Tag: Food Issues

RFK, Jr To HHS

The newest addition to the Trump cabinet or as I call it the Council of Useful Idiots, will be the anti-vaxxer RFK, Jr.

Be prepared for more health disasters and assaults on Medicare and dangerous food…..but the biggest problem I see is like some many of Trump’s nominees RFK,Jr has NO credentials to run the office of HHS

But I digress.

President-elect Trump continued his stream of controversial Cabinet appointments on Thursday, saying he was “thrilled” to announce that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be his nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

  • “For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health,” Trump said in a statement on Truth Social. “The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country. Mr. Kennedy will restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!”
  • If he is confirmed, Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, will lead a massive agency that “oversees everything from drug, vaccine, and food safety to medical research and the social safety net programs Medicare and Medicaid,” the AP reports. After Kennedy dropped his independent presidential campaign and gave Trump his endorsement, Trump said he would let Kennedy “go wild” on health policy. Republican Sen. John Cornyn said Kennedy would be treated like any other nominee during the confirmation process, Politico reports. Asked if some of Kennedy’s positions, including his claims that vaccines cause autism, would be a problem, Cornyn said, “I’m sure it will come up.”

So far the Council of Useful Idiots is made up of boot lickers and ass kissers….what a great cabinet we will have.

Where will the nation’s health suffer?  How many preventable disease will run rampant?  What about our food supply, will it be safe or will it become dangerous like so many third world countries that do not have safeguards?

Trump is putting the very ignorant people that voted for him in danger….I hope they are happy with their choice.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

What To Do About Food Prices

This subject is on anybody’s mind that has to eat….the risen food prices…..I recently explained just how much the prices have risen since the last election in 2020….

Food Prices Are Too Damn High

It has been predicted that if the government gets involved that it could have long ranging consequences…..but apparently Americans want relief not downer predictions.

A recent poll by a group called Data For Progress shows just how widespread the desire for the government to do something for a little relief….

69% of respondents — including a majority of Democrats and Republicans — said the government “should do more to regulate grocery stores that raise prices to maximize profits.”

The survey, conducted from May 10 to 11, sampled 1,168 likely voters from around the country and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points. A slightly larger share of respondents, 71%, said the government should “do more to regulate corporate food producers that raise prices to maximize profits.” This figure included a majority of Democrats and Republicans.

The survey, conducted from May 10 to 11, sampled 1,168 likely voters from around the country and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points. A slightly larger share of respondents, 71%, said the government should “do more to regulate corporate food producers that raise prices to maximize profits.” This figure included a majority of Democrats and Republicans.

Dems are getting involved by requesting the Biden use his pen to give some relief…..

Joe Biden encouraging the Biden-Harris administration to use its executive authority to take robust actions to lower food prices for families. In the letter, the lawmakers note how corporations have been raking in record profits while families are being hit with higher costs for groceries, and they outline several executive actions that the Biden administration should take.

“The federal government should use every possible tool to lower food prices,” wrote the lawmakers. “We believe you can exercise your executive authority to take additional action to address rising food prices without congressional action.”

Americans are facing sky-high food prices, caused by excessive price gouging by food and grocery giants. A small group of players dominate those industries: four grocery retailers account for over a third of national grocery sales and four food companies control more than 60 percent of sales in most grocery categories. As a result, consumers are spending more of their income on food than they have in the past 30 years.

In the letter, the lawmakers urge the administration to leverage the full scope of their executive authority and consider the following proposals:

  1. Encourage the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to prohibit exclusionary contracting by dominant firms in the food industry.
  2. Encourage the FTC to issue guidance on potential violations of the Robinson Patman Act and Section 5 of the FTC Act within the food industry, and investigate and take enforcement action where merited.
  3. Work with USDA to increase the number of government contract recipients that are very small businesses.
  4. Work with USDA to ensure that technical factors reflect the long-term costs of food sector consolidation.
  5. Urge the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FTC to scrutinize, and where appropriate, block mergers and acquisitions in the food and agricultural sectors.
  6. Encourage the DOJ to prosecute actors in the agricultural and food sectors for price fixing and other anticompetitive behavior.
  7. Direct the CFTC and FTC to form a joint task force to investigate food price manipulation throughout the supply chain.

