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FOOD News:
20080910
 Gordon
Smith -  Illegal
-  Immigration
-  Business
- Food
-  Workers
-  Politics
-  Agriculture
-  Property
-  History
-  Oregon
-  Md
-  Hawaii
-  Utah
-  Wash
"Señor
Smith: Low-wage Latino workers keep [Oregon Republican
Senator] Sen. Gordon Smith’s family business humming. Not all of them are
legal." ... "Up on a hill overlooking this Eastern Oregon town of 701 people,
Smith Frozen Foods turns raw produce from the surrounding fields into ready-to-eat
products." ... "Smith’s goods appear in grocery stores under other brand
names. But in tiny Weston [Oregon], a water tank emblazoned with the capital
letters S-M-I-T-H sits like a sentry greeting travelers on nearby Highway
11." ... "Gordon Smith, a United States senator from Oregon and the only
Republican senator representing a West Coast state, has owned the plant
his grandfather founded in 1919 for nearly 30 years." ... "“Son,” father
Milan Smith once said, according to Gordon Smith’s 2006 memoir, “you can
sell ice to Eskimos and coals to Newcastle.”" ... "Today, Smith Frozen
Foods generates millions in income for the senator, according to Smith’s
2007 financial disclosure report." ... "And in this town, Smith’s wealth
looms large, even though the 56-year-old lawmaker seldom visits and calls
nearby Pendleton [Oregon] his home. According to the Center for Responsive
Politics, Smith is the 12th-richest member of the U.S. [United States]
Senate, with an estimated net worth between $8 million and $39 million—wealth
that’s allowed him to buy a $3.5 million mansion in Bethesda, Md. [Maryland],
property on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, a Park City, Utah, condominium
and—more famously—four antique golf clubs worth $1.25 million." ... "The
workers at Smith Frozen Foods, who clean the machinery, monitor production
and pack upward of 50 million pounds of produce each year, earn about $80
a day, four or five days a week, 10 months a year—if they’re lucky." ...
"One other thing—some of them appear to be illegal immigrants." ... "WW
recently spent several days in Weston, and the nearby cities of Milton-Freewater
[Oregon] and Walla Walla, Wash. [Washington], where most of Smith’s employees
live. WW spoke to dozens of current and former Smith workers, Latino advocates,
court personnel, public defenders, educators, police administrators, church
officials, social service agents and business owners and determined that
some portion of Smith’s workforce comprises undocumented immigrants." ...
"It’s a revelation that may not be newsworthy around Weston, where most
people this reporter interviewed knew, or assumed, that the agricultural
processing plant hired illegal immigrants." ... "Additional interviews
and review of public records reveal that Smith’s company appears to have
employed illegal immigrants for decades, stretching back as far as the
1980s." -By Beth
Slovic -WWeek.com
 Sarah
Palin - Money
- Politics
-  Children
-  Travel
- Meals
-  Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Palin
expensed her children's air travel to the state."
... "Since [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate and Alaska
Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin took office nearly two years ago, the state
of Alaska has routinely bought commercial airline tickets for her daughters
when they travel with her, a practice that raises questions about the governor's
claim to being a fiscal conservative." ... "Travel records from the governor's
office show that the state has spent at least $31,800 on dozens of airline
tickets for the family, and more for meals and hotels." ... "Records show
the family has traveled with Palin for events such as the Alaska Federation
of Natives convention in Fairbanks [Alaska] last fall and to shoot official
first family photos in Juneau [Alaska's capital], to draw raffle tickets
at an event in Anchorage [Alaska] and to tour a teen center spearheaded
by the Juneau Christian Center. " -By Kyle Hopkins
-ADN.com via -McClatchyDC.com
20080909
Sarah
Palin - Money- Politics
- Travel
- Food
- Family
-  Sports
-  Entertainment
- Alaska
-  New
York - 2008
Election
"Palin
Billed State for Nights Spent at Home: Taxpayers
Also Funded Family's Travel." ... "[2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential
Candidate and Governor of] Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has billed taxpayers
for 312 nights spent in her own home during her first 19 months in office,
charging a "per diem" allowance intended to cover meals and incidental
expenses while traveling on state business." ... "The governor also has
charged the state for travel expenses to take her children on official
out-of-town missions. And her husband, Todd, has billed the state for expenses
and a daily allowance for trips he makes on official business for his wife."
