Taxing soda actually makes kids healthier. Who would have known it was so simple? 

WARNING: SCARY FOOTAGE. IF THINKING ABOUT POWERFUL CORPORATIONS AND THE THINGS THEY ARE CAPABLE OF GIVES YOU THE CREEPS, DON’T WATCH THIS. Seriously, the twist at the end is the worst, though. Scariest thing I’ve heard about the legal system in a long time. 

Good news and bad news: the good news is that the FDA is cracking down on some of the more ridiculous food labels out there. The bad news is that somebody let food labels get completely ridiculous. I mean seriously. The POM website claimed the drink could fight cancer? I have no idea why they thought that would be okay. 

A cooking blog without recipes? Impossible! But also, somehow, intriguing… 

The Child Nutrition Act won’t fix everything at once, but it’s worth it none the less. That said, my favorite part comes from Margo Wootan: “We can’t go from candy bars to apples in one fell swoop.” Actually, I bet we could. But anything that does help us get there is probably worthwhile, and knowing how congress works, this will likely be the first of many, tiny little swoops. 

New York Times readers shoot down a scary idea.

Food-miles reevaluated.

Together, we’d all make a great cookbook.

The American Beverage Association makes excuses (remember, Internet, being less bad isn’t the same thing as not being bad at all, which is still different from being good)

Small farms can’t survive by themselves, y’know: http://www.grist.org/article/2010-01-05-it-takes-a-community-to-sustain-a-small-farm

Hunger in New York City: http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/displaystory.cfm?subjectid=348876&story_id=15271055

Obesity rates in America seem to be leveling out: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/14/health/14obese.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y

Tell the USDA we don’t want Genetically Engineered contamination of organic food: http://ga3.org/campaign/alfalfaEIS/forward/e3s6x36rfjejixdw

A CBS video about cafeteria food: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6050936n&tag=contentMain;contentBody

Marion Nestle talks about “eco-stunts”: http://www.foodpolitics.com/2010/01/the-latest-eco-stunt-school-food/

Young Adult Fiction about healthy food changing lives: http://abbylibrarian.blogspot.com/2010/01/book-review-fat-cat.html

Are schools pushing healthy lunches away?
Will vending machines and school stores lower academic achievement?

Michael Pollan wants you to eat food not “food.”
Eating food should be healthy, whole, pure not food injected with additives and GMO’s.

The School Lunch Talk
Dishes out the best/worst menus to examining what students eat for school lunch all around the countries.

Climate Change: The Real Problems leading to False Accusations
Will the need to create cropping and livestock systems that are resilient to the climate change help to an actual solution?

School lunch meets failure
Sadly fast food is healthier than what America’s 31 million children are given at our nation’s schools.

Appropriate food marketing for children
Healthy food made to attract children should lead to benefiting them with firm advertisements.

Creative lunch ideas for your young jolly
Many yummy food ideas that attract kids of all ages while benefiting them with a happy healthy body.

Cristine C. Quinn to Unveil Policy on Food for the City
Council Speaker goes above and beyond to improve the production of our food.

What I Do: Food Truck Driver
Who’s responsible for getting our food to us?

Plan to Add Supermarkets, to poor areas, With Healthy Results
New York neighborhoods lacking fresh food get an upgrade.

Shifting Paradigms at the Young Farmers Conference in New York
Farmers get educated on growing and maintaining healthy food.

Catching Water
Save water while reducing storm water runoff!

USA Today on School Lunch
Chef Ann’s take on meat being served at our schools.

Tweet What You Eat?
Tweet clouds are a fun way to see your food habits!

Slow Food USA: getting the big guns to listen to the slow foods movement
Hint: it has to do with money

Foodpolitics.com on taking Kellogg to court
Kellogg claims Cocoa Krispies increase immunity. San Francisco District Attorney says “Nuh-uh.”

From the Denver Post: the great chocolate milk debate
Many opinions in the Colorado public schools over what to serve for lunch

From Change.org: healthy food for all
Use of food stamps at farmers markets is on the rise in New York City

Irish Times article on AIDS and world hunger
Why AIDS is a hunger issue, and hunger is an AIDS issue.

From Asbury Park Press: Is Urban Foraging an oxymoron?
Eating only what you find in Portland Oregon

Story from Bike Portland on a bike-powered RV
Brian Campbell has been living in a his RV-bike creation for 30 years.