I say bully for them for wanting try and help out working families that are struggling while Congress fiddles.

Maybe look beyond Congress to other countries that are handling food prices….let’s begin with France.

France has set up a food pricing system that will sound foreign to American ears: Consumer goods companies like PepsiCo must negotiate with the country’s grocery stores on prices in the stores during a set period. If they can’t come to a compromise, PepsiCo won’t be able to get its products on the grocer’s shelves. The negotiations provide French consumers with a small but valuable piece of power, and President Emmanuel Macron has been trying to use the system to his advantage as he aggressively pushes to get the country’s high food prices down, saying they should reflect the fact that the prices of many raw materials have recently declined. 

https://www.vice.com/en/article/88×783/how-the-us-government-could-lower-food-prices-for-everyone

I know some will point to 1971….but people struggling do not care about 1971….all that is on their minds right now is some damn relief from the price gouging that food distributors and sales are enjoying with impunity.

Working families do not care what action by the president does to the markets….if they can afford to put food on the table then the president has done the proper thing.

Something needs doing….someone needs to step up….relief is much needed and will be appreciated.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Judge Has Made His Ruling

Sunday FYI here.

May I see a show of hands?

How many of you think this is a post about Donald the Orange and his legal theater of the absurd?

Sorry to disappoint but I would rather take a foot to the ‘nads than write about that garbage.

No this judge has ruled on an age old question that has been nagging humanity for a very long time……is a taco a sandwich?

Since before the pandemic, Martin Quintana has been trying to get zoning approval in Fort Wayne, Indiana, to open a second location for The Famous Taco, his Mexican-style eatery serving up tacos, burritos, and the like. This week, a judge finally issued a ruling that clears the path for that—with a critical proclamation that tacos are, indeed, sandwiches. More on the case:

  • Initial agreement: In 2019, Quintana first put in his request to open another Famous Taco location, but to get the OK, he had to sign a written deal that his new place would be a “sandwich bar-style” venue serving up “made-to-order” sandwiches, according to court documents cited by the Courier Journal. The argument then became “is a taco a sandwich,” Quintana’s reps said in those docs.
  • Restrictions: Per the Journal Gazette, the written commitment specifically cites examples like Subway or Jimmy John’s as examples of eateries that would be OK under the deal, while other types of fast-food restaurants would not be. Sandwich shops covered by the agreement also can’t have drive-thrus or outdoor seating and can’t serve booze.
  • Suit: Quintana said that the local Covington Creek Association informed him that his plan for the new Famous Taco “ran afoul” of the agreement he’d signed, and so his team offered an amendment to the agreement that would permit him to sell that type of food. In December 2022, he filed a civil lawsuit against the Fort Wayne Plan Commission for rejecting that amendment, per the AP.
  • Decision day: On Monday, Judge Craig Bobay of Allen Superior Court sided with Quintana, ruling that Quintana’s planned eatery actually conformed to the original written commitment and didn’t even need an amendment. “The Court agrees with Quintana that tacos and burritos are Mexican-style sandwiches, and the original Written Commitment does not restrict potential restaurants to only American cuisine-style sandwiches,” Bobay wrote in his decision. He added that restaurants serving “made-to-order Greek gyros, Indian naan wraps, or Vietnamese banh mi” would also fall under this umbrella, as long as they met other spelled-out conditions.
  • Reaction: Quintana, who came to the US from Mexico in 1988 and toiled as a farmworker before getting into the restaurant industry, says he’s thrilled with the decision and plans to open up his new place before the end of the summer. “I’m glad this thing is over. We are happy,” he tells the AP.

Whew!  I am so glad this issue has been settled for it was keeping me up most nights trying to decide for myself.