... "Palin, who earns $125,000 a year, claimed and received $16,951 as
her allowance, which officials say was permitted because her official "duty
station" is Juneau, according to an analysis of her travel documents by
The Washington Post." ... "The governor's daughters and husband charged
the state $43,490 to travel, and many of the trips were between their house
in Wasilla and Juneau, the capital city 600 miles away, the documents show."
... "She wrote some form of "Lodging -- own residence" or "Lodging -- Wasilla
residence" more than 30 times at the same time she took a per diem, according
to the reports. In two dozen undated amendments to the reports, the governor
deleted
the reference to staying in her home but still charged the per diem." ...
"Palin charged the state a per diem for working on Nov. 22, 2007 -- Thanksgiving
Day. The reason given, according to the expense report, was the Great Alaska
Shootout, an annual NCAA college basketball tournament held in Anchorage."
... "In separate filings, the state was billed about $25,000 for Palin's
daughters' expenses and $19,000 for her husband's." ... "One event was
in New York City in October 2007, when Bristol accompanied the governor
to Newsweek's third annual Women and Leadership Conference, toured the
New York Stock Exchange and met local officials and business executives.
The state paid for three nights in a $707-a-day hotel room." ... "The family
also charged for flights around the state, including trips to Alaska events
such as the start of the Iditarod dog-sled race and the Iron Dog snowmobile
race, a contest that Todd Palin won." (1, 2,
3)
-By James V. Grimaldi and Karl Vick with contribution
by Alice Crites -WashingtonPost
20080728
 Jim
Adkisson -  Terrorism
- Politics
-  Tennessee
- Church
- Gays
- Jobs
-  Government
- Food
- Money
"Tennessee
church shooter angry at "liberals"." ... "A man [Jim
Adkisson] who opened fire inside a church, killing two people with a shotgun
hidden in a guitar case, was frustrated at being unable to find a job and
blamed liberals and gays, police said on Monday." ... ""It appears that
what brought him to this horrible event was his lack of being able to obtain
a job, his frustration over that, and his stated hatred of the liberal
movement," Knoxville [Tennessee] Police Chief Sterling Owen told reporters
of Sunday's incident at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church."
... "Suspect Jim Adkisson...." ... "... described his violent plans in
a four-page letter found at his home, which also explained that his age
and "liberals and gays" taking jobs had worked against him." ... "Another
recent setback was that Adkisson's allotment of government-issued food
stamps had been reduced, Owen said." -By Andrew Stern
with contributions by Michael Conlon and Jackie Frank
-Reuters via -IHT.com
Jim
Adkisson - Political
- Terrorism
- Tennessee
- Out-of-Work- Homeless
- Food
- Gay
- Churchgoers
-  Women's
- Rights
- Children
"Police:
Man shot churchgoers over liberal views." ... "An
out-of-work truck driver accused of opening fire at a Unitarian church
[in Knoxville, Tennessee], killing two people, left behind a note suggesting
that he targeted the congregation out of hatred for its liberal policies,
including its acceptance of gays, authorities said Monday." ... "[Jim]
Adkisson, a 58-year-old truck driver on the verge of losing his food stamps,
had 76 rounds with him when he entered the church and pulled a shotgun
from a guitar case during a children's performance of the musical "Annie.""
... "The Unitarian-Universalist church advocates for women's rights and
gay rights and has provided sanctuary for political refugees. It also has
fed the homeless and founded a chapter of the American Civil Liberties
Union, according to its Web site." -By Duncan Mansfield
-AP via -Yahoo
20080715
Food
-  Safety
"Salmonella
Sickness Toll Climbs to 1,148: 42 states now reporting
illnesses; source still elusive." ... "The salmonella toll continues to
mount in what has become the largest foodborne outbreak in the United States
in more than a decade." ... "At least 220 people have been hospitalized."
