Food vs Rats: We Can Have Both!

Seems the lowly rat may be a blessing and a curse to world food supplies. We don't have to choose between them, we can have both!

Several news stories caught our attention this past week over the world food "crisis" that was widely hyped earlier this year.

But in an update on food in India, Bloomberg news now reports:

“Aug. 20 (Bloomberg) -- A worldwide food crisis that sent prices of wheat, rice and corn to records and sparked riots from Haiti to Ivory Coast may be over after farmers boosted plantings, a top official in India's food ministry said.” - Bloomberg

But we recall just a few months ago that India's food supply is routinely devastated by rats. Some news accounts reported that 50% of India's food supply was eaten by rats every year. Or in this case, the entire crop:

"About a million people in India's northeastern state of Mizoram are facing famine after a plague of rats ate the region's entire paddy crop, officials and aid agencies said on Monday." - Reuters

So we were bit amused when we recently saw this news update on how some Indians are solving their food crisis with the addition of the rat to the menu:

With food prices rising, one of India's poorest states is considering adding rat meat to the menus of state-run canteens, a move officials in Bihar say could help provide cheap protein for the state's 80 million people, most of whom live off the land as poor sharecroppers or subsistence farmers. - CNN

The world food production, supply and demand is a complex issue. Poverty, transportation, wars and political instability are the major factors for food shortages around the world.

And with pests eating major portions of a nation's food supply, it's hard to imagine how critics continue to argue that productivity of the American farmer to produce more food causes world starvation.

So all we can really say is "Let them Eat Rats!".

READ MORE

• Food Aid Crisis Prompts Opinions
• How America Stacks Up on Food Costs
• Stop Blaming Farmers for Food Prices and Deficits
  
• Low Corn Prices Causing World Starvation
• Economist Explains High Food Costs Caused by Energy Costs

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New Web Tool Helps Dissect Food Facts

The American Diabetes Association has launched a new interactive tool on its Web site designed to help consumers better understand the nutritional compromises of food choices.

The new tool, MyFoodAdvisor, assesses foods for 22 different nutrients, suggests alternatives and analyzes the overall health benefits of foods. Portion sizes are standardized, based on American Diabetes Association and American Dietetic Association exchange lists, so that all carbohydrate-containing foods are in servings of about 15 grams of carbs.

The online tool is designed for individuals combating diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease and obesity. It allows users to browse by food category, or search specific items; save recipes to a personal recipe box; analyze recipes for specific nutritional information; and produce shopping lists based on ingredients.

"When health care providers tell patients to watch their carbs, eat more fiber or to avoid saturated fats, most people don't know where to start," Ann Albright, president of health care and education for the association, said in a statement.

"MyFoodAdvisor takes the guesswork out of that.

This tool appeals to so many looking for nutrition information: people with diabetes because of the consistent portions of carbohydrates and proteins; people with or at risk for heart disease because of the option to search by fiber, sodium and saturated fats; and people with kidney disease because potassium and phosphorous information is included, which is not listed on standard nutrition labels.

Source: American Diabetes Association

READ MORE

• Marketing and Demand are Key Drivers of Food Price Increases
• How America Stacks Up on Food Costs
• San Francisco Mayor Proposes "Soda Tax" For Big Retailers
  
• The Cost of Humane Eggs Isn't Chicken Feed
  

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Where is Matt? Dancing, Of Course!

We don't go off topic very often here at Food and Food America, but sometimes it's worth a quick jaunt around the Net. It can help, maybe in some small way, to personalize the nature of the world around us.

Matt Harding, a world traveler at heart, has a new video out of his world-wide dancing escapades. Now this is not ballet at its finest. At best, his dancing style could be called goofy and maybe even dorky. But it is infectious. And the music and scenery are breathtaking.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Which leads us to ponder. Just where are all of these people going to get their food and fuel?

And with economic policies that attack farmers, stifle food production, limit fuel options and increase costs? It's a small world indeed.

READ MORE

• May the Ethanol Be With You!
  
