Whole Foods 2019 wellness trends.
“From shelf-stable probiotic-filled products to Pacific Rim-inspired foods, see a full list of Whole Foods wellness trends for 2019.” | learn more
Category: thoughts of food
Why Microsoft, Tencent and Intel are growing cucumbers in autonomous greenhouses.
“Teams led by employees at Microsoft, Intel, and Tencent are participating in a cucumber-growing competition to operate autonomous greenhouses to explore artificial intelligence applications in indoor farming.” | learn more
100 years of food predictions.
“Lava-powered steak, chicken drumsticks from a lab, and wood fungus for dinner: All these dishes were once thought of as the foodstuffs of the future.” | learn more
The latest victim of millennials: American Cheese.
“American (cheese) culture is at a crossroads. The product, made famous by the greatest generation, devoured by boomers on the go and touted as the basis for macaroni and cheese, the well-documented love object of…
How to avoid being duped by your vitamins and supplements.
“A recent October 2018 report by California Department of Public Health researchers, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, revealed that more than 700 supplements on the market included unlabeled ingredients found in pharmaceutical drugs,…
The five forces of food.
Obvious Ventures co-founder James Joaquin discusses the forces he believes are driving consumer away from big food companies. | learn more
Why McDonald’s Coke tastes better than all the others.
“The Coca-Cola from McDonald’s manages to taste crisper, sharper, even fresher than the same drink from other fast-food restaurants.” | learn more
Master Sommelier exam cheating scandal explained.
“The Court of Master Sommeliers announced that it would be rescinding the master sommelier (MS) designation from 23 of the 24 people who had passed the master sommelier exam this year.” | learn more
LaCroix may not be ‘all-natural’, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad for you.
Popular Science pokes holes in the lawsuit filed last week against LaCroix, while also calling BS on the all-natural claim used on much food packaging. This is a great counterpoint! | learn more
Class action lawsuit alleges LaCroix contains bad stuff.
The company famously touts its beverages as “100% natural”. Now… “The firm Beaumont Costales, who filed the suit on behalf of Lenora Rice, claims that testing reveals that LaCroix contains a number of artificial ingredients,…
How the potato ushered in an era of peace.
“Its arrival in Europe had consequences that went far beyond diet.” I really like the way that macro analysis of yield per area led to this insight. | learn more
MIT students use AI to cook up pizza recipes.
“A group of MIT students set artificial intelligence loose on pizza recipes. The results were surprisingly good, in the end.” | learn more
You don’t love Domino’s like Russians love Domino’s.
Hundreds of Russians got tattoos in exchange for a free pizza offer. The franchise owner had to limit the offer to the first 350 people after he saw the surprising amount of demand. | learn more
About the German supermarkets expanding aggressively in America.
“We chart the progress of Aldi and Lidl, the largest German grocery chains that are conquering America.” | learn more
Rainbow trout can now be called salmon in China.
“A move to let rainbow trout be labelled as salmon after a food scandal causes a splash in China.” I guess nobody should be surprised by another food scandal coming from China, but I imagine…
The ugly truth of ugly produce.
Phat Beets Produce puts the startup Imperfect Produce “on blast” for their business model. Basically, the author claims that the food wasn’t going un-eaten before their existence, so the business basically reduces supply for food…
Former Naf Naf execs look to repeat their success.
I love this! Any readers know these guy personally? “Two of the chain’s former execs look to grow a local barbecue chain and start a chain of authentic taquerias, looking to be the ‘Lettuce Entertain…
Wheat gene map could boost food security and lower allergies.
“Scientists announced today they have mapped out more than 94% of the genome of Chinese Spring bread wheat — adding that by manipulating its genetic code, people could eventually improve global food security and possibly…
14,000-year-old bread rewrites history of baking.
“Breadcrumbs found at an excavation in Jordan reveal that humans were baking thousands of years earlier than previously believed. It may have even prompted them to settle down and plant cereals.” | learn more
MightyVine tomatoes to double operations.
I never thought I’d have a favorite brand of tomato, but I do! Kim and I have been buying these greenhouse-grown local tomatoes for a while, and their consistency is great. Glad to see this…
Blue Apron’s steady decline continues.
Not much content other than the graph below but sharing link anyway. | learn more
11 new restaurant concepts reimagining fast food & casual dining.
This is an interesting roundup of cool new concepts by CB Insights. Sad that none of them are in Chicago yet. | learn more
The weird science of cheese.
We can thank Wired UK for this gem. “Cheese is not just food, it’s a variety show. The multitude of aromas, flavours, and textures found in cheeses throughout the world is more than we encounter…
One in three fish caught never make it to the plate.
A new report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization says “that 35% of global catches are wasted. About a quarter of these losses are bycatch or discards, mostly from trawlers, where unwanted fish are…
Meal-kit company Chef’d shuts down.
Two links related to this. The first is a Forbes article by industry consultant Brittain Ladd pronouncing the death of standalone meal-kit companies. The second is a LinkedIn articleby Chef’d former SVP of Retail Sean Butler expressing a totally contrary…