And now we know!

On a side note….keeping with the FYI thing….the annual report is out for the weather this Summer….

The federal Climate Prediction Center has updated its summer forecast, and it’s hotter and drier than the last one. The predictions show almost every state moving toward a hotter-than-normal June, July, and August, the Hill reports. That would mean this summer could be a lot like summer 2023, which a study has found was the Northern Hemisphere’s hottest in more than 2,000 years. And then there’s La Niña, which looks like it’ll become a factor between July and September. La Niña years can mean drought conditions for the southern half of the country, including Southern California and the Southwest, as well as a stronger hurricane season in the Atlantic.

The best chances of an unusually hot summer are in the West, with Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of Colorado having a 60% to 70% likelihood. At the same time, the region is looking likely to have below-normal precipitation, which could lead to drought conditions there. The Northeast also is looking like it will be hot. Betting is even on a few places, per the Hill. The center gives North Dakota, South Dakota, and parts of Minnesota and Iowa equal chances of having a normal summer, hotter-than-average summer, or cooler-than-average summer.

Not a good prediction for me since I live at the northern end of Hurricane Ally…..the heat prediction is not good either….last year we had a day that topped 120…..those days are very uncomfortable for an old fart like me.

I hope your region has a better forecast than mine.

Sorry to be a bummer….but please enjoy your Sunday…..and as always…..Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Food For Thought

It is another lovely Sunday here in South Mississippi and I will be grilling my ass off…..burgers, sausage, and kebobs……then I thought what better subject on this day than some food thoughts…..

Some food FYI, if you will….

Since I will be cooking burgers that is where I will start….

Ever wanted to make your burgers more juicy?

There’s nothing like a good burger. Satisfying, savory, and with a variety of potential toppings, the American culinary staple and classic diner favorite is delicious at every degree of doneness. But whether your preference is a juicy, medium-rare patty or you emphatically swear by the robust flavor of a well-done patty, chances are you’ve excitedly bitten into a burger once or twice only to find it unpleasantly tough and way too chewy.

But what if there was an infallible method by which to ensure your ground beef recipe ends up juicy and tender? There is, and you likely have its main ingredient your kitchen cabinet right now: baking soda. That’s right, among the many unexpected ways to cook with baking soda, it turns out that using the familiar kitchen staple as a quick and effective meat tenderizer can preserve the juiciness of your ground beef, as well as chicken, steak, and other meats. Because baking soda neutralizes the acid in the meat and prevents it from becoming tough when cooked, using it as your go-to meat tenderizer just might be the game-changing hack to the best burger you’ve never cooked.

Read More: https://www.thedailymeal.com/1548606/browning-baking-soda-burger-meat/

I add about a 1/4 teaspoon of Bourbon to my meat as I am mixing it.

As long as I am talking about cooking meat….Have you heard about searing your steak to lock in flavor?

You might not be doing the right thing.

It’s important to sear your steak on high heat because that’s how you lock in the juices, right? Wrong: The idea that a sizzling-hot sear creates some kind of seal that holds in a meat’s moisture is considered a myth by those in the know. (This doesn’t mean searing is bad, but its advantages lie elsewhere — and we’ll touch on that later.)

The myth can partly be debunked just by looking and listening to a steak as it sears: Squeeze it downwards, and juices still seep out. The steak also sizzles the whole time it’s in the pan, and that hissing is the sound of water (i.e., juices) evaporating. That’s not definitive proof, since maybe the idea of a “seal” isn’t meant literally — but when Serious Eats put this myth to the test by searing and then roasting a cut of meat — and then trying the same in reverse — it found that the meat seared first ended up with 1.68% less juice than the one that was roasted first.

So, searing first may even make for a drier steak — and sure, that kind of tiny difference isn’t statistically significant, but if searing did what the myth claims, the end product should be noticeably juicier. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t sear steak — many recipes still hold it up as an ideal cooking method for your meat, but you might still get a juicy result with other techniques.