... "Officials, meanwhile, appear no closer to zeroing in on the cause.
Last week, they broadened the search, which had focused on certain types
of tomatoes, to include jalapeno and serrano peppers and fresh cilantro."
... "Health officials continue to warn consumers to avoid raw red plum
tomatoes and red Roma and round red tomatoes, and products containing these
raw tomatoes." ... "But last week, CDC officials cautioned that people
at risk of infection, including infants and elderly people, should avoid
eating jalapeno and serrano peppers." ... "Salmonella is a bacteria that
can cause bloody diarrhea in humans." (1, 2)
-By Steven Reinberg -HealthDay.com
via -USNews.com
20080706
Food
- Safety
"Salmonella
outbreak: FDA looks at tomatoes, serrano, jalapeno peppers, cilantro."
... "The government on Saturday increased to 943 the number of people reported
being sickened in a record salmonella outbreak, in which tomatoes are the
leading suspect." ... "The Food and Drug Administration also said it had
begun looking at serrano and jalapeno peppers and cilantro —ingredients
used to make salsa—as possible causes of the outbreak. Tomatoes continue
to be investigated as well, spokeswoman Stephanie Kwisnek said." ... "The
943 reported cases are nationwide, requiring at least 130 hospitalizations
since mid-April after the first salmonella illnesses appeared, the FDA
said Saturday." -ChicagoTribune
20080702
 John
McCain -  Carl
H Lindner Jr - Terrorism
- Money
- Illegal
-  Military
- Politics
- Federal
-  Investigation
-  International
- Food
-  Colombia
-  US
-  Arizona
-  Ohio
- 2008
Election
"McCain
Backer's Firm Pleaded Guilty To Funding Terrorist Group In Colombia."
... "The co-host of a recent top-dollar fundraiser for [2008 Election Republican
Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain oversaw the
payment of roughly $1.7 million to a Colombian paramilitary group that
is today designated a terrorist organization by the United States." ...
"Carl H. Lindner Jr., the billionaire Cincinnati [Ohio] businessman, was
CEO [Chief Executive Officer] of Chiquita Brands International from 1984
to 2001, and remained on the company's board of directors until May 2002.
Beginning under his tenure, Chiquita executives paid hundreds of thousands
of dollars to the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (known by the
Spanish acronym AUC), which is described
by George Washington University's National Security Archive as an "illegal
right-wing anti-guerrilla group tied to many of the country's most notorious
civilian massacres."" ... "Following a Justice Department indictment
[pdf] last year, Chiquita admitted
to illegally funding the paramilitaries and agreed to pay a $25 million
fine. Chiquita's payments to the AUC began in 1997 and lasted seven years;
roughly half of the funds came after the group was designated
a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. State Department in 2001."
... "According to the Justice Department, the payments "were reviewed and
approved by senior executives" of Chiquita, who knew by no later than September
2000 "that the AUC was a violent, paramilitary organization."" ... "Late
last week, Lindner co-hosted a $25,000-per-person fundraiser for McCain
and the Republican Party in the wealthy Indian Hills neighborhood of Cincinnati,
Ohio. The event raised about $2 million; Lindner also serves on McCain's
Ohio Victory Team." ... "While Lindner was CEO of Chiquita, the company
began sending money to the AUC through its shipping subsidiary Banadex.
A report
by the Organization of American States states that Banadex also engaged
in arms trafficking, helping to deliver 3,000 Nicaraguan AK-47 rifles and
millions of rounds of ammunition to the AUC in 2001. According to federal
prosecutors, when company officials realized the arrangement was illegal,
they switched to making the payments in cash." -By
Nico
Pitney -HuffingtonPost.com
20080603
 Brazil
-  Satellite
- Photographs
- Global
- Climate
-  Gases
- Food
-  Animals
- Farming
- Illegal
- Business
"New
satellite photos show Amazon deforestation exploding."
