Who wants a plain ol’ burger when you can have a burger burrito? Or cheese sticks when you can have Cheetos-dusted sticks fulfilled with macaroni? In 2016, you could have these interesting mashups and so much more, as fast food restaurants and snack companies continuously tried to one-up each other. [More]
Food & Personal Care
Burger King, Tim Hortons To Use Fewer Antibiotics In Chicken
By 12.29.16
Three months after earning its second consecutive “F” grade from public health advocates for its lack of any policy to limit the use of antibiotics in the meat it sources, Burger King’s parent company — which also owns donut chain Tim Hortons — has finally announced plans to cut back on overusing some of these drugs in the chickens it uses. [More]
Your Marijuana Delivery Service Might Be Extra Busy This New Year’s Eve
By 12.28.16
If you live in a state where marijuana is legal in some form, you might be looking forward to bidding 2016 goodbye and easing into 2017 with your favorite bong or a fresh batch of pot brownies. You won’t be the only one: marijuana deliveries are expected to spike on New Year’s Eve. [More]
Taco Bell Testing Fries Again, But Only At One Location
By 12.28.16
While you can walk into just about any fast food restaurant and get french fries, there’s currently only one Taco Bell where you can get your fry fix. [More]
IBM Working On Robotic Roommate That Helps Elderly Folks Stay Safe
By 12.28.16
While many people would love to live out the rest of their days happily ensconced in their home, living alone is not always the safest option for elderly folks. But because around-the-clock care — either in a nursing home, assisted living, or from a personal nurse — isn’t always feasible, IBM is working on a robot designed to keep an eye on senior citizens and help them stay safe. [More]
Sales Of Antibiotics For Farm Animals Continues To Increase, Despite FDA Guidance
By 12.28.16
Three years ago, the Food and Drug Administration — in response to growing concerns about the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria — issued long-delayed guidance to the pharmaceuticals industry, asking drugmakers to voluntarily stop selling antibiotics to farmers solely for the purpose of growth-promotion in cows, pigs, and chicken. And while sales of these drugs have indeed slowed, the latest FDA report shows that they are still on the rise. [More]
Cancer Patient Wins Free Pizza For A Year, Donates His Prize To Local Food Bank
By 12.27.16
Winning free pizza for a year is already a remarkable occasion, but hearing that someone is then willingly giving up that delicious prize to help others, well, that’s another level of warm and fuzzy feelings. [More]
Industry Predicts Eggnog Shortage, Forgets That Anyone Can Make Their Own Eggnog At Home
By 12.22.16
Brace yourselves for the coming week, America: we may have to face the period between Christmas and New Year’s with slightly less commercially available eggnog than you expect available in stores. You might have to drink slightly less, buy a different brand, or perhaps even make your own. [More]
Tanning Salon Barred From Claiming Indoor Tanning Is Safer Than Sitting In The Sun
By 12.22.16
Because there’s no guarantee that willfully exposing your skin to the sun won’t increase the risk of cancer, whether you’re basking in the rays of a UV lamp or sunning on the beach, a New York tanning salon company has agreed to a settlement that bars it from making misleading health-related claims regarding the harms and benefits of indoor tanning. [More]
Restaurant’s Gravy Blamed For Mystery Illness That Sickened Hundreds On Thanksgiving
By 12.22.16
While public health authorities haven’t conclusively proven which foodborne pathogen made hundreds of people sick after Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant in western New York, they do know which food item made people sick. Gravy was served at a low temperature that allowed Clostridium perfringens bacteria to thrive. [More]
Judge Says Amazon Must Hand Over Names Of Customers Eligible For WEN Hair Care Settlement
By 12.22.16
Which is more important to you: keeping your personal data private, or the knowledge that a product you purchased is involved in a settlement that may entitle you to compensation? According to a federal judge, the latter is more beneficial to consumers. [More]
World’s First Combination IHOP/Applebee’s Restaurant Slated For Detroit
By 12.21.16
This just in, from the Midwest: corporate siblings IHOP and Applebee’s will be joining forces to create a combination restaurant — the first of its kind — expected to open in downtown Detroit. [More]
FDA Recommends Limiting Lead In Lipstick & Other Cosmetic Products
By 12.21.16
Though no one really wants to hear they are putting lead into or on their bodies, the fact is that many cosmetics contain low levels of lead. While the amount of lead in your lipstick might be too low to do any harm, the Food and Drug Administration is still taking steps to further limit the amount of the chemical found in such products. [More]
How Do You Feel About Ketchup On Hot Dogs, Ranch Dressing On Pizza & Other Divisive Food Issues?
By 12.21.16
Imagine you’re at the ballpark and just bought some food. You’re waiting to use the condiment station, when the person in front of you begins pumping ketchup along the length of their hot dog. Do you think “Oh yeah!”? Do you want to grab them by the shoulders and shake some sense into them? Or does it not matter to you, but that person over there dipping their slice of pizza in ranch dressing is driving you into a fury? [More]
After Blaming Ingredient Maker For Customer Stomach Issues, Soylent Could Face Shortages
By 12.21.16
Last month, meal replacement startup Soylent announced that it knew what was making customers sick after consuming its recently released nutrition bars and long-running powder: an algae-based ingredient called algal flour. While that could have been the end of the debacle, it wasn’t: the supplier for that component apparently isn’t too thrilled with having the blame placed on its shoulders, and is now cutting Soylent’s ingredient supply. [More]
Faux Fish Company Ordered To Stop Using “Chickpea Of The Sea” Name
By 12.20.16
As more and more companies jump on the fake meat bandwagon, producing meatless burgers that bleed and now “vegan sushi” meant to mimic the experience of eating fish, it isn’t just consumers that are paying attention: established names in the meat industry are on the lookout for imitators, and ready to protect their trademarks. [More]
Here’s Why The Reddi-Wip Shortage Is Extra Sad
By 12.20.16
If you’ve been looking for canned whipped cream from Reddi-wip or other brands for your holiday celebrations, you may have come home empty-handed. Canned whipped cream is in short supply right now, and it’s for a reason that is much sadder than the mere lack of whipped cream. [More]
Class-Action Lawsuit Claims Chicago McDonald’s Value Meals Aren’t A Value
By 12.20.16
Typically, it’s less expensive to purchase a bundle of fast food items than individual items to make a meal. Or at least that’s the thought behind value meals, hence the word “value.” But one Chicago man says that’s just not the case at several restaurants in the city, and now he’s suing the franchisee that runs them.
[More]