• Corn Guy vs. Taco Lady
  
• Corn Guy to the Rescue

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Ethanol vs Gasoline Experiment

Interesting experiment demonstrating the difference between burning ethanol and gasoline.




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If you can't see the video, click HERE.

READ MORE

• May the Ethanol Be With You!
• Corn Guy vs. Taco Lady
  
• Corn Guy to the Rescue

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Buying American Buys Freedom

Many Americans, shocked by the ever increasing price of foreign oil and the high level of foreign imports to the country, have begun to seek out and buy only American-made products.

Some call this "pocketbook patriotism". Others think it's just a good idea to keep jobs here at home and help the local and national economies. Many are still concerned with tainted imported food products, medicines and toys that have entered the country in recent years. While others don't seem to care at all.

But the reality is that foreign oil fueled a $711.6 billion trade deficit in 2007 according to the Commerce Department.

It's not easy buying Red, White and Blue. So if you want to buy American, where do you start?

One new website provides consumers with the information they need when looking to buy US-made products:

Still Made in the USA
www.stillmadeinusa.com

As the price of foreign oil continues to climb to record levels, American wealth is transferring to oil-producing countries around the world. Our national security is at risk with every dollar that leaves our shores to hostile countries. And most developing nations are seeing their food money leave the country to pay the higher price for oil.

American-made biofuels offer motorists an American-made choice for their fuel too. Check out our lists of where you can buy biofuels in the US.

READ MORE

• Energy Victory Through Competition
  
• Consumers Face Soaring Gas Prices
• Oil Imports Fuel Trade Deficit
  
• US Spy Chief Warns of Oil Threat from Russia, China and OPEC
• Oil Prices Expected to Ripple Through Economy
• Biofuel Myths vs Facts
• Find Alternative Fuel Locations
  

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Oprah Goes Vegan

Oprah is going vegan. At least as part of her 21-day cleansing for "healthy wellness". Oprah announced her latest fad on a show earlier this week.

As part of her new regime, she's giving up everything that contains:

• Caffeine
• Sugar
• Alcohol
• Gluten
• Animal products

All of these nasty things are unhealthy according to her new diet guru, Kathy Freston, a personal growth and spiritual counselor.

So what's left to eat? "Everything that is so healthy," Kathy says. "I say if you can give up a few things for the period of the cleanse, your body will learn to regenerate and produce the brain chemicals it needs, lose the taste addictions it has."

Oprah's also started a blog to tell the world about her new ability to thrive on lentil soup, lettuce leaves and cucumbers.

Going vegan must not be totally good for business. She still hawks recipes for carnivore diets in her magazine. And the last time she tangled with the meat industry, she declared she had "No Beef with Beef" (CNN).

Source: Oprah

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• Food vs Fuel: A Global Myth
  
• New High-Vitamin Corn Could Improve Nutrition
  
• San Francisco Mayor Proposes "Soda Tax" For Big Retailers
• Beef Myths Exposed as Pure Bull
  

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Quotes of Note

As we come across useful quotes, we'll place them here as a reference to our readers:

Food Prices

"The change in the renewable fuel standard, the change in tariff or duty isn't going to affect food prices. We need to focus on things that will actually have an effect instead of a short-term political solution." - USDA Secretary Ed Schafer, May 2008

"Important food items like bread, eggs, and milk have high prices that are largely unrelated to ethanol or corn prices, but correspond to fundamental supply/demand relationships in the world."
- Texas A&M Report, The Effects of Ethanol on Texas Food and Fuel, April 2008

"The facts are these: U.S. corn prices rose by 37 percent in the past year through March, year, wheat prices by 123 percent, and rice by 36 percent. Of the total 43 percent rise in global food costs, the corn price rise accounts for only 1.2 percentage points, according to Edward Lazear, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. In the U.S., food prices rose 4.5 percent—without ethanol, Dr. Lazear told a recent press briefing, they would have risen 4.25 percent."
- Senator Richard Lugar, May 2008