... "New satellite photographs show that the destruction of Brazil's fragile
Amazon rainforest has exploded this year, fueling fears that the government's
efforts to stop deforestation have been fruitless." ... "Brazil's DETER
real-time monitoring system found that more than 430 square miles of forest,
an area a bit smaller than the city of Los Angeles, vanished in the month
of April, while about 2,300 square miles, larger than the state of Delaware,
were destroyed between last August and April." ... "That nine-month total
surpassed the entire acreage in the Amazon that was destroyed over the
previous 12 months, according to DETER data. What's worse, the satellites
couldn't see about half of the forest in April due to cloud cover, suggesting
that actual deforestation likely was much greater." ... "That's raised
red flags among environmentalists, who say that soybean farming, cattle
production and illegal logging are destroying the world's largest rainforest
despite the government's attempts to halt the deforestation." ... "Chopping
down and burning the rainforest releases tons of carbon dioxide and other
greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, contributing to global climate change.
Brazil is the world's fourth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, largely
because of deforestation, according to the U.S.-based World Resources Institute."
... "Worse is yet to come, environmentalists said." ... "The Amazon's dry
season, when farmers do most of their burning and clearing, starts this
month." -By Jack
Chang -McClatchyDC.com
20080523
-
John
McCain -
 Randy
Scheunemann -  Charlie
Black - Money
- Politics
- Foreign
-  Russia
-  Macedonia
-  Republic
of Georgia -  Zaire
is the Democratic Republic of the Congo - Military
- Food-  Indiana
- Arizona
- US
- 2008
Election - Law
- "Senior
Aide's Lobbying Efforts Highlight Challenge for McCain."
... "For a decade, [lobbyist] Randy Scheunemann has been a campaign staffer
to [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain, an ideological
ally in the fight to contain Russian power -- and a lobbyist seeking the
Arizona senator's support for former Soviet states." ... "The lobbying
group Mr. Scheunemann founded in 2001, Orion Strategies LLC [Limited Liability
Company], has earned $2.6 million from clients for whom Mr. Scheunemann
directly lobbied [Arizona Senator] Sen. McCain and his staff, Justice Department
records show." ... "In March, as scrutiny intensified, Mr. Scheunemann,
who is the campaign's top foreign-policy staffer, sent a letter to the
Justice Department's office for foreign-client lobbying registrations saying
he had stopped working for clients such as Macedonia and [the Republic
of] Georgia. However, his company's contracts with those countries, worth
a combined $240,000, appear still to be in effect. A spokeswoman for the
Georgian Embassy in Washington said the country's contract with Orion is
active. The Macedonian contract is listed as active in Justice Department
records." ... "Charlie Black, a McCain campaign senior adviser, has represented
foreign leaders accused of corruption and human-rights abuses, such as
Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire [now the Democratic Republic of the Congo]. He
ended his relationship with BKSH & Associates Worldwide this year.
Outside advisers and fund-raisers for the campaign include Wayne Berman,
a registered lobbyist for an Indiana food-packaging company that sells
to the Department of Defense." -By Mary Jacoby
-WSJ.com
20080509
-
Consumers
- Food
- Safety
-
 Humans
-  Health
- Law
- Politics
- Animals
- Agriculture
- Business
-  Kan
- US
-  Japan
- "Government
asks court to block wider testing for mad cow." ...
"The [Republican President] Bush administration on Friday urged a federal
appeals court to stop meatpackers from testing all their animals for mad
cow disease, but a skeptical judge questioned whether the government has
that authority." ... "The government seeks to reverse a lower court ruling
that allowed Arkansas City, Kan.[Kansas]-based Creekstone Farms Premium
Beef to conduct more comprehensive testing to satisfy demand from overseas
customers in Japan and elsewhere." ... "Less than 1 percent of slaughtered
cows are currently tested for the disease under Agriculture Department
guidelines. The agency argues that more widespread testing does not guarantee
food safety and could result in a false positive that scares consumers."