Read More: https://www.chowhound.com/1560060/myth-searing-steak-juices/

Do you like fried eggs?

Eggs and toast or a fried egg sandwich, which is a true art form to get it right….

It’s hard to beat the satisfaction of a perfectly fried egg with its delightfully crispy edges and bright, creamy yolk. And while it’s definitely a dish worth mastering at home, the right technique can be frustratingly elusive. There’s a long list of ways you can go wrong, and chances are you’re making at least one mistake without even knowing it.

But have no fear, because we’re here to guide you to make fried eggs more easily than you ever thought possible. We’ll walk you through the most common mistakes people make when frying eggs and arm you with the tools you need to avoid them. Stick with us, and you’ll be serving up truly egg-cellent eggs in no time for Sunday brunch, weekday breakfasts, and every occasion in between. And now that we’ve gotten that egg pun out of our system, we promise you won’t have to endure any others to come

Read More: https://www.mashed.com/768020/big-mistakes-everyone-makes-when-frying-eggs/

Now that I have helped with your food cooking needs I will bow out for this Sunday….trying to recover from the chair incident.

I hope everyone enjoys their day and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

That Morning Cup Of “Joe”

Yep that time again, Sunday and a day of either FYI or history, sometimes both.

I believe it was last Sunday that I wrote about the dangers lurking in decaf coffee……

Decaf Drinkers Beware!

I truly adore my cups of coffee in the mornings it makes the day a bit brighter…..but what do you know about coffee other than it is a great starter for the day?

The bad news is that there could be higher prices on the horizon….the Eastern horizon….

Coffee prices this morning are sharply higher, with arabica climbing to a 1-1/2 year high and robusta coffee posting a new all-time high. Coffee crop concerns in Brazil and Vietnam are fueling fund buying of coffee futures. Somar Meteorologia reported Monday that Brazil’s Minas Gerais region received 15.8 mm of rainfall in the past week, or 74% of the historical average. Minas Gerais accounts for about 30% of Brazil’s arabica crop. Robusta coffee is surging to new record highs on fears that excessive dryness in Vietnam will limit the country’s robusta coffee production.

Tight robusta coffee supplies from Vietnam, the world’s largest producer of robusta coffee beans, are a major bullish factor. On March 26, Vietnam’s agriculture department projected that Vietnam’s coffee production in the 2023/24 crop year could drop by -20% to 1.472 MMT, the smallest crop in four years, due to drought. Also, the Vietnam Coffee Association said that Vietnam’s 2023/24 coffee exports could drop -20% y/y to 1.336 MM. In addition, Marex Group Plc forecasts a global 2024/25 robusta coffee deficit of -2.7 million bags due to reduced output in Vietnam.

https://www.barchart.com/story/news/25518464/coffee-prices-surge-on-global-crop-concerns

You are in luck on this Sunday I can fill a few of your knowledge gaps about this magical elixir……

That coffee you slurped this morning? It’s 600,000 years old. Using genes from coffee plants around the world, researchers built a family tree for the world’s most popular type of coffee, known to scientists as Coffea arabica and to coffee lovers simply as “arabica,” the AP reports. The researchers, hoping to learn more about the plants to better protect them from pests and climate change, found that the species emerged around 600,000 years ago through natural crossbreeding of two other coffee species. “In other words, prior to any intervention from man,” said Victor Albert, a biologist at the University at Buffalo who co-led the study. published Monday in the journal Nature Genetics.

