Food & Drink

Argentinian vet designs $3 IUD device to boost beef production

"Turin, 47, began experimenting with home-made bovine IUDs 20 years ago. Today he has a small factory built next to his home in Pergamino — 245 kilometers (152 miles) north of Buenos Aires in Argentina’s livestock and agricultural heartland — to produce the $3.00 devices. The cheap and simple items have been a success: some 2.5 million bovine IUDs have been exported to places like Brazil — a world beef-producing giant — and Spain. Spanish officials have even approved one of Turin’s models for use in sows, especially since the castration of boars was recently banned due to animal welfare concerns." Continue reading →

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FDA launches inquiry about Merck drug Zilmax in cattle feed

"The USDA had no comment and referred questions to the FDA, which does not typically reveal its investigations. Merck said on Friday it was temporarily suspending sales of Zilmax in the United States and Canada, following concerns about the drug, which is given to cattle to increase their weight before slaughter. Last week, Tyson Foods Inc said it would stop accepting beef from Zilmax-fed cattle after it observed animals arriving at its slaughter facilities with signs that they had difficulty walking or moving. Merck on Tuesday revealed a new program to retrain and certify beef producers in administering Zilmax, which had sales of $159 million last year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFDA launches inquiry about Merck drug Zilmax in cattle feed

Human Intelligence is Slowly Declining: Genetics Or Food?

"Researchers from Harvard have found that a substance rampant in the nation’s water supply, fluoride, is lowering IQ and dumbing down the population. One study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that pesticides, which are rampant among the food supply, are creating lasting changes in overall brain structure — changes that have been linked to lower intelligence levels and decreased cognitive function. UCLA researchers found that HFCS may be damaging the brain functions of consumers worldwide, sabotaging learning and memory. In fact, the official release goes as far to say that high-fructose corn syrup can make you ‘stupid’." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHuman Intelligence is Slowly Declining: Genetics Or Food?

Bolivian man claims to have lived for 123 years thanks to quinoa and coca leaves

"Bolivian indigenous farmer Carmelo Flores, who could be the oldest person to have ever lived, attributes his longevity to quinoa grains, riverside mushrooms and around-the-clock chewing of coca leaves. Speaking in the 4,000-metre (13,123-feet) high hamlet where he lives in a straw-roofed hut, Flores says the traditional Andean diet has kept him alive for 123 years. Flores is still strong enough to take daily walks in shoes made of recycled tires. Flores said he fought in the brutal 1932-35 Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay, and had to hunt skunks to nourish himself." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBolivian man claims to have lived for 123 years thanks to quinoa and coca leaves

French revolutionary rule keeps Paris bakers baking

"The presence of bread – which holds an almost mythical importance for the French – has been guaranteed in the capital since the chaotic and starving days of the French Revolution. And to avoid the possibility of another revolution, the state has since ensured that modern Parisians have no need to rise up for lack of a fresh baguette. City bakers now have strictly regulated summer holidays and are expressly forbidden to abandon the capital en masse and leave behind a potentially dangerous bread vacuum. The rules go back to the Revolution, when in October 1798 baker Denis François was lynched by an angry mob for not opening his shop." Continue reading →

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Scientists emerge after 4 months of space-cooking for simulated Mars mission

"The team lived in a mock-up of a Mars vehicle that was positioned on the side of a Hawaiian volcano, where they experimented with different instant foods and other provisions. For 118 days, Vermeulen and his five team members experimented with a variety of non-perishable ingredients and kept detailed journals of their health, well-being, weight and body mass to determine what foods would be best for a manned Mars mission. NASA recently awarded a $125,000 grant to a researcher who is exploring the possibilities of 3-D printing as a means of producing nutritious, non-perishable foods." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingScientists emerge after 4 months of space-cooking for simulated Mars mission

Detroit’s Amazing Pop-Up Anarchy

"Detroit pop-ups are not your conventional, temporary businesses such as those unsightly suburban fireworks stores, or the usual Christmas or Halloween retailers. Instead, the city has attracted art galleries, food and beverage cafes, coffee shops, clothing boutiques, tea houses, vegan restaurants, yoga workshops, antique stores, bike stores, and mercantile-type retailers. Pop-ups are a temporary arrangement, often with a defined start and end time for business operations. Detroit is the perfect place for these temporary pop-up businesses." Continue reading →

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Brewer says his just-add-water beer mix tastes ‘just as good’ as the original

"Enjoying the great outdoors has spawned an entire market catering for campers who want to enjoy a hearty meal without overloading their rucksack. Camping shops now sell a whole range of dried, lightweight foods - from all day breakfasts to chicken tikka masalas. But now a new - and some might say revolutionary - addition to their food shelf has been added: Dried beer. A U.S. brewer has managed to create a concentrate that simply requires water being added and carbonated shortly before it is drunk. Pat's Backcountry Beverages has managed to create a near waterless formulation that claims to offer all the taste, aroma and alcohol of the traditional beverage." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBrewer says his just-add-water beer mix tastes ‘just as good’ as the original

Don’t Eat These, Ever: What’s in Your Condiments?

"Condiments are usually given a free ride because, well, it’s only a spoonful. They’re typically overlooked, or brushed off as “harmless,” or eaten in such small quantities that their effects seem negligible. Condiments can make bland foods taste better and good foods taste great. But they can also turn an otherwise nutritious meal into a metabolic nightmare, one tablespoon at a time. Small, frequent doses of potentially harmful ingredients can be far from benign, having a cumulative biological effect. In fact, there is scientific evidence that more significant health effects may occur at low doses than high, especially for hormone-disrupting chemicals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDon’t Eat These, Ever: What’s in Your Condiments?

Illinois illegally seizes bees resistant to Roundup; kills remaining queens [2012]

"The Illinois Ag Dept. illegally seized privately owned bees from renowned naturalist, Terrence Ingram, without providing him with a search warrant and before the court hearing on the matter. Behind the obvious violations of his Constitutional rights is Monsanto. Ingram was researching Roundup’s effects on bees, which he’s raised for 58 years. 'They ruined 15 years of my research,' he told Prairie Advocate, by stealing most of his stock. Of note, Illinois beekeepers are going underground after Ingram’s experience and refuse to register their hives, in case the state tries to steal their private property on phony claims." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIllinois illegally seizes bees resistant to Roundup; kills remaining queens [2012]