... "Mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, can be fatal
to humans who eat tainted beef. Three cases of mad cow disease have been
discovered in the U.S. [United States] since 2003." -By
Sam Hananel -AP
via -SFGate.com
20080430
-
Agriculture
- Factory
- Companies
- Poor
- People
- Nutrition
- Health
- US
-
- World
-  Biofuel
- Air
-  Soil
-  Water
-  Environment
- Animals
- Plants
-  Science
- "Shortages
Threaten Farmers’ Key Tool: Fertilizer." ... "Some
kinds of fertilizer have nearly tripled in price in the last year, keeping
farmers from buying all they need. That is one of many factors contributing
to a rise in food prices that, according to the United Nations’ World Food
Program, threatens to push tens of millions of poor people into malnutrition."
... "Rising demand for food and biofuels prompted farmers everywhere to
plant more crops." ... "Fertilizer companies are confident the shortage
will be solved eventually, noting that they plan to build scores of new
factories. But that will probably create fresh problems in the long run
as the world grows more dependent on fossil fuels to produce chemical fertilizers."
... "The demand for fertilizer has been driven by a confluence of events,
including population growth, shrinking world grain stocks and the appetite
for corn and palm oil to make biofuel. But experts say the biggest factor
has been the growing demand for food, especially meat, in the developing
world." ... "Fertilizer is plant food, a combination of nutrients added
to soil to help plants grow. The three most important are nitrogen, phosphorus
and potassium. The latter two have long been available. But nitrogen in
a form that plants can absorb is scarce, and the lack of it led to low
crop yields for centuries." ... "That limitation ended in the early 20th
century with the invention of a procedure, now primarily fueled by natural
gas, that draws chemically inert nitrogen from the air and converts it
into a usable form." ... "Environmental groups fear increased use, particularly
of nitrogen fertilizer made using fossil fuels. Because plants do not absorb
all the nitrogen, much of it leaches into streams and groundwater. That
runoff has long been recognized as a major pollution problem, and it is
growing." ... "A barometer of the pollution is the rising number of dead
zones where rivers meet the sea. In the Gulf of Mexico, for instance, nitrogen
runoff from fields in the Corn Belt washes downstream and feeds plant life
in the gulf. The algae blooms suck oxygen from the water, killing other
marine life." (1, 2)
-By Keith
Bradsher and Andrew
Martin -NYTimes
20080423
-
Noteworthy
- Government
- EPA
- Opinion
- Science
- Politics
- Food
-
 Drug
- Oceanic
- Atmospheric
- Climate
- Health
-  California
- Investigation
- "Hundreds
of EPA Scientists Report Political Interference Over Last Five Years:
UCS [Union of Concerned Scientists] calls for strengthened protections
for federal scientists." ... "An investigation of the Environmental Protection
Agency released today found that 889 of nearly 1,600 staff scientists reported
that they experienced political interference in their work over the last
five years. The study, by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), follows
previous UCS investigations of the Food and Drug Administration, Fish and
Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and
climate scientists at seven federal agencies, which also found significant
administration manipulation of federal science." ... ""Our investigation
found an agency in crisis," said Francesca Grifo, director of UCS's Scientific
Integrity Program. "Nearly 900 EPA scientists reported political interference
in their scientific work. That's 900 too many. Distorting science to accommodate
a narrow political agenda threatens our environment, our health, and our
democracy itself."" ... "The UCS report comes amidst a flurry of controversial
activity swirling around the EPA. Congress is currently investigating administration
interference in a new chemical toxicity review process as well as California's
request to regulate tailpipe emissions. And in early May, the House Oversight
and Government Reform Committee is expected to hold a hearing on political
interference in the new EPA ground-level ozone pollution standard." ...
"UCS's investigation revealed political interference is most pronounced
in offices where scientists write regulations and at the National Center
for Environmental Assessment, where scientists conduct risk assessments
that could lead to strengthened regulations." ... ""The investigation shows
researchers are generally continuing to do their work," said Dr. Grifo.
"But their scientific findings are tossed aside when it comes time to write
regulations."" ... "Nearly 100 scientists identified the [Republican President
Bush's] White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as the primary
culprit." -UCSUSA.org
20080421
-
Global
- Planet
- Oil
- Food
- Agriculture
-
 Car
- Economy
-  China
- "Running
Out of Planet to Exploit." ... "Last week, oil hit
$117." ... "Food prices have also soared, as have the prices of basic metals.
