Category: Media Coverage
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Critics Question Yelp’s Health Inspection Alerts
An alert appearing on Yelp that discloses San Francisco health inspection scores may “improve the functioning of markets” and help consumers make “better decisions,” but critics reportedly say the posted scores illustrate the failures of the city’s food-safety inspection system. Two researchers, who authored “Digitizing Disclosures: The Case of Restaurant Hygiene Scores,” previously helped Yelp design…
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USA Today Reports on Cattle Ranchers’ Fight to Define “Meat”
With companies creating plant-based foods that look and taste like real meat—and even getting product placement in grocery meat cases—USA Today reports that U.S. cattle ranchers are disputing the categories of the products developed and sold by these companies, including Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat. The United States Cattlemen’s Association has filed a petition with…
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AI Grocery Amazon Go Opens
Amazon has opened Amazon Go, a grocery store using artificial intelligence (AI), prompting speculation about its potential effects on the labor market, worries about consumer privacy and skepticism about how well it will work. Shoppers scan a smartphone app at a turnstile as they enter, then items are added to a virtual shopping cart as shoppers…
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“Rotten” Documentary Series Explores Food Issues
From the rise in food allergies to the changing economics of agriculture and animal husbandry, documentary series “Rotten” examines a range of factors that affect the food and beverage industry. Episodes include “Lawyers, Guns & Honey,” which explores how foreign honey enters the U.S. market; “Big Bird,” which documents the effects of JBS‘ purchase of…
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Media Warns Against “Raw Water” Trend
An increasing number of companies are selling “raw water,” or “unfiltered, untreated, unsterilized spring water,” according to the New York Times. The companies target consumers seeking to leave the country’s water infrastructure over concerns about treatments the water undergoes and the lead pipes that sometimes carry it to its destinations. One “water consciousness movement” start-up offers…
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Anti-GMO Campaign Called “Anti-Science” and “Immoral”
Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue University and former Indiana governor, argues in a Washington Post op-ed that the anti-GMO campaign is “cruel,” “heartless,” “inhumane” and “immoral.” With no credible scientific evidence and no record of adverse effects on human health or the environment to support it, Daniels asserts, the anti-GMO lobby is blocking “lifesaving” advances made by…
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The Future of Food
In a December 2017 series of articles, Financial Times explored issues projected to affect the global food and beverage industry in the future. The Update‘s previous coverage of the issues examined can provide additional context to these evolving subjects. Genetically Modified (GM) Crops. Experts reportedly anticipate an increase in GM crop cultivation, which currently covers 185 million…
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Report Explores Possible Causes for Rise in Saturated Fats
Responding to pressure from health groups, the government and consumer demand, food companies have been reducing levels of sugar and salt in their foods, the Washington Post reports, but levels of saturated fats in the updated recipes for these reduced-salt or -sugar foods have surged. The Post cites a November 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)…