  • These wild coffee plants originated in Ethiopia but are thought to have been first roasted and brewed primarily in Yemen starting in the 1400s. In the 1600s, Indian monk Baba Budan is fabled to have smuggled seven raw coffee beans back to his homeland from Yemen, laying the foundation for coffee’s global takeover.
  • Arabica coffee, prized for its smooth and relatively sweet flavor, now makes up 60% to 70% of the global coffee market and is brewed by brands such as Starbucks, Tim Horton’s, and Dunkin. The rest is robusta, a stronger and more bitter coffee made from one of arabica’s parents, Coffea canephora.
  • The arabica plant’s population fluctuated over thousands of years before humans began cultivating it, flourishing during warm, wet periods and suffering through dry ones. These lean times created so-called population bottlenecks, when only a small number of genetically similar plants survived. Today, that renders arabica coffee plants more vulnerable to diseases like coffee leaf rust, which cause billions of dollars in losses every year.
  • Researchers from Nestlé, which owns several coffee brands, contributed to the study. The study clarifies how arabica came to be and spotlights clues that could help safeguard the crop, said Fabian Echeverria, an adviser for the Center for Coffee Research and Education at Texas A&M University who was not involved with the research.

I have given you the good news and the bad and even threw in a little history….but now the question is what makes coffee taste so damn good?

What is the best way to tell how a coffee is going to taste before you make it? Contrary to belief, the flavor of your coffee isn’t always determined by where it came from. It’s a combination of the microclimate the coffee plant grew up in, nutrient levels in the soil, age of the plant, rainfall (or lack thereof), roast level and one hundred and one other variables that shape and reshape the bean within the coffee plant’s fruit.

But there’s an argument to be made that no variable — other than maybe roast level — has a more plainly noticeable effect on coffee flavor as the “process,” something that’s stamped on any decent bag of coffee, which simply refers to how the coffee bean is removed from the cherry.

https://www.gearpatrol.com/home/natural-vs-washed-coffee/

Now that I have given you the history and the important questions I would like to close with some medical news about coffee….

Coffee is one of the world’s most popular beverages, cherished for its flavor and the boost of alertness it offers thanks to its caffeine content.

Recent research has highlighted another potential benefit of coffee: its association with a lower risk of developing liver disease.

This article explores the evidence behind this finding, offering insights into how drinking coffee could help protect liver health.

The liver is a crucial organ that plays a vital role in filtering toxins, aiding digestion, and regulating metabolism.

Liver disease includes a range of conditions such as hepatitis, fatty liver disease, and cirrhosis, which can progressively damage the liver, impairing its ability to function effectively. Finding ways to prevent liver disease is therefore of significant interest in medical research

https://knowridge.com/2024/04/coffee-and-liver-health-a-surprising-connection/

Damn!  Time for another cup!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday….if weather permits go out and enjoy the day…. and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Decaf Drinkers Beware!

It is another Sunday and a day where I try to be informative…..so today instead of history it will be an FYI.

I admit it I love a good cup of coffee…..when my blood pressure went high my doctor said I needed to cut out salt (no problem for I use very little salt) and to cut my coffee drinking….so under his advice I went to decaf, I would rather drink urinal water then this stuff and then Sue got me some half-caf, better than decaf but still lacked taste….for you see I drink my coffee straight….no milk, no sugar, no flavors of any sort….so taste is important to me….after about a month I chanced it and went back to real coffee (actually Sue got it for me for she was tired of my ‘bitchiness’).

Now that I have given you my diatribe of coffee maybe it is time for me to get to the point……

So if you are a drinker of decaf coffee you might want to pay attention….

For fans of decaffeinated coffee, we have some bad news.

The not-so-buzzy version of coffee can harbor a chemical that can cause cancer, CNN reports, which has health and environmental activists pushing to have the substance banned for its use in making decaf coffee.

Methylene chloride is the substance in question and it’s used by coffee roasters to remove caffeine from coffee beans. It’s also utilized as a solvent in various manufacturing and commercial processes, but the federal government banned its use as a paint stripper in 2019 and is now considering an almost complete kibosh on its use for consumers and industry except in limited settings.

The reason? Short-term exposure to the chemical, research shows, can harm your central nervous system. And being exposed to the chemical for a longer period can induce liver and lung cancers, as well as liver damage more generally.

https://futurism.com/neoscope/decaf-coffee-cancer

My taste buds saved me from this worry….and I thank them.

As long as I have you here and interested….

Is there a coffee apocalypse coming?

When Henri Kunz was growing up in West Germany in the 1980s, he used to drink an instant coffee substitute called Caro, a blend of barley, chicory root, and rye roasted to approximate the deep color and invigorating flavor of real coffee. “We kids drank it,” Kunz remembered recently. “It had no caffeine, but it tasted like coffee.”

As an adult, Kunz loves real coffee. But he also believes that its days are numbered. Climate change is expected to shift the areas where coffee can grow, with some researchers estimating that the most suitable land for coffee will shrink by more than half by 2050 and that hotter temperatures will make the plants more vulnerable to pests, blight, and other threats. At the same time, demand for coffee is growing, as upwardly mobile people in traditionally tea-drinking countries in Asia develop a taste for java.

“The difference between demand and supply will go like that,” Kunz put it during a Zoom interview, crossing his arms in front of his chest to form an X, like the “no-good” emoji. Small farmers could face crop failures just as millions of new people develop a daily habit, potentially sending coffee prices soaring to levels that only the wealthy will be able to afford.

To stave off the looming threats, some agricultural scientists are hard at work breeding climate-resilient, high-yield varieties of coffee. Kunz, the founder and chair of a “flavor engineering” company called Stem, thinks he can solve many of these problems by growing coffee cells in a laboratory instead of on a tree. A number of other entrepreneurs are taking a look at coffee substitutes of yore, like the barley beverage Kunz grew up drinking, with the aim of using sustainable ingredients to solve coffee’s environmental problems—and adding caffeine to reproduce its signature jolt.

https://slate.com/human-interest/2024/04/coffee-cup-best-bean-brand-climate.html

Damn climate change!

I shall continue to drink that magical brew until my last breath or until I can longer afford it whichever comes first.

A little FYI for my readers….have a marvelous Sunday and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

What Can Biden Do?

Get ready for a little history.

Last week I posted on the high cost of food and a loyal reader and commenter Grouchy Farmer, https://grouchyfarmer.com/ and I had conversation on how these prices could be controlled a bit…..I brought up that Nixon had done something in 1973 with the Executive Order process.

Nixon’s Executive Order 11723 states….

SECTION 1. Effective 9:00 p.m., e.s.t., June 13, 1973, no seller may charge to any class of purchaser and no purchaser may pay a price for any commodity or service which exceeds the freeze price charged for the same or a similar commodity or service in transactions with the same class of purchaser during the freeze base period. This order shall be effective for a maximum period of 60 days from the date hereof, until 11:59 p.m., e.s.t., August 12, 1973. It is not unlawful to charge or pay a price less than the freeze price and lower prices are encouraged.

SEC. 2. Each seller shall prepare a list of freeze prices for all commodities and services which he sells and shall maintain a copy of that list available for public inspection, during normal business hours, at each place of business where such commodities or services are offered for sale. In addition, the calculations and supporting data upon which the list is based shall be maintained by the seller at the location where the pricing decisions reflected on the list are ordinarily made and shall be made available on request to representatives of the Economic Stabilization Program.

SEC. 3. The provisions of this order shall not extend to the prices charged for raw agricultural products. The prices of processed agricultural products, however, are subject to the provisions of this order. For those agricultural products which are sold for ultimate consumption in their original unprocessed form, this provision applies after the first sale.

SEC. 4. The provisions of this order do not extend to (a) wages and salaries, which continue to be subject to the program established pursuant to Executive Order 11695 (b) interest and dividends, which continue to be subject to the program established by the Committee on Interest and Dividends and (c) rents which continue to be subject to controls only to the limited extent provided in Executive Order 11695.

SEC. 5. The Cost of Living Council shall develop and recommend to the President policies, mechanisms and procedures to achieve and maintain stability of prices and costs in a growing economy after the expiration of this freeze. To this end, it shall consult with representatives of agriculture, industry, labor, consumers and the public.

Read more on Nixon’s efforts…. Executive Order 11723

While I was no fan of Nixon at least he was doing something for the people of this nation….what is Biden doing?