And the global surge in commodity prices is reviving a question we haven’t
heard much since the 1970s: Will limited supplies of natural resources
pose an obstacle to future world economic growth?" ... "How you answer
this question depends largely on what you believe is driving the rise in
resource prices. Broadly speaking, there are three competing views." ...
"The first is that it’s mainly speculation — that investors, looking for
high returns at a time of low interest rates, have piled into commodity
futures, driving up prices." ... "The second view is that soaring resource
prices do, in fact, have a basis in fundamentals — especially rapidly growing
demand from newly meat-eating, car-driving Chinese — but that given time
we’ll drill more wells, plant more acres, and increased supply will push
prices right back down again." ... "The third view is that the era of cheap
resources is over for good — that we’re running out of oil, running out
of land to expand food production and generally running out of planet to
exploit." ... "I find myself somewhere between the second and third views."
... "There are some very smart people — not least, George Soros — who believe
that we’re in a commodities bubble (although Mr. Soros says that the bubble
is still in its “growth phase”)." -By Paul
Krugman -NYTimes
20080417
-
- 
-  Media
- Politics
- Corporate
-  Network
- 2008
Election - 
-
- 
-
- Torture
-
- Human
Rights -
- Consumer
-
- 
- Safety
-
-
- 
- Death
Penalty - "Okay,
Now I'm Bitter." [Mary Mapes on what
DISNEY/ABC didn't cover in the 2008 Election Democratic Presidential
Candidate debate in Pennsylvania with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama]
... "In Iraq, we've seen a rebound in suicide bombings and gotten the disquieting
information that Iraqi soldiers have been fleeing the battlefield in frightening
numbers." ... "Americans learned that detailed discussions of torture techniques
had been held in the [Republican President] White House -- our White House
-- and President Bush revealed that he knew this and approved." ... "[Home]
Foreclosure rates have spiked to frightening levels." ... "U.S. [United
States] shoppers were told that food prices in this country are rising
at a higher pace than at any time in the past 17 years." ... "The airline
industry floundered through dreadful days of groundings, amidst safety
concerns, economic ailments and passenger anger." ... "Oil prices are setting
new records almost every day and $4 a gallon gas is coming soon to a service
station near you." ... "The anguish over China's human rights record and
its handling of Tibet turned the Olympic torch relay into a cross between
Spain's Running of the Bulls and 3rd grade keep-away." ... "[2008 Election
Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain, acting like a mean old
man trying to chase those pesky voters off his lawn, refused to endorse
a new GI bill that would help those currently serving our country get a
college education." ... "The Supreme Court issued a fractured opinion on
the death penalty that for the first time in years raises the real possibility
of a national debate on the value and morality of the ultimate punishment."
... "And we are in the middle of what is clearly the most important, most
consequential election of my lifetime -- and I'm no spring chicken." ...
"Instead, I sat in front of my TV open-mouthed, listening to a hodgepodge
of juvenile questions about flag jewelry, the possibility of a "dream"
ticket, elderly radicals, Charlie Gibson's personal tax concerns and ministers
who emote too much. What, no time for a question about Cindy McCain's purloined
pork chop recipe?" -By Mary Mapes
-HuffingtonPost.com
20080414
-
Emergency
- Economy
- Politics
-
 Haiti
-  Bangladesh
-  Egypt
- United
States - World
- Poor
- People
- Historical
-
- Children
- Health
- Mind
- "Riots,
instability spread as food prices skyrocket." ...
"Riots from Haiti to Bangladesh to Egypt over the soaring costs of basic
foods have brought the issue to a boiling point and catapulted it to the
forefront of the world's attention, the head of an agency focused on global
development said Monday." ... ""This is the world's big story," said Jeffrey
Sachs, director of Columbia University's Earth Institute." ... ""The finance
ministers were in shock, almost in panic this weekend," he said on CNN's
"American Morning," in a reference to top economic officials who gathered
in Washington. "There are riots all over the world in the poor countries
... and, of course, our own poor are feeling it in the United States.""