"First, a reality check on corn ethanol, which isn't quite the villain critics make it out to be. Last year, American farmers grew a record 13.1 billion bushels of corn on 85 million acres. Of that, 22% went to make about 7 billion gallons of ethanol. That still left enough corn to supply the domestic market, increase exports to record levels, and stockpile a 10% surplus."
- Business Week, May 2008

"For nearly thirty years, our nation has pursued policies to promote the development and use of domestic, renewable fuels. We've promoted renewable biofuels as a way to lesson our dependence on foreign oil and to improve air quality. During this time, the biofuels movement enjoyed overwhelming support. Now, an anti-ethanol smear campaign led by the Grocery Manufacturers Association is blaming U.S. biofuels policies for the rising cost of food and global food shortages."
- Senator Charles Grassley, May 2008 letter to GMA companies

"Here are the facts. In the last five years, despite the nearly threefold growth of the corn ethanol industry (or actually because of it), the U.S. corn crop grew by 35 percent, the production of distillers grain (a high-value animal feed made from the protein saved from the corn used for ethanol) quadrupled and the net corn food and feed product of the U.S. increased 26 percent."
- Robert Zubrin / Gal Luft Opinion Editorial, May 2008

"The propaganda being used by the Grocery Manufacturers Association and its high-paid lobbying firms in Washington, D.C., is patently false and should be disavowed."
- Senator Charles Grassley, May 2008 letter to GMA companies

"While many like to blame the increases on biofuels, specifically corn ethanol, a closer examination will reveal that other factors beyond ethanol have played a greater role in higher food prices"
- National Farmers Union President Tom Buis, May 2008

"What's happening in the US today today is not affecting global food prices to the extent that people are talking about."
- USDA Secretary Ed Schafer

"Regarding the impact of biofuels on world food prices, the current starch ethanol has little impact and production from cellulosic materials will have no impact (if residues of current starch production are utilized) or little impact if dedicated energy crops are used.
- Dr. Robert Wooley, Abengoa Bioenergy, testimony before Congress, June 11, 2008

Energy

"The underlying force driving changes in the agricultural industry, along with the economy as a whole, is overall higher energy costs, evidenced by $100 per barrel oil."
- Texas A&M Report, April 2008

"The launching of the second-generation cellulosic industry will only be possible through first-generation starch-based cash flows, know-how and infrastructure,"
- Dr. Robert Wooley, Abengoa Bioenergy, testimony before Congress, June 11, 2008

"Instead of helping Big Oil make more money at the expense of average Americans, we are forcing oil companies to change their ways. We will hold them accountable for unconscionable price-gouging and force them to invest in renewable energy or pay a price for refusing to do so.”
- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, May 2008

"This analysis suggests that the growth in ethanol production has caused retail gasoline prices to be $0.29 to $0.40 per gallon lower than would otherwise have been the case."
- Iowa State Report on Effect of Ethanol

“Rising gas prices are contributing to the economic slowdown, straining the pocketbooks of hardworking families and the bottom lines of small businesses."
- Congressman Jason Altmire regarding the effects of higher gasoline prices, April 2008

“Iowa is becoming a national leader in the field of renewable energy. We’re building a very diverse renewable energy portfolio, and developing a statewide energy plan."
- Iowa Governor Chet Culver, May 2008

"These investments in leading-edge firms supports belief that ethanol has the greatest near-term potential as a clean-burning, renewable fuel that can help reduce oil dependence."
- General Motors President Fritz Hendersen

We estimate that over the past six years household expenditures on gasoline and motor oil have doubled, rising by more than $1200.
- Dr. Mark Cooper, Consumer Federation of America, Congressional Testimony April 2008

"While greenhouse gases from the tailpipes of cars get the most attention, the refineries that keep cars and trucks running also contribute to global warming. Fuel must be burned to make gasoline from oil, generating carbon-dioxide pollution."
- Chicago Tribune, February 2008

National Security

"...America has got to change its habits. We've got to get off oil."
- President George W. Bush, Wirec Conference, March 5, 2008

