They Say / I Blog

No app-etite: Christy Harrison on children and weight loss efforts

These days, there’s an app for everything—things you never thought you needed (and probably don’t). Christy Harrison, author and registered dietitian nutritionist, contends that Kurbo, a diet app for children, is not only unnecessary but downright harmful. In this August 2019 New York Times essay, she argues that trying to impose weight loss regimens on children is a really bad idea.

Harrison, “I help people recover from disordered eating. Don’t buy your children this app.”

No thanks: Kate Miller on farmers and gratitude

Perhaps you’ve seen the message on a bumper sticker; there are a lot of them around. It says something like, ‘If you’ve eaten today, thank a farmer.’ Kate Miller, an Arkansas rancher and beef producer, explains why she won’t be thanking a farmer in this March 2019 essay published in Pork, a Farm Journal magazine.

Miller,  “I will not thank a farmer”

Here’s a tip: Spencer Robins on wages and conditions for restaurant workers

Whether frequently or just once in a while, most of us eat food prepared in restaurants, school dining halls, or fast food places rather than our own kitchens. How much do you know about the work involved in getting your meal into your hands? How are the workers treated and compensated? In this August 2018 Civil Eats essay, graduate student and environmentalist Spencer Robins argues that informed and engaged consumers can help bring about change not only for food workers, but for society at large.

Robins, “Are eaters the key to better restaurant wages and working conditions?”

A place at the grill: Emily Dreyfuss on fake meat

“Vegan hot dog” isn’t an oxymoron, and it doesn't attempt to replicate the taste of an all-beef frank. What it does, according to Wired staff writer Emily Dreyfuss, is offer a “comprehensible” product that can participate in protein-centered social events such as backyard barbeques. Dreyfuss explains her ideas in this July 2018 essay.

Dreyfuss, "In defense of the vegan hot dog"

 

It does grow on trees: Comfort Azubuko on food forests in public space

“It doesn’t grow on trees, you know!” Many complaints about the use of valuable resources begin with that statement. Some fruits and edible resources, however, do grow on trees. Environmental justice worker and UCLA doctoral student Comfort Azubuko would like to see more fruit trees in public spaces, and she outlines her proposal in this June 2018 essay on the Earth Focus blog of KCET.

Azubuko, “Edible city: Privileging tree aesthetics misses opportunity to feed our urban food supply”

 

Spring broke: Anthony Abraham Jack on food insecurity on campus

Spring break, yay!!! *Cough*—not so fast. Spring break is a nonstop party for some, but for others, it’s lonely and hungry. When campus food service shuts down, when there are no cooking facilities available, things can get very grim. In this March 2018 New York Times essay, Harvard sociologist Anthony Abraham Jack reports on a serious situation for many students who stay on campus while those with resources scatter for vacations.

Read it here: Jack, “It’s hard to be hungry on spring break”

Scary foods: Aaron E. Carroll on healthy eating without fear

Avoid salt. Avoid sugar. Avoid fat. Avoid meat. Avoid avoidance. Hah! You weren’t expecting that last one, were you? Aaron E. Carroll, Indiana University professor of pediatrics, offers some unexpected diet advice in this November 2017 New York Times essay.

Read it here: Carroll, "Relax, you don’t need to ‘eat clean’”

 

Spreading the word: Caitlin Dewey on the promotion of GMO foods

Have you heard much about genetically modified (GMO) foods lately? Neither have we, but that might be changing soon. The Food and Drug Administration, part of the US Department of Health and Human Services, has received funding to promote GMO foods, and a lot of people have a lot to say on the subject. Caitlin Dewey, food policy writer for the Washington Post’s Wonkblog, lays out the details in this May 2017 report.

Read it here: Dewey, “The government is going to counter ‘misinformation’ about GMO foods”

Just say “salt”: Marion Renault on public perceptions of food science

Many of us sing the same lament: the ingredients listed on many of our food products include long unpronounceable words with mysterious purposes. What is that stuff?! Do we really need it? In this February 2017 Columbus Dispatch article, science and environmental reporter Marion Renault asserts that public mistrust of food science is actually harmful to us all, and she reports on some measures that scientists are taking to help improve communication with the public.

Read it here: Renault, “Are your food facts really food myths?”

Plenty to chew on: Luke Runyon on corporate consolidation in agriculture

An old cartoon shows a small child with a hopeful, questioning face looking up at a perplexed parent holding a gallon jug and stammering, “Um, well, I don’t know the cow’s name, but you need to drink the milk anyway.” The cartoon is funny, but maybe the joke is on us. Harvest Public Media reporter Luke Runyon reports on a trend of consolidation among “big agriculture” companies in this November 2016 essay in Flatland, a digital magazine from Kansas City, Missouri.

Read it here: Runyon, “’Why you should care about ‘big ag’ companies getting bigger”