November 10, 2022 — Perhaps in grade school when the cafeteria served up those fish sticks on Friday, it felt a bit like penance. But a new working paper from scholars in the UK and Taiwan suggest that the Catholic practice of having fish on Friday (or simply abstaining from meat) could measurably benefit the planet by reducing carbon […]
November 25, 2021 — Axios has declared that we are having our most vegan Thanksgiving ever. It sounds like a good story. They made us look. But the story is not exactly true. In short, while we may be drifting toward more food from plants on the table, we are not making a headlong rush toward veganism. Has Peak […]
March 7, 2021 — The collision of dietary dogmas is fascinating to watch. Especially in the early days of it. Right now, plant-based diets and ultra-processed foods are getting a whole lot of press. Plant-based is good. Ultra-processed is bad. So naturally, we see the meteoric rise of plant-based, ultra-processed food. Writing in the New York Times, Frank Bruni […]
March 10, 2020 — Frank Mitloehner wants you to know that it’s not cow farts that are killing the planet. The big bovine brouhaha, he says, is a bit overblown. Really, we need to pay attention to the carbon released from carbon fuels. Of course, this line of thinking doesn’t go down well with angry vegan activists. “Let dairy […]
February 22, 2020 — Food and health fashion never ceases to amaze. Remember Slim Jims? Those processed meat sticks, shelf-stable forever, that people used to buy out of desperation at a convenience store? Well, suddenly they’re trendy and you can even buy upscale, grass-fed versions. We never would have guessed that processed meat sticks could become health food. A […]
February 4, 2020 — A red meat issue is inflammatory and political. This particular definition doesn’t have a separate entry in Merriam-Webster yet, though they are thinking about it. But on the subject of red meat, medical journals just can’t let it go. So today we have a new paper in JAMA Internal Medicine to revisit the question – […]
January 18, 2020 — Meat mayhem marches on in the arcane world of academic nutrition warfare. Humans have a tough time these days with diversity of thinking. Especially if the subject is nutrition. Or food policy. Thus, Rita Rubin served up a compelling account of the ongoing battles about meat in JAMA this week. Avoiding the Meat of the […]
January 5, 2020 — Is veganism having an identity crisis? On one hand, stories bombard us with the message that veganism is going mainstream. Vegan restaurant options are expanding crazy fast. A plant-based diet is supposed to be good for saving your health, your soul, and even the planet. But on the other hand, sticklers are quick to tell […]
October 1, 2019 — “I am outraged and bewildered,” says Christopher Gardner. The line forms back there, Professor Gardner. Seven – yes, seven – papers in the Annals of Internal Medicine today are whipping up a flaming hot controversy about nutrition guidance broadly and red meat specifically. The bottom line from all these papers? Maybe we need to admit […]
October 3, 2018 — The fairy tale farm evokes images of pigs rolling in muddy pig pens, cows grazing in green pastures, and hens happily sitting on eggs in wooden hen houses. While this may have been the scene in the 1890s, the reality today is not so pretty. Increasing demand, corporatisation of agriculture, and the expectation of low […]