"Oil at $115 dollars a barrel in today's market is a deceiving figure, oil is a strategic commodity and should find its real value."
- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad discussing that $115 a barrel oil is too cheap, April 2008

"We need energy security. We need food security. We can have both."
- Senator Richard Lugar, May 2008

"And the truth of the matter is it's in our national interests that our farmers grow energy, as opposed to us purchasing energy from parts of the world that are unstable or may not like us." - President George W. Bush, Press Conference, April 2008

Environment

"From fueling a national conversation about sustainability to fueling convention vehicles, we're working toward a green convention on every front,"
- Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. (regarding using E85 from beer for the 08 Democratic convention)

Campaign Against Ethanol

"But, as was recently reported, this anti-ethanol campaign is not a coincidence. It turns out that a $300,000, six-month retainer of a beltway public relations firm is behind the smear campaign, hired by the Grocery Manufacturers Association."
- Senator Charles Grassley, Senate Floor Speech, May 2008

"Corn-based ethanol is directly responsible for major increases in the costs of not just corn products, but virtually all major food staples."
- Glover Park Group, Campaign Report to GMA, March 6, 2008 distorting the truth about food increases.

"The rocketing price for corn already is hurting Americans at the grocery store and the gas pump. Now it’s going to hurt us at the multiplex, too.
- Kansas City Star blaming ethanol for RAISING gas prices, food AND movie popcorn prices!

Misc

"I am pleased to note the drug industry’s willingness to work with us in addressing these problems. While we may differ on the details, in marked contrast to food manufacturers, the drug industry appears to recognize that a safer drug supply is not only in the interest of the public health, but also in the interest of their bottom line." - Representative John Dingell about efforts to build a better and safer FDA, April 2008

So when (in the movie) Curt and Ian take a bite of field corn, (not sweet corn) well past "roasting ear" stage and into the dent stage, throw it back into the field and call it "crap, " it hurts -- a lot.
- Missouri farmer Marcia Gorrell describing how she felt about her extended family member's movie, King Corn, April 2008

READ MORE

• Biofuel Myths vs Facts
• Do I Have a Flex Fuel Vehicle?
• Big Oil's War on Ethanol

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May the Ethanol Be With You!

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Contest details

This is a funny video promoting ethanol with a gentle nod to George Lucas and the Apple vs. Windows commericals. More information on ethanol is available from Drivingethanol.org

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• Corn Guy vs. Taco Lady
  
• Corn Guy to the Rescue
  
• America's Energy Choice
• Biofuel Myths vs. Facts
  

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Students Win Clean Snowmobile Challenge With E85

Snowmobile engines running on E85 ethanol helped collegiate students clean up with awards in a recent design competition.

A three-person team—two of them freshmen—from Clarkson University won the internal combustion division of the SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge.

Hosted by Michigan Technological University , the Clean Snowmobile Challenge is the Society of Automotive Engineers' newest collegiate design competition. Engineering students from participating schools take a stock snowmobile and reengineer it to reduce emissions and noise while maintaining or improving performance.

All entries in the challenge’s internal combustion division were required to run on biofuel, and most, including Clarkson, chose E85 ethanol. Four schools computed in the zero emissions division, which was won by the University of Wisconsin at Madison .

The challenge began following a ban on snowmobiling in Yellowstone due to the machines’ noise and emissions.

“What you have done is prove solutions are possible,” said Jim Evanoff, an environmental protection specialist at Yellowstone National Park . “We support fully what you are doing.”

According to the American Coalition for Ethanol, snowmobile manufacturers listed below have warranty statements that include ethanol (E10) as an approved fuel. Many manufacturers recommend its use to promote clean air in areas of heavy snowmobile use such as Yellowstone National Park.

• Arctic Cat*
• Bombardier
• Honda
• Kawasaki
• Polaris
• Suzuki
• Yamaha

* Arctic Cat requires that fuel designation connector be disconnected from ECU when using any oxygenated fuel.

