Bacteria in refried beans sold at a regional taco chain has been blamed for gastrointestinal illness in around 150 customers, and now state officials have confirmed the pathogen to blame and the food that it was in. It’s Bacillus cereus, bacteria that builds up in food that has sat out for too long at room temperature. It causes diarrhea or vomiting, and has a short incubation period: you can start barfing within half an hour. [More]
Food & Personal Care
Nursing Home Industry Files Lawsuit To Keep Preventing Patients From Filing Lawsuits
By 10.18.16
Last month, the federal government issued new rules for nursing homes, barring most long-term care facilities from using forced arbitration agreements to stop new residents from filing lawsuits against the homes. Now nursing home operators and industry trade groups are challenging that rule by doing the one thing they want to prevent their patients from doing: going to court. [More]
Science Explains Why Refrigerated Tomatoes Lack Flavor
By 10.17.16
From the dawn of time, food enthusiasts, chefs, and people who eat have been arguing on exactly where their produce should be kept. While experts have previously told Consumerist that keeping tomatoes in the refrigerator isn’t a good idea, that recommendation has been confirmed through the power of science. [More]
Is Taco Bell Testing An All-Day Breakfast Menu?
By 10.17.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
Have you heard of this crazy idea that breakfast foods can be consumed throughout the day? It’s a concept that has worked out pretty well for McDonald’s — so is Taco Bell was apparently willing to give it a try? [More]
Why Are So Many Restaurant Chains Closing Locations, Filing For Bankruptcy?
By 10.17.16
Bob Evan’s, Old Country Buffet, Cosi, Ruby Tuesday, Logan’s Roadhouse: these are just a few of the large restaurant chains that have closed locations and/or filed for bankruptcy protection in 2016 alone. These eateries generally have two factors working in their favor: name recognition and stores in high-traffic areas. So why are they doing so poorly? [More]
Supervalu Selling Off Save-A-Lot Supermarket Chain For $1.4B
By 10.17.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
Supermarket operator Supervalu will have one fewer chain in its portfolio soon, after announcing that it’s selling off discount grocer Save-A-Lot to a Canadian investment group for $1.37 billion. [More]
Pepsi Plans To Cut Added Sugar In Majority Of Drinks By 2025
By 10.17.16
Pepsi’s seemingly endless experiments with sweeteners in its drinks is taking on yet another new chapter, as the beverage behemoth unveiled a plan to reduce added sugars and calories in dozens of products by 2025. [More]
Could A Strike At Jim Beam Distilleries Mean A Whiskey Shortage?
By 10.17.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
More than 200 union workers went on strike over the weekend at two Jim Beam distilleries in Kentucky after voting to reject the most recent contract offer from the world’s top bourbon producer. Does that mean we could see a shortage of the stuff in the future? [More]
Dole Slapping Disney Branding On Fresh Produce Line Aimed At Kids
By 10.14.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
Will Princess Elsa’s face on a bunch of broccoli make more kids want to eat their vegetables? That remains to be seen, but Dole and Disney are willing to try, with a new line of co-branded produce featuring Disney, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel characters. [More]
Going To Cuba? You May Now Bring Home All The Rum And Cigars You Can Carry
By 10.14.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
The Caribbean island nation of Cuba is many different things to many different people. However, to a very large percentage of Americans, the name is almost synonymous with quality, if not entirely legal, consumables: cigars and rum. No wonder, then, that news of increased access to celebratory smokes and libations from Cuba is being met with good cheer. [More]
Hershey’s CEO Announces Plan To Step Down From His Chocolate Throne
By 10.14.16 — Updated: 10.31.16
In the town of Hershey, behind huge locked gates and a high wall sits an enormous chocolate company with smoke belching from its chimneys and strange whizzing sounds coming from deep inside. And outside the walls, for half a mile in every direction, the air is scented with the heavy rich smell of melting chocolate! And inside those walls, the reclusive genius behind it all plans to hand over his entire empire to one of five lucky Golden Ticket winners. [More]
Drinkable Yogurt Is What Happens When We Get Tired Of Other Trendy Ideas
By 10.14.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
If you have a problem with the idea of chugging liquid yogurt, gird your stomachs, folks. Because it’s a thing that is happening, now that the Greek yogurt trend is losing its luster. [More]
Subway Worker Accused Of Filming Women In The Restroom
By 10.14.16
A Subway employee in Seattle is facing charges of voyeurism and possession of child pornography after allegedly filming women in the restaurant’s bathroom without their knowledge. [More]
Grocery Shrink Ray Swipes A Few Junior Mints
By 10.13.16
The Grocery Shrink Ray is the reason why a “half gallon” container of ice cream is no longer half a gallon (with notable exceptions), and why toilet paper squares are no longer four inches. Products shrink almost imperceptibly over time, sometimes disguised by a package redesign. The latest place it has hit? Junior Mints. [More]
Help Us Figure Out Your Fast-Food Frequency
October 13, 2016
When Greg Creed, the curiously Australian CEO of Yum Brands, recently boasted that “Half the U.S. population eats Taco Bell once a month,” we got to wondering: Just how frequently do people visit the country’s most popular quick-service eateries? [More]
Chicago Might Be Next To Try Tax On Sodas & Sugary Drinks
By 10.13.16
Days after the Whole Health Organization announced it supported taxes on sugary drinks in order to curb obesity, the largest county in Illinois is weighing that option — following in the footsteps of Berkeley, CA, and Philadelphia, where a similar tax is now subject to a beverage industry legal battle. [More]
Family Sends Pizza Delivery Guy To Make Sure Grandma Is Okay After Hurricane Matthew
By 10.13.16 — Updated: 11.1.16
When natural disasters hit and the power goes out, it’s always important to check on your loved ones, especially elderly folks living alone. But when all other methods of contact failed to reach one Florida woman after Hurricane Matthew, her out-of-state family had to turn to an unexpected source of aid: pizza. [More]
Starbucks Now Serving An Actual Coffee Beer On Boozy Evening Menu
By 10.13.16
For the better part of two years Starbucks has mingled coffee and beer on its “Evenings” menu. Now, instead of simply offering coffee-flavored beers, the company is literally mixing the two components. [More]