... "World Bank President Robert Zoellick has said the surging costs could
mean "seven lost years" in the fight against worldwide poverty." ... ""The
international community must fill the at least $500 million food gap identified
by the U.N.'s [United Nations] World Food Programme to meet emergency needs,"
he said. "Governments should be able to come up with this assistance and
come up with it now."" ... ""In just two months," Zoellick said in his
speech, "rice prices have skyrocketed to near historical levels, rising
by around 75 percent globally and more in some markets, with more likely
to come. In Bangladesh, a 2-kilogram bag of rice ... now consumes about
half of the daily income of a poor family."" ... "The price of wheat has
jumped 120 percent in the past year, he said -- meaning that the price
of a loaf of bread has more than doubled in places where the poor spend
as much as 75 percent of their income on food." ... ""This is not just
about meals forgone today or about increasing social unrest. This is about
lost learning potential for children and adults in the future, stunted
intellectual and physical growth," Zoellick said."
-CNN
-
Consumer
- Money
- History
- Poor
- Families
- Agriculture
- "Food
Costs Rising Fastest in 17 Years." ... "The U.S.
[United States] is wrestling with the worst food inflation in 17 years,
and analysts expect new data due on Wednesday to show it's getting worse.
That's putting the squeeze on poor families and forcing bakeries, bagel
shops and delis to explain price increases to their customers." ... "U.S.
food prices rose 4 percent in 2007, compared with an average 2.5 percent
annual rise for the last 15 years, according to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. And the agency says 2008 could be worse, with a rise of as
much as 4.5 percent." ... "Eggs cost 25 percent more in February than they
did a year ago, according to the USDA [United States Department of Agriculture].
Milk and other dairy products jumped 13 percent, chicken and other poultry
nearly 7 percent." -By Ellen Simon
-AP via -SFGate.com
20080410
-
Food
- Safety
- History
- "U.S.
Hasn't Put Lid on Food Poisonings: Nation's Food
Safety Not Improving, According to Latest CDC [Centers for Disease Control]
Report That Shows No Drop in Food Poisoning Cases." ... "Efforts to improve
U.S. [United States] food safety have not yet borne fruit, a new CDC report
shows." ... "The CDC's Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network,
called FoodNet, began tracking cases of food-borne illnesses in 1996 in
10 U.S. states. The idea is to track infection trends for the 10 most important
causes of food poisoning." ... "The 2007 FoodNet numbers are here." ...
"... [T]here has been no significant improvement since 2004. Compared with
2004-2006, there's been no real decline in cases of food-borne disease
caused by campylobacter, listeria, salmonella, shigella, E. coli,
vibrio, or yersinia bacteria." ... "Cases of infection with the waterborne
parasite cryptosporidium went up...[.]" ... "2007 was also a year in which
there were several widespread outbreaks of salmonella infection, including
outbreaks from contaminated peanut butter, frozen pot pies, puffed vegetable
snacks, and live pet turtles." -By Daniel J. DeNoon
-WebMD.com
20080331
-
Government
- Food
- People
- Families
- Poverty
- Disasters
- Fuel
- Prices
- Politics
- History
- "As
Jobs Vanish and Prices Rise, Food Stamp Use Nears Record."
... "Driven by a painful mix of layoffs and rising food and fuel prices,
the number of Americans receiving food stamps is projected to reach 28
million in the coming year, the highest level since the aid program began
in the 1960s." ... "The number of recipients, who must have near-poverty
incomes to qualify for benefits averaging $100 a month per family member,
has fluctuated over the years along with economic conditions, eligibility
rules, enlistment drives and natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina,
which led to a spike in the South." ... "But recent rises in many states
appear to be resulting mainly from the economic slowdown, officials and
experts say, as well as inflation in prices of basic goods that leave more
families feeling pinched. Citing expected growth in unemployment, the Congressional
Budget Office this month projected a continued increase in the monthly
number of recipients in the next fiscal year, starting Oct. 1 — to 28 million,
up from 27.8 million in 2008, and 26.5 million in 2007." ... "The percentage
of Americans receiving food stamps was higher after a recession in the
1990s, but actual numbers are expected to be higher this year." -By
Erik
Eckholm -NYTimes
-
Food
- Agriculture
- Plant
- Land
- History
- Ethanol
- Companies
- Animal
- Consumers
- "Corn
forecast suggests rise in food prices is ahead."