Source: SAE International: Clean Snowmobile Challenge, SAE Collegiate Design Series

READ MORE

• Biofuel Myths vs. Facts
  
• Lawn Mowers Run on Ethanol Too!
  
• Renewable Fuels Helping to "Save the Bay"
  

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King Corn Hurts

Those two wacky movie makers and corn kings, Ian Chaney and Curt Ellis, have been hitting the promotional circuit over the past months spreading the "evils" of American farmers and "demon corn" in their movie, "King Corn".

But not everyone thinks the movie is PBS's new "Masterpiece Theater" contender.

We found an article this week that tells a bit more of the family drama behind the film.

"'King Corn' is Propaganda -- and It's Personal" - Marshall Democrat-News

The article was written by Marcia Gorrell who once hosted the two movie moguls for a night at her family farm.

But Marcia's more than just a good family farm host. She knows one of the Yale-graduate film makers, Curt, because his older sister married her younger brother.

Here's what she wrote about seeing the movie , King Corn, starring her extended in-law:

So of course, imagine our surprise -- and hurt -- when we watched the film, which we felt was very negative to family farmers such as ourselves. I think my oldest son, still shell-shocked after watching, summed it up best.

"It's well done but ... it's so wrong."

Like many others, she and her family were shocked and hurt to see a film with so many inaccuracies being passed off as factual.

So when (in the movie) Curt and Ian take a bite of field corn, (not sweet corn) well past "roasting ear" stage and into the dent stage, throw it back into the field and call it "crap, " it hurts -- a lot.

Talk about awkward. She and her family have shared their thoughts with Ian and Curt. But the two press on, spewing their message that we're all fat, stupid corn zombies.

And she has advice for others who watch the film:

After watching, if you are a farmer, please let someone know what you think is wrong in the film -- someone who may not be as familiar with farming as you are.

And if you aren't a farmer, please don't let "King Corn" be the last word on agriculture in America and Saline County. It is much more than a 90-minute film. Talk to a farmer, take a tour and ask questions.

Supporters of American agriculture need to speak out against propaganda films like "King Corn". Reducing America's production of food, feed, fiber and fuel for the world hurts everyone.

It might be a bit awkward at the next family Thanksgiving for Curt when he meets up with his farming family. But at least there's cornbread and corn-fed turkey!

READ MORE

• It's Time to Thank Farmers
  
• New King Corn Movie: Two Ears Down
• Dr. Earl Butz, Friend of Agriculture
  

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Big Oil Companies Embrace Ethanol

Dateline April 1, 2008, Washington D.C.

In a stunning development announced today, major oil companies have joined together to embrace the cleaner-burning American-grown biofuel.

In a press conference held in Washington DC, the CEOs of the major companies spoke about their sudden and dramatic change of heart.

"Why yes, we've tried to kill off competition and keep the American motorist locked to higher-priced, dirty fossil fuels." said Stanley Sinclair, President and CEO of SkyHigh Oil. "But hey, it was business."

After years of fighting alternatives to limited fossil fuels bought from foreign countries, the major oil companies have finally agreed that energy independence is good for America.

"We just can't sit around and fight ethanol all day" one of the CEOs candidly remarked. "We've got to finally do something good for America!"

Besides being good for the American environment and economy, the oil executives also touted ethanol's high performance which has been widely known for year:

• The ethanol in E-10 Unleaded adds two to three points of octane to ordinary gasoline, helping improve engine performance.
• Ethanol helps prevent the build-up of power-robbing deposits in fuel injection systems.
• Ethanol suspends moisture in the fuel systems, eliminating the need for gas tank additives in cold weather.
• Ethanol reduces toxic emissions in engine exhaust, helping keep America’s air cleaner.

The conference concluded with the oil execs discussing plans for returning excess profits to American consumers from the past years.

