Posts Tagged ‘marketing’

Food News Wrap: Aug. 19

Thursday, August 18th, 2011

Please, summer, don’t end yet. Pretty please? We’re happy to see all sorts of farm-fresh stories in the news this week, which makes us sort of feel like summer is still in full bloom. Top of the news this week: Fifty young people have become the first class of FoodCorps, a national service organization dedicated to addressing childhood obesity and diet-related disease by building school gardens and developing Farm to School programs. FoodCorps service members will work with local food service directors to source more school meal ingredients from local farmers. They will also provide nutrition education to students.

The service members are spending this week training for their year-long placements; then they will report to sites in 10 states around the U.S. Best of luck to them on this worthy project!

Speaking of farms, the L.A. Times has a great look at efforts around California to connect WIC participants with local farm-fresh produce. One example of how this is a win-win on many levels: Farmers in Ojai had been discarding or donating the tiniest of their Pixie tangerines — those too small for markets. But once the produce vouchers, coupons that can be used only for fruits and vegetables, came into use, the farmers started selling Pixies for what it cost to pick them to WIC-only stores — about 40,000 pounds last season. Worth noting: There are 7 million WIC recipients in California, according to the L.A. Times.

Also in the news this week:

Picnic Dinners: Someone else who doesn’t want summer to end is Ceri from Sweet Potato Chronicles. She has a list of 5 Perfect Picnic Dinner Recipes that will make you want to extend summer well into October.

Cooking from Scratch: The New York Times looks at the “back-to-scratch” movement in school cafeterias, particularly those in lower-income districts that have had a harder time keeping up with the trend away from chicken nuggets and greasy pizza. The story profiles the Greeley, Colorado, school district and its work with Cook for America to learn healthier ways to cook school lunch.

$5 Challenge: Slow Food USA has launched a $5 Challenge as part of  its campaign to “take back the value meal.” On Sept. 17, the campaign will launch with a Day of Action where people can attend any one of the hundreds of slow food gatherings nationwide. To participate in The $5 Challenge, all you have to do is pledge to cook a slow food meal for five dollars or less, or attend a local event.

The “Nag Factor”: Why is childhood obesity continuing to be a problem? Could it be that kids “nag” their parents in the store to buy products that appeal to them? A new study published in the Journal of Children and Media found that a bombardment of packaging, characters, and commercials has caused kids to nag their parents unrelentingly to request advertised items. Of course, parents must resist the nag. But this would also be a good time to continue cracking down on marketing junk food to kids.

Bug Repelling-Foods: Last but not least, if you’re still eating your summer meals outside, this might be a good time to learn about what to eat to repel bugs. You’ve probably thought of garlic already, but what about grapefruit. Or…Marmite?

Happy (summer) weekend to all!

Posted Under: Childhood Obesity, Government Regulations, Nutrition | Tags: , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on August 18th, 2011

Food News Wrap: July 22

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

We keep saying it, and we’re still going to keep saying it: Watch what your kids are watching on TV, because it’s hard to say who else is watching out for them. Exhibit A: Coming up at the same time period as proposed new federal guidelines, food manufacturers have drafted their own nutrition guidelines for marketing to kids. Critics like Bettina Elias-Siegel at The Lunch Tray are calling these industry guidelines inadequate (products that can still be marketed to kids under these nutrition guidelines include Trix, Lucky Charms, etc.). The New York Times gives the example of Goldfish crackers – proposed federal guidelines say they contain too much fat, salt, and white flour; while the food makers say they belong on a healthful list. For some background and a good round-up, see Michelle Simon’s story in Food Safety News. Bottom line: You always need to watch out for your kids – perhaps more vigilantly than before.

Mass. Limits: In other nutrition news, Massachusetts has become the first state to enact nutrition guidelines for “competitive” foods, as reported by Fooducate. Those are the foods that are not part of the federally subsidized lunch or breakfast program; they’re sold in vending machines, a la carte, or at sports events and fundraising activities. So…no soda or cotton candy at basketball games? This is going to be interesting to watch.