... "U.S. [United States] farmers plan to cut back corn planting and boost
soybean production, a shift that could send ripples from the farm belt
to your grocery bills." ... "The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday
released its prospective plantings report. The report, which came amid
surging grain prices, bore news that affects grain farmers, livestock producers,
ethanol companies, food processors and, ultimately, consumers." ... "Corn
plantings are expected to fall 8 percent this year, to 86 million acres,
according to the Department of Agriculture. Last year farmers planted a
post-World War II record of nearly 94 million acres of corn to meet burgeoning
demand for ethanol, which is expected to soon absorb about 30 percent of
domestic corn production." ... "“Last year many soybean growers switched
from soybeans to corn as ethanol expansion strongly increased the demand
for corn,” the Department of Agriculture said." ... "This year, though,
many of the 86,000 farmers surveyed for the report said they were shifting
production back toward soybeans, which had surged in price. Soybean planting
is expected to increase 18 percent this year, to almost 75 million acres."
... "Corn is trading near its record-high price of $5.70 a bushel, more
than double the price of two years ago. Soybeans are hovering around $12
a bushel, nearly double last year’s level." (1, 2)
-By Victoria Sizemore Long
-KansasCity.com
-
Food
- Crisis
- World
- People
- Farmers
- Land
- Fuel
- Money
- Politics
- History
- Weather
- Drought
- China
- UN
- "Tensions
rise as world faces short rations." ... "Food prices
are soaring, a wealthier Asia is demanding better food and farmers can't
keep up. In short, the world faces a food crisis and in some places it's
already boiling over." ... "Around the globe, people are protesting and
governments are responding with often counterproductive controls on prices
and exports -- a new politics of scarcity in which ensuring food supplies
is becoming a major challenge for the 21st century." ... "Plundered by
severe weather in producing countries and by a boom in demand from fast-developing
nations, the world's wheat stocks are at 30-year lows. Grain prices have
been on the rise for five years, ending decades of cheap food." ... "Drought,
a declining dollar, a shift of investment money into commodities and use
of farm land to grow fuel have all contributed to food woes. But population
growth and the growing wealth of China and other emerging countries are
likely to be more enduring factors." ... "World population is set to hit
9 billion by 2050, and most of the extra 2.5 billion people will live in
the developing world. It is in these countries that the population is demanding
dairy and meat, which require more land to produce." ... "In 2007 alone,
according to the U.N. [United Nations] Food and Agriculture Organization's
world food index, dairy prices rose nearly 80 percent and grain 42 percent."
[see also: Agflation]
(1, 2,
3,
4,
5)
-By Russell Blinch and Brian Love with contributions
by Ayesha Rascoe, Missy Ryan, Alistair Thomson, Ho Binh Minh and Eddie
Evans -Reuters
20080313
-
Federal
- Food
- Safety
- History
- Agriculture
- Animal
- Corporation
- Politics
- California
- "House
grills meat packing chief: 'Downer' cow beef may
have been consumed." ... "The president of the company that was the subject
of the largest meat recall in U.S. history admitted Wednesday that "downer"
cattle -- cows that cannot stand because of sickness or injury -- were
slaughtered by his company and could have made it into the food supply."
... "Steve Mendell of California-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Packing Co.
made the concession to the House Oversight and Investigations subcommittee
after he was shown a video provided by the Humane Society of the United
States that featured a downer cow being slaughtered in a kill box." ...
"Under pressure from federal agriculture officials, the company recalled
143 million pounds of ground beef last month and laid off 220 workers."
... "Ailing cows are at greater risk of carrying E. coli, salmonella bacteria
and the fatal neurological disorder known as mad cow disease." -By
Whitney Blair Wyckoff -LAtimes
-ChicagoTribune
20080214
-
John
McCain
- Torture
- Prisoners
- Food
- Water
- Medical
- Politics
- 2008
Election - "
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