t get to see any differences in opinion on the same issues. This group of eight…
Blue Potato Chips
Written by Matt DiLeo JetBlue airlines now gives out blue potato chips as their “official” snack. I’m very impressed by the fact that these blue potato chips exist. It’s no small feat to create a good-frying potato with excellent agronomic qualities in itself. I can’t imagine crossing in blue coloring (anthocyanin expression) on top of…
Busting Bellatti’s Bad Broccoli Breath
Most of you are familiar with Monsanto the seed giant. All of you are familiar with the cruciferous vegetable, broccoli. Some of you may know that Monsanto released a variety of broccoli last year purported to be better for you, called “Beneforté.” One year later, an article by a newly-registered dietitian named Andy Bellatti appeared…
Waiter, there’s DNA in my dinner!
Threadless recently hosted* a t-shirt contest for Jeffery Smith‘s Institute for Responsible Technology: the No GMO t-shirt design challenge (see Karl’s post Vote for talking, not fighting for more details). One of the shirts really struck me: GMO Shortens Life Span by Michael. The artist proposes an equation: plants + DNA = death This slogan really makes me wonder…
Apple Breeding
Do you like Honeycrisp apples, and have you ever wondered what it takes to breed delicious fruits like that? Well in April, UW-Madison was paid a visit by Jim Luby from the University of Minnesota, the apple (and wine grape) breeder who released the Honeycrisp apple. After his seminar, I got a chance to sit…
Way Too Much Angst About GMO Crops
Written by Steve Savage From what I read on various blogs and comment streams, there is way too much angst out there about GMO crops. Too much angst because every significant panel of scientists that has reviewed this technology has concluded that it is as safe as any other domesticated food crop. Too much angst…
The lethal elephant in the room: Real risks in our food
Even as speculation about imaginary risks of GM foods continues, particularly among some organic sector enthusiasts, real food risks in the food chain remain unmanaged. Exposure of fresh vegetable produce to manure is a case in point. Pathogenic Escherichia coli are one of more frequent health dangers of fresh vegetables. These bacteria can be present…
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The Cost Of Precaution
Written by Steve Savage The graph above shows the relative production of these major US row crops comparing the years 1993-1995 (just prior to the introduction of biotechnology enhanced crops) and 2008-10 (the most recent available data which covers a a span which comes 12-15 years after biotech. Soybean production has expanded 47% in this…
Molecular cooking is cool among the real cognoscenti
The Pundit is on the road visiting family, and has made a fascinating discovery: Molecular cooking is the next big thing. He learnt this from talking to real foodies at the local cricket club where his grandson is a minor star in the field of sport. The foodies there find molecular gastronomy really exciting. So…
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