Bagel Before Cookie?: We love this piece by Dr. Dina Rose, who writes about the parent who says to his kid, “You have to finish your bagel before you can have a cookie.” As she points out, bagels are pretty far down on the nutrition scale (white flour) and you could eat a piece of Entenmann’s chocolate fudge cake for half the calories and the same amount of fiber. Message: Don’t get trapped into classifying foods as “main course” foods when they’re mostly empty calories.

Parents’ Role: Want some more sobering food-for-thought? Lisa Leake from “100 Days of Real Food” points out that the reason kids eat junk/processed food (Goldfish, Pirate Booty) is because their parents give it to them. A no-brainer, right? But it’s good to be reminded that if we give them healthy, good-tasting stuff, they’ll eat that instead.

OK, it’s summertime; our brains are starting to hurt from all of this thinking. Let’s wrap it up with a few easy lists:

Top 12 Kid-Friendly Raw Superfoods (from Healthy Child Healthy World)

Top 5 Nutrition Myths for Kids (from Chicago Parent)

Top 5 Ways to Keep Your Kid Busy in the Kitchen This Summer (from Jolly Tomato)

And last but not least, please remember those kids who are hungry this summer – there’s plenty you can do to help.

Happy weekend to all!

Posted Under: Childhood Obesity, Government Regulations, Nutrition | Tags: , , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on July 22nd, 2011

Food News Wrap: July 1

Thursday, June 30th, 2011

As we head into the holiday weekend, we’re thinking all about healthy summer eats for kids. Some of the most troubling things we’ve read this week have come out of the Childhood Obesity Conference, including the fact that the average teen sees five fast food ads per day, and the average preschooler sees more than 1000 fast food ads per year (via Kelly Brownell, director of the Yale Rudd Center on Food Policy and Obesity). Time to step awayyyy from the TV.

Speaking of TV time, the American Academy of Pediatrics has released a policy statement calling for a ban on junk food advertising in kids’ programming. The AAP says that  kids’ media use may be linked to their weight, partly because sedentary activity can displace other activities that burn more calories; and because the ads for junk food and fast food increase kids’ desire for those foods. But industry associations including the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative and the Grocery Manufacturers Association say that they have made strides to reduce direct food marketing to children – and claim that the AAP statement was based on outdated research.

In the meantime, PreventObesity.net and other groups are leading an effort to call on the FTC to finalize and implement proposed guidelines on marketing food to kids. If you want to contact the FTC to urge them to move the proposal forward, they’ve made it easy for you to do it here.

Here’s another whopper in the news: CBS News posted a story about a study showing that kids who eat candy are less likely to be obese than kids who don’t. So many questions, so many questions…Until we get to page 10 of the study, where (as an astute reader points out) the study was funded in part by the National Confectioners Association. Things that make you go hmmm…

OK – so what can kids eat this summer without guilt? Nutritionist Connie Evers gives us some ideas on The Truth on Health to make it easier for your kids to stay healthy. Example: When you go out, pack plenty of water, fruit, nuts and/or trail mix to take the hungry edge off so you’re not tempted to go in search of the nearest vending machine.

Looking for inspiration for a great summer snack? How about snacking on summer’s sweetest veggie treat, sweet corn? According to Fooducate, it’s a great source of thiamin, folate, fiber, vitamin C, phosphorous, manganese, and cancer-fighting phytochemicals. Tip: Our kids love it when it’s fresh cooked, but they also love it served cold the next day. Need an even sweeter treat? Try this “miraculous” chocolate/banana ice cream, with just three ingredients (cocoa powder, milk, and banana) from The Scramble on PBS Parents.

Got peanut allergies? Summer baseball fans will be glad to know that there’s a growing effort to create peanut-free sections in baseball stadiums. According to Reuters, at least half of the big-league teams will offer at least one nut-controlled game this season.

And last but not least, for your amusement we present these Patriotic Food Fails from Zagat. (Just say “no” to Rush Limbaugh Sweet Tea and Obama Sushi.) Hang on until this weekend, when we’re going to be giving you a much better patriotic treat option (of course with no food coloring).

Happy Friday to all!

Posted Under: Childhood Obesity, Government Regulations, Nutrition | Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on June 30th, 2011
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