I have said a few times….we cannot eat words and task force is a waste of time that will be soon forgotten in 2025 and then there is Congress the most corrupted lay-abouts that has ever been.

Granted 1973 was a different age and the special interests were not as liberal with the cash payouts as they are today and agribusiness was nothing but a far off thought.

I have no love for Biden but he could do more if so inclined….but that is a joke….he will do nothing but talk.

In my opinion price controls will do the job….if only for a short time….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Someone Explain Higher Food Prices

Anyone that keeps an eye on the economy has written something about the cost of food these days….I know I have….

There are many explanations from the absurd to the sublime…..from it is all Biden’s fault to the price gouging of some (most all) food distributors…..all the words written have done little to curb the upper trajectory of prices…..some groups will give lip service to make us all feel better but little action comes.

I read another article that tries to explain this thorn in the consumers ass….

This piece is in Food & Wine…..

Back in 1993, political activist Jimmy McMillan coined the phrase, “The Rent is Too Damn High” while running for mayor of New York, and later, governor of the Empire State. Three decades later, consumers across the country are saying the same thing about rising grocery prices.

Federal statistics bear that out. Since the pandemic began, the Federal Reserve says grocery prices have risen 25%, leaving consumers — and even President Biden — fuming over food costs. And supermarkets and big box stores are scrambling to reverse that perception. 

In February, Walmart implied that consumers should expect to see lower prices. Doug McMillon, its president and chief executive, contended that certain items were lower than in 2023 — including eggs, apples, and deli snacks, although he acknowledged they remained higher for some products such as asparagus and blackberries. 

Meanwhile, global home furnishings and food giant Ikea says it is cutting prices on hundreds of items. In a December email, it told consumers to look for signs reading “New Lower Price,” which have begun appearing in stores. It’s also offering weekday dining specials to members of the Ikea Family program, with meatball dinners for $3 on Mondays, and 50% off entrées on Fridays. But, effective Feb. 1, Ikea eliminated the program’s 5% across-the-board discount, meaning members were paying more for some items.

https://www.foodandwine.com/usa-inflation-food-costs-8622334

Did this piece explain it for you?

Not so much for me….I still believe that instead of lip service from Biden and the Dems the president could do something besides talk….after all he is the president but that means little these days….he is president that owes lots of favors to special interests and agribusiness is one of this entities.

Prices will remain high and continue to go up as long as there is no backbone to change this thing in DC.

Sorry guys but I cannot eat politician’s words….I wish we could literal get them to eat their words.

Side Note:  A couple of days ago I wrote about the egg shortage in Europe and I asked how long will it take before we are told the same thing….apparently not long at all for this is the report I read today….

The largest producer of fresh eggs in the US said Tuesday it had temporarily halted production at a Texas plant after bird flu was found in chickens, and officials said the virus had also been detected at a poultry facility in Michigan, the AP reports. Cal-Maine Foods, based in Ridgeland, Mississippi, said in a statement that approximately 1.6 million laying hens and 337,000 pullets, about 3.6% of its total flock, were destroyed after the infection, avian influenza, was found at a facility in Parmer County, Texas.

“The Company continues to work closely with federal, state and local government officials and focused industry groups to mitigate the risk of future outbreaks and effectively manage the response,” the statement said. “Cal-Maine Foods is working to secure production from other facilities to minimize disruption to its customers.” Cal-Maine said it sells most of its eggs in the Southwestern, Southeastern, Midwestern, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The company said there is no known bird flu risk associated with eggs that are currently in the market and no eggs have been recalled.

Here we go once again!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

That Amazing Cornbread

Happy Easter to everyone!

Another Sunday and another month ends…..and what better time than one of the Old Professor’s trip into the magic land of food and history?

I am a Southerner and I grew up with that delicious food known as cornbread…..I have eaten it in any way it can be made…..sweet, spicy, cheesy and into cakes….We Southerners love their cornbread…..and a bowl of beans and cornbread is the perfect meal for me.

