Balance of Food

Alcohol is useful in cooking but won't completely cook out

#CulinaryTruth Alcohol never completely cooks out of anything...ever.

— Alton Brown (@altonbrown) April 10, 2021

Cooking shows are supposed to be accurate. They usually are, except for the constantly repeated mantra: "The alcohol will cook out." You can say it 3 times in a mirror but that doesn't make it true.

Most of us don't have an issue as to whether the alcohol cooks out. The concern is for those where alcohol is a concern and they are being told a dangerous lie.

You likely enjoyed when McDonald's cooked your French fries in beef tallow a couple of decades ago. The Indians who don't consume anything from cows as well as other vegans were upset to find out they had consumed beef tallow unknowingly.

Say "virtually." Journalists use "allegedly" or "police said." Like when dietitians and many others on the mainstream side of food say that sugar and high-fructose corn syrup are virtually the same. There is a wide difference between them. At least they aren't saying they are the same.

The alcohol is the reason why you put that into dishes. Alton Brown has noted that tomatoes are rich in alcohol-soluble compounds.

The world is now filled with fake cocktails for those who want the taste of alcohol. Your humble narrator has tried a ton of them and rejected all that taste like the alcohol in question.

Here comes the nerdy part about what happens to the alcohol when you cook, courtesy of America's Test Kitchen.

Alcohol evaporates when it’s heated. So in theory, cooking will make it evaporate away. And, because the boiling point of ethanol (173 degrees) is lower than that of water (212 degrees), it seems like you should be able to cook off all the alcohol in a dish without cooking off all of its water.

In practice, it doesn’t work that way. When alcohol and water are combined, they dissolve into each other, forming a solution whose boiling point is neither 173° nor 212°, but variable, depending on the ratio of the ingredients.

The more you cook off alcohol from a dish, the lower the ratio of alcohol to water in the dish becomes, which means the alcohol cooks off more and more slowly. Finally, when the alcohol level reaches about 5 percent, it plateaus, and won't get any lower.

The story notes that a stew containing wine, simmered at 185° for 10 minutes, has as much as 60% of the initial alcohol while that same stew simmered at 185° for 2½ hours has about 6% of the initial alcohol.

This comes up for alcoholics as well as those on medicine where you aren't supposed to drink, such as antidepressants.

A trick I use is to buy small bottles of wine (as seen above) and use them for cooking. This can be helpful in situations where you are living with someone who might be tempted by a whole bottle. This example won't help every case but a great option where that is viable.

Your tomato dish or whatever you are cooking will be just fine without alcohol. Stock and white wine vinegar are good options but there isn't a limit on them. The America's Test Kitchen story notes that "fruit juice naturally contains alcohol" so keep that in mind.

Twitter capture: @altonbrown
photo credit: manufacturer (not an endorsement of a specific company)

Tim Walz would be a step forward on food policy

The stereotype is that a vice president has an important job yet usually doesn't do a whole lot. A U.S. vice president who spent time on food policy would be a great start.

Tim Walz is the governor of Minnesota and the vice presidential pick to run with Vice President Kamala Harris on the Democratic Party ticket. Walz has been praised for his work on getting school breakfasts and lunches to be free in Minnesota.

Eater.com pointed out Walz's understanding of the "connection between food and climate change."

Walz is from a Midwestern state where they understand food. Harris is from California, a state that understands about the growing of food.

One reason to love the #TimWalz pick is his love for #schoollunch funding. https://t.co/WuMqd1Atr0

— Chad Rubel (@balanceoffood) August 6, 2024

Reducing the stigma of lunch debt. Knowing first hand having been a school teacher that kids learn better when their stomachs are full.

We feel confident that the Minnesota governor knows that turkey is meat. Turkey is a big deal in Minnesota. The fact that Walz's daughter Hope is vegetarian means he has a resource to understand that approach to food.

Needing a radical 'New Deal' from the next Secretary of Agriculture

Michael Pollan for Ag Secretary?

The reality is that the status quo, of which Vilsack is a champion, feels like everything is fine with the U.S. food approach. The days of drafting Michael Pollan as secretary of agriculture is beyond a pipe dream.

If Americans voted based on food policy, the Democratic Party would win every time. Then again, if they voted on food policy, voters would want the Green Party or a left of center party such as the New Democratic Party in Canada.

Shopping for vegetables is a reality, not a political stunt

As we've seen in politics, the secretary of agriculture doesn't really tackle concerns over the food supply. When I covered U.S. politics, those who rooted for Tom Vilsack (former Iowa governor) were likely disappointed at his 8-year stint in that cabinet post. Those people were surprised that President Joe Biden brought back Vilsack for the same post. That said, Vilsack is miles ahead of Sonny Perdue in that capacity.

There is proposed legislation to establish the Federal Food Administration under the umbrella of food safety and promoting nutrition. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) introduced the legislation.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA). United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Health and Human Services (HHS). All of these agencies sort of cover these topics yet the USDA is more about promoting food and the FDA is more about drugs.

Food safety would be helpful given e-coli spills from factory farms but we are concerned that "food safety" will be making sure we have more UHT milk. 

Unfortunately the Federal Food Administration won't see the light of day as long as the Dems don't control the House of Representatives. The presidential race is crucial yet the lower ballot races also matter a lot.

We know some of the right-wing side of government don't want another federal agency. They don't complain about the Transportation Security Authority (TSA). They might want a better run food system.

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com politics coverage

Reverse the monoculture mentality of Earl Butz. Diversify farm ownership so farms aren't "too big to fail." Have a smarter immigration policy so more crops aren't wasted on farms. Stop making front and back labels on food being a shell game approach. Make declaring one's self organic a hell of a lot easier. Treat chickens, cows, and pigs with more dignity.

Create a food system that feeds more Americans without relying on bragging as much about food banks. Just some of the many ideas I would incorporate as a secretary of food safety and nutrition.

BalanceofFood.com U.S. food policy coverage

BalanceofFood.com agency alphabet soup coverage

This may seem naive but I think there could be true bipartisan agreement on improving the food supply. