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Consumer Reports [no paywall – 2024] “CR tested popular fast foods and supermarket staples for bisphenols and phthalates, which can be harmful to your health. Here’s what we found—and how to stay safer. By the time you open a container of yogurt, the food has taken a long journey to reach your spoon. You may …
The New York Times – Full Transcript of President Trump’s Speech on the Economy – The president sharply attacked his predecessor while insisting that his own record contained nothing but victories. The New York Times – “The president cited misleading statistics to insist, wrongly, that prices were coming down. President Trump praised what he portrayed …
Data is Beautiful via Reddit: “After a year of research, debate, and help from many of you in your home regions, I’ve finished a national map of 78 U.S. food regions. Each area is based on distinct culinary traditions shaped by geography, culture, and history, from Gullah and Tex-Mex to Monroe BBQ and Crucian cuisine. …
The Guardian: “This past March, when Google began rolling out its AI Mode search capability, it began offering AI-generated recipes. The recipes were not all that intelligent. The AI had taken elements of similar recipes from multiple creators and Frankensteined them into something barely recognizable. In one memorable case, the Google AI failed to distinguish …
The Big Newsletter: “The Trump FTC tried to hide a complaint showing Pepsi forced shoppers to pay higher prices everywhere but Walmart. But now it’s unsealed. And the politics of affordability are explosive Last month, the Atlanta Fed came out with a report showing a clear relationship between consolidation in grocery stores and the rate …
bioGraphic: “Scientists and conservationists in the U.S. Midwest are working to stop industrial herbicides from drifting onto the region’s remaining hardwood trees. The symptoms were strange. They were the same across multiple oak species—white, swamp white, black, red, post, shingle, chinkapin, blackjack, and pin. Leaves thickened, elongated, and contorted into grotesque shapes—cupping, puckering, curling, and …
Unbiased Science: The Potential Danger Behind the Glitter – “A counterfeit or fake cosmetic product is one that imitates the branding, packaging, or claims of a legitimate product but is made outside the authorized supply chain. These fake products aren’t just disappointing; they can be dangerous. They may be manufactured in unsafe conditions, and they …
Bloomberg’s Jealousy List for 2025 – token access [no paywall], a collection of journalism admired by the magazine’s writers and editors. “For an industry that’s perpetually facing the parallel challenges of diminishing reader trust and declining advertising revenue, the media business sure delivered in 2025. There were way too many podcasts, documentaries, in-depth investigations and …
Civil Eats: “December 4, 2025 – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Monday that it has deployed a version of artificial intelligence called “agentic AI” for “all agency employees” to assist with complex tasks, including safety reviews, inspections, and compliance. While the release did not specifically mention food safety, the agency is responsible …
The New York Times: What Happened: Trump plans to shut down the 115-year-old Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, the country’s largest USDA research hub, and scatter its programs, staff, and collections across multiple states. Scientists and farm groups warn the relocation will upend critical research on pollinators, plant diseases, food safety, and crop resilience. Why It …
The Guardian – A Guardian investigation reveals Dollar General and Family Dollar stores often fail to honor their shelf prices – charging more at checkout for everything from frying pans to Frosted Flakes…The dollar-store industry, including Family Dollar and its larger rival, Dollar General, promises everyday low prices for household essentials. But an investigation by …
52 things I learned in 2025 – – [a small selection from the list] In 2023, Nigeria had a million more births than the whole of Europe – Our World in Data, via Charles Onyango-Obbo] Childhood peanut allergies are falling dramatically, perhaps because advice to avoid peanuts was reversed. [Simar Bajaj] The serial killer epidemic …
