Genetic Maize

I’m actually trying to get some work done today but a friend shared the Times Online article Scientists grow pork meat in a laboratory on Facebook, which immediately made me think of the Better Off Ted episode Heroes, which I happened to watch this weekend. If you have a chance, watch it. Funny stuff. This new article about cultured pork follows one about cultured beef from about a year ago. Does cultured meat have a future beyond sitcoms?

If you’re unsure about something, there is probably a non-profit organization (aka special interest group, aka non-governmental organization)  just waiting to tell you what the “facts” are. These organizations all claim to present the most accurate information in their non-peer-reviewed reports, but can we trust them?

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Since her husband took office, Mrs. Obama has been setting a wonderful example, encouraging healthy food options like fresh fruits and vegetables. The state dinner at the White House is a beautiful demonstration that food can be healthy as well as fancy!

Modern Flourishes at Obamas’ State Dinner in the New York Times leaves me hungry. How wonderful: “the meatless menu included a mix of Indian and American favorites, including some African-American standards. Collard greens and curried prawns, chickpeas and okra, nan and cornbread”. Sounds like a lot of agricultural biodiversity to me! Cheers to Mrs. Obama for continuing to encourage Americans to consider healthy food options by setting such an exquisite example.

For the full menu, see this official press release from the White House (pdf). For pictures, you must see the slide show at the Times – there are very few pictures of the event online.

Karl, you’ll be happy to hear that the pears served for dessert were poached in honey from the White House’s own beehive!

As employers desperately try to keep health care costs down, some are turning to unexpected measures, according to Health Care Savings Could Start in the Cafeteria in Sunday’s New York Times. Employers, including some big ones like IBM, have programs that reward their employees for joining a gym or following a preventive health care regimen. Now, some employers are trying to affect their employees diets by offering healthier foods in their cafeterias and giving employees coupons for healthy prepared food items stocked in local grocery stores. Full Yield (a company that does not seem to have a website!) is a new company working to prepare the healthy food offerings that employees are encouraged to buy. Together with Harvard Pilgrim, an insurance company, Full Yield will track employee health to see if it improves with their food options.

Why am I bringing this up at Biofortified?

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As you may already know, I’m a co-blogger at Biofortified, the group blog on plant genetics and genetic engineering. I’m committed to helping to make Biofortified the best possible resource on the web for these topics. One of the unique aspects of Biofortified is the potential for discussion among diverse people. Comments are turned off at Genetic Maize, but I hope you will visit Biofortified and get involved in the conversation. Any posts I write at Biofortified will also be posed here as a sort of online portfolio. If you have a specific question or comment for me, feel free to use the contact from.