Science Supersized Thanksgiving Meals

It turns out the traditional Thanksgiving turkey is not so traditional after all. The same can be said of the favorite side dishes as well. In "Turkey Tech," an article in Wired, Alexis Madrigal reveals how science has genetically engineered the quintessential American meal to be all but unrecognizable to our ancestors who began the tradition. 

"Americans eat a pound of sugar every two-and-a-half days. The average amount of sugar consumed by an Englishman in the 1700s was about a pound a year," said food historian Kathleen Curtin of Plimoth Plantation, a historical site that recreates the 17th-century colony. "If you haven’t had a candy bar, your taste buds aren’t jaded, and your apple tastes sweet."

Forget Cattle, Farmers. Raise Bugs

In an article in Wired magazine, Erin Biba writes about the issue of water shortage on Earth and proposes a solution: farm bugs rather than traditional livestock. "Farming insects generates one-tenth the methane that livestock produces for an equivalent amount of foodstuffs." The article is appropriately titled "Gross National Product" and makes some good points. Although Americans are repulsed by the thought of eating bugs, we actually already are since the government has set up guidelines for insect and rodent parts, feces, etc. in our processed foods.

Study: Junk food laws may help curb kids' obesity

In a recent study published in the journal Pediatrics, researchers attempted to determine if laws regarding junk food sales in schools were making an impact on student weight. According to a review in USA Today, "Children in the study gained less weight from fifth through eighth grades if they lived in states with strong, consistent laws versus no laws governing snacks available in schools. Also, children who were overweight or obese in fifth grade were more likely to reach a healthy weight by eighth grade if they lived in states with the strongest laws."

Burger King's Bacon Sunday: Decadent or Disgusting?

Photograph by Noel Barnhurst/Burger King/AP

Really? Bacon on a sundae? Who comes up with these food items? I guess ice cream and chocolate and caramel sauce are not fattening enough. Besides the issue of fat, what about the taste? Also, it is just wrong--mixing cow with pig.

The New Yorker's Rachel Arons writes about the sundae in her article "Why Does Fancy Food Make Us Mad?" She notes the current trend of fast food restaurants creating more upscale offerings and comments on their acceptance, but mostly lack of acceptance, by the public.

What the World Eats

Photos from around the world depicting what average families eat in a week from the book Hungry Planet. These photos by Peter Menzel for TIME magazine's photo essay. 

Scottish 9-Yr-Old's School Lunch Blog Censored, Then Saved By Internet

Photo from May 24, 2012 entry in Martha Payne's NeverSeconds blog

Martha Payne, a 9-year-old girl in Scotland, was instructed to stop adding photos of her school lunches on her blog, NeverSeconds, because the "photos were misleading and had caused distress to cafeteria staff." After celebrity chefs, including Jamie Oliver, and others advocated on her behalf, she was allowed to continue her posts.

Read the BBC New article that includes interviews with Martha's father and school officials.

Martha Payne, NeverSeconds blogger