READ MORE

• Consumers Face Soaring Gasoline Prices
  
• Big Oil's War on Ethanol
  
• Big Oil Uses "Ethanol Excuse"
• Big Oil's Big Stall on Ethanol
  

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Corny Easter: GrandMa Cornelia's Cheddar Corn Casserole

Happy Easter 2008

We're busy hiding the Easter eggs this morning. But not before preparing some corn-fed glazed ham and GrandMa Cornelia's world-famous Cheddar Corn Casserole.

GrandMa Cornelia's Easter Cheddar Corn Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 (11 oz) can drained whole kernel corn
  
• 1 (11 oz) can cream style corn
• 1 (8 oz) container sour cream
• 1 large egg
• 1 (8.5 oz) package dry corn bread mix
• 1 small diced onion
  
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
  

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  
• Grease a 9x13 inch baking/casserole dish.
• Combine corn, sour cream, egg, dry corn bread mix, onion and 3/4 cup of Cheddar cheese.
• Mix well and pour into prepared dish.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining cheese on top.
  
• Bake for another 15-20 minutes.
• Serves 12
  

And always practice safe food handling in the kitchen. With recent food safety scares, including today's cantaloupe recall, consumers can minimize contamination at home by following the tips from the Centers for Disease Control HERE.

READ MORE

• How America Stacks Up on Food Costs
• Corny Christmas: GrandMa Cornelia's Christmas Corn Bread
  
• Corny Thanksgiving: GrandMa Cornelia's Corn Bread Dressing
  
• James Garner Thanks America's Corn Growers
• It's Time to Thank Farmers

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Food and Fuel America in the Chicago Sun Times

As the power of blogging grows, it's amazing to see how the the written word can spread across the net.

We noticed today that the Chicago Sun Times was using one our syndicated articles from earlier in the week, "Labor Dept: Energy Costs Fueling Inflation".

Welcome to all of the first time visitors from Chicago!

Food and Fuel America has grown to thousands of new visitors each day. We continue to help balance the food and fuel discussion.

Please forward articles you find here on the site to your friends and family and those who do not have the facts. You can help make the difference.

Your feedback is always welcomed and appreciated.

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• Gas Prices Climb Higher
  
• Amazing Oil Brings Higher Costs to Many Things
• Oil Squeezes the Less Affluent
  
• Inflation Surges Due to Fuel Prices
• Gasoline Prices Rise and So Does Everything Else
• Oil Prices Expected to Ripple Through Economy

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The Golden Grenade Award Goes To...

Sometimes people really say the dumbest things. So in honor of the Academy Awards today, we're launching our own award for the day.

Dumbest Analogy in the Food and Fuel Debate:
And the award goes to Scott Faber of the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

In a recent USA Today article, it's clear that the GMA is opposed to the energy legislation that the bi-partisan congress and the President agreed to late last year:

"This is a mandate that would make Stalin blush," Scott Faber, vice president of federal affairs for the Grocery Manufacturers Association, says of the energy bill. "Ethanol is seen in the minds of some very smart and some very powerful legislators as a silver bullet. It's not a silver bullet, it's a hand grenade."

Seems to us that dismissing alternative energy policy in such a manner ignores the factual cost and benefits of renewable fuels. And its limited impact on consumer food prices. And the whole hand grenade analogy just strikes us as being really, really dumb.

We're really waiting to see if GMA will ever really discuss the cost impact of higher oil costs and world-wide demand rather than blaming corn ethanol for every price hike, real or imagined.

Maybe that's a land mine Scott and the GMA don't want to touch?

Source:USA Today

READ MORE

• Popcorn Prices Popping But It's All Hot Air
• Kernels of Truth from Iowa
  
• How Much Corn is Actually Represented in Meat?
  
• NBC Says Movie Piracy Hurts Corn Farmers
  
• New King Corn Movie: Two Ears Down
  

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New High-Vitamin Corn Could Improve Nutrition

According to the National Science Foundation report, scientists have developed a powerful new tool in the fight against deficiencies in dietary vitamin A.

A deficiency of vitamin A causes eye diseases, including blindness, in 40 million children annually, and increased health risks for about 250 million people, mostly in developing countries.

