Food News Feed

"The french fry was "almost sacrosanct for me," Ray Kroc, one of the founders of McDonald's, wrote in his autobiography, "its preparation a ritual to be followed religiously." During the chain's early years french fries were made from scratch every day. Russet Burbank potatoes were peeled, cut into shoestrings, and fried in McDonald's kitchens. "

{Editor's note: Well, they used to "taste good", way back when they were made with beef tallow. Niman Ranch CEO Rob Hurlbut told me the story of touring a slaughterhouse and walking through a warehouse stacked to the rafters with pallets of beef tallow. With McDonalds out of the picture, the tallow was on it's way to the Hostess factory to get piped into the middle of Ho Ho's and Twinkies. Yep. Yum.}

Completely clueless. Here's a letter from the Sharkfin and Marine Products Association, Shark Fin Trade Merchants Association and the Hong Kong Dried Sea Food and Grocery Merchants Association {kinda scary that these "Associations" actually exist}, after Hong Kong University banned shark fins from campus menus: "You have contributed to the smear campaign instigated by these 'conservationists', which has led to the livelihood of many people involved (in the trade) being adversely affected..." Yo dudes. That's exactly the point of the ban. To put you idiots out of business!

Long splintered into small groups, commercial fishermen are putting together a national organization to promote their image and press their interests before Congress. The David & Lucille Packard Foundation, which funds marine conservation programs, provided a $50,000 startup grant.

"The USDA's arbitrary decision to exclude 95 percent of the animals being slaughtered every year is causing needless suffering by these animals and increasing the risk to consumers, as well," said Paul Shapiro, Washington-based manager of the Humane Society's factory farming campaign. "Because of the USDA's failure to recognize that poultry are livestock, more than 9 billion birds are being slaughtered inhumanely every single year."