For those that have not eaten much cornbread this may not mean a lot to you but to us down here it means everything….so let me pass on some stuff.

Cornbread has passed through the hands of Indigenous and enslaved people to become a lasting culinary staple of the American South. Cherished for its dense yet crumbly texture and a slightly sweet or savory flavor, it’s traditionally made with cornmeal, water or milk, and fat. 

This traditional bread can be leavened or unleavened, made with white flour or not, and baked in an oven or pan-fried on the stovetop. From cornbread squares and muffins to crispy-edged fritters and hush puppies, cornbread is more than a side dish. It’s a culturally significant, nutritionally rich symbol of resilience that holds a unique place on the plate. 

Maize was and is a staple crop for Indigenous people in the Americas. According to research published in the journal Social Research, the term “corn” was introduced by European colonists, a word they used to describe small grains of all kinds from oats to wheat and even salt. 

The earliest versions of what we now know as cornbread were typically ground-up maize held together with animal fat and may have been baked or boiled, Miller says. A form of this basic recipe later became the daily bread for enslaved Africans, made from their weekly rations, which often included several pounds of cornmeal. 

https://www.consumerreports.org/health/healthy-eating/is-cornbread-good-for-you-a4401550107/

I can say no more….I have to run into the kitchen and make a pan for dinner.

Try it!  You may like it!

Now it is Easter so I need to give my reader a little something extra….in this case it is history and Soul Food….

An Unofficial History of Southern Soul Food

Have a great Easter Sunday and hopefully a great meal…..and as always Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Prepare For Sticker Shock

We all have gone to the grocery store and found that our food keeps costing us more and more of our hard earned cash.

We bitch about the cost of gas…but at least it comes down….maybe not to as low as it was a month ago but it does fluctuate…food on the other hand does not.

Will we ever get a break?

The prediction is….not on your life.  (Keep in mind that this will be a global problem just not a solely Main Street problem)

The new analysis shows that global warming could cause food price inflation to increase by between 0.9 and 3.2 percentage points per year by 2035. The same warming will cause a smaller rise in overall inflation (between 0.3 and 1.2 percentage points), so a greater proportion of household income would need to be spent on buying food.

This effect will be felt worldwide, by high and low-income countries alike, but nowhere more so than in the global south. As with various other consequences of climate change, Africa will be worst affected despite contributing little to its causes.

…

The first is that the same climate change effects that are causing the inflation are already making food harder to get hold of. For instance, higher temperatures can cause long-established and predictable farming seasons to shift and so may hinder crop production.

Other consequences can include more pest and disease outbreaks that deplete livestock and food reserves, and heat stress to already-poor roads which makes it harder to access rural communities.

All of these factors push prices higher and reduce the purchasing power of affected households. The drivers of food inflation are already worsening food insecurity.

https://theconversation.com/food-prices-will-climb-everywhere-as-temperatures-rise-due-to-climate-change-new-research-226345

Then there is the food that you go to the grocery for….like fruits and veggies….they could be poisoning you.

The latest edition of an annual consumer’s guide published Wednesday reveals that almost three-fourths of non-organic fruits and vegetables sampled contained traces of toxic pesticides while the “dirty dozen”—including strawberries and spinach—tested at levels closer to 95%.

Scientists with the Environmental Working Group (EWG) document in their new report, “2024 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides In Produce,” that four out of five of the most frequently detected pesticides found on the twelve most-contaminated produce items were fungicides that could have serious health impacts.

“There’s data to suggest that these fungicides can disrupt the hormone function in our body,” EWG senior scientist Alexa Friedman told Common Dreams, adding that the chemicals had “been linked to things like worse health outcomes” and “impacts on the male reproductive system.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/ewg-2024-dirty-dozen-pesticides

Another reason I try to grow as much of my fruit and veggies as possible…..although I am getting older and gardening is getting harder.

Just thought I would let you know what is on the food horizon.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”