New York Times*: The organic milk wars have begun, with Wal-Mart choosing giant Aurora Dairy to make its house line of organic milk. Aurora — which Whole Foods visited and rejected — milks its thousands of cows three times a day instead of the two that most organic dairies do, and feeds them diets rich in calorie-dense grains, not grass.
The Blade Plus: The University of Georgia did a study of 600+ adults in the Atlanta/Tallahassee area and found that consumers were more interested in buying grass-fed milk than either organic or locally produced products.
CattleNetwork.com: Extremely interesting — given the website it’s published on — interview with Patti Whisnant of the American Grass Fed Beef company. She lets the USDA have it for its proposed definition of “grass fed,” decries the dilution of the “natural” label, and attacks beef producers for importing cheaper grass-fed beef from Latin America in order to market it under their own grass-fed labels.
Seattle P-I: More on the E. Coli outbreak traced to tained spinach, which has affected people in 20 states. The article lists brand names that have been recalled. Although FDA officials have traced outbreaks to spinach supplied by Natural Selection Foods, health officials stress that the problem may extend to other brands.
New York Times*: Why corn is replacing grain as the crop of choice even in “America’s breadbasket.”
Seattle P-I: Slightly meandering op-ed seems to urge Americans to not just eat healthier for themselves, but to think about food from a sustainable, environmental perspective as well.
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