This tool consists of "a new method of analyzing the genetic makeup of corn that will enable developing countries to identify and increase cultivation of corn that has naturally high levels of vitamin A precursors," says Ed Buckler, a co-leader of the research team from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service and Cornell University

Since corn is an essential part of the diets of hundreds of millions of people around the world, regular consumption by adults and children of adequate quantities of corn high in vitamin A precursors would reduce their chances of developing vitamin A deficiencies and associated health problems.

The team is currently working with various international organizations to help train plant breeders in developing countries to use their techniques.

This new method of increasing cultivation of high-vitamin corn was described in the January 18, 2007 edition of Science.

Source: National Science Foundation

READ MORE

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• DOE Provides $30 Million to Jump Start Bioenergy Research Centers
• Students and Teachers Learn About Energy from New Weekly Reader Curriculum
  

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Corny Christmas: GrandMa Cornelia's Christmas Corn Bread

Merry Christmas 2007!

We're making our lists and checking them twice here at Food and Fuel America.com to see who's been naughty or nice concerning food and fuel this year. Some folks are going to get lumps of coal (OK, the cleaner burning coal). Others will get something sweet.

So we're busy in the kitchen whipping up some our favorite holiday foods. Here's one of our favorites direct from GrandMa Cornelia's kitchen:

GrandMa Cornelia's Christmas Corn Bread

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup shortening

Directions

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt in mixing bowl. Add the milk, eggs and shortening and beat for 1 minute. Pour into a greased 9-in. square baking pan. Bake at 425 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until bread is golden brown and tests done (insert a toothpick in the center and remove. If it's clean, then the bread is done).

READ MORE

• How America Stacks Up on Food Costs
  
• Corny Thanksgiving: GrandMa Cornelia's Corn Bread Dressing
  
• James Garner Thanks America's Corn Growers
• It's Time to Thank Farmers

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Not Everyone Wants Renewable Energy

New legislation passed by the US Congress and signed by the President appears to make some people grumpy. They have vowed to fight the visionary efforts to develop homegrown biofuels from a variety of sources, gain independence from economy-wrecking foreign oil and improve economic security with cleaner-burning renewable fuels.

Note: We have a sense of humor here at Food and Fuel America.com and try to keep up with the latest internet memes as well. So if you are interested, check out the Wiki article on LOLCAT.

READ MORE

• Inflation Surges Due to Fuel Prices
  
• America's Energy Choice
  
• IRS Reacts to Higher Gasoline Prices
  

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America's Energy Choice

America must choose a wise path for its energy security. Or others are going to choose it for us. So where will we get our energy? From the Midwest or the Middle East?

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• $ign of the Times
  
• Former CIA Director Warns Foreign Oil is a Threat to America's Economy
• Back to the Future with Ethanol
  

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2007 Holiday Gift Buying Guide

As the holiday seasons is upon us, we thought a quick list of some of our most favorite alternative fuel, gift-buying items would help all of you procrastinating last-minute shoppers.


Naughty
Show how you really feel about economy-strangling foreign oil with this humorous decal. $3.00 from the folks at the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition. This is definitely for that special someone on the "naughty" list!




Nice
And for that big kid who's been "nice" all year? How about a Jeff Simmons Dallara car? $20.00 from EPIC/DrivingEthanol.org




Hot
Need a little country music to spice up your holidays? Then try Shannon Brown's newest album that includes the hit "Corn Fed". $13.98 from Borders/Amazon. Listen HERE to samples of her songs.




Renewable
Well nothing makes the season brighter and cleaner burning like a new ethanol-powered truck. How about a new E85 Avalanche or Silverado from General Motors?


(This holiday gift guide is for reference purposes only. Foodandfuelamerica.com does not receive any affiliate fees for the sale of these items. Prices may vary or items may be unavailable.)
READ MORE

• Jay Leno Demystifies Ethanol
  
• Gasoline Prices Rise and So Does Everything Else
  
• Big Oil's War on Ethanol
  

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Food and Fuel America.com
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