Slow Food USA on gardening rehabilitation
Prisons across the country grow vegetables and stock food pantries.

From Center for a Livable Future: Just say no to drugs in you meat
New legislation would keep antibiotics out of livestock feed

Family farm sends developers packing, welcomes kids who want to learn:
http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/family_transforms_struggling_farm_into_outdoor_classroom/

Further scientific proof that we are a lot like slugs:
http://www.foodpolitics.com/2009/11/the-latest-on-too-much-salt/

What happens when you label genetically modified apples as something else? More people want to buy them:
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/27/would-gmo-apples-by-another-name-taste-sweeter/

Child diets and learning disabilities:
http://organicconnectmag.com/wp/2009/11/child-diet-and-learning-disabilities/

Thanksgiving at the Edible Schoolyard (some great pics):
http://www.edibleschoolyard.org/journal/2009/11/25/harvest-to-home/

CSAs: Food Oases:
http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/slow_food/blog_post/low_income_csas/

8 steps to save food: as easy as 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8:
http://www.chefann.com/blog/archives/1649

Farmed fish, wild fish, red fish, blue fish:
http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/fish-stories/

Better lunches, healthier kids, better world:
http://organicconnectmag.com/wp/2009/11/child-health-and-school-lunches/

Link Buffet November 18, 2009

Hoping for a Rooftop Farm in Brooklyn
In hope of accommodating Bushwick, Brooklyn with the freshest food available, Ben Flanner is working with Bushwick locavores to place a garden on Roberta’s restaurant located in Bushwick.

Libby’s Warns of a Canned Pumpkin Shortage
The public has been forewarned; due to a possible shortage of canned pumpkin, pumpkin purchasers may have to opt out and buy fresh whole pumpkins.

What *Can’t* You Do With Leftover Food?
Recycling left over food may just be a solution among many to solve the ever growing issue of mass amounts of methane in landfills.

Plan B Update: The Copenhagen Conference on Food Security
Lester R. Brown expresses his concern for world-wide rising tides covering over rice lands in his newly released book Plan B. 4.0.

Senate Agricultural Committee on School Food
A hearing was conducted to address the hunger and improve health in child nutrition programs; read a few quotes made by the Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.

New Report Reveals Dramatic Rise in Pesticide Use on Genetically Engineered (GE) Crops Due to the Spread of Resistant Weeds
Could your “healthy” crops be tainted? The Center For Food Safety provides the public with and adverse warning.

The Bookshelf: Gastropolis
The Bookshelf: Gastropolis provides a vast insight of just a few of the thousands of restaurants in New York City and what type of foods are offered there.

Hunger in the United States
An article has been published that aims to reach out to Congress; based on the new federal data, the United States is in dire need of a plan that will end child hunger.

Link Buffet November 10, 2009

Chow down.

A message from Vandana Shiva and the Center for Food Safety
In response to Monsanto’s bizarre claims of decency, author, activist and leader of the Slows Foods Movements Vandana Shiva tells what impact Monsanto has really had on small farmers.

From Sustainable Table: tips from the author of The Dorm Room Diet
Author Daphne Oz discusses how to adjust to college cafeteria eating  and make smart food choices while in school.

Michael Pollan’s new book for younger readers — review from Slow Food USA
Michael Pollan has a new book out! Run! It’s actually a revised version of The Omnivores Dilemma, written for the  middle school aged reader.

Small slaughterhouses may catch a break – Slow Food USA
Good news for small slaughterhouses — pending legistlation allows them to ship over state lines.

Worms eat my garbage — Slow Food USA
You’ve asked yourself:  I know composting is the bees-knees, why how can I do it in my very small apartment? The answer, my friends, is WORMS. Slow Food explains how to build a worm bin that will get the job done.

The Sixth-Grade Kitchen Orientation at the Edible Schoolyard
With fall here and winter coming, sixth graders at the Edible Schoolyard turn their attention from the garden to the kitchen.

Solar One says: Give us Your Leaves!
Our partner organization Solar One has a new plan to get leaves from your yard to NYC community gardens. Read about it.

Chef Ann Cooper, fixing our food system and reeling in your dinner: podcasts from Heritage Radio Network
Give a listen to these food podcasts from Heritage Radio Network: Edible Communities with Chef Ann Cooper (10/14/09), Fixing our National Food System (11/2/09), The Main Course (10/25/09) and Catch It Cook It Eat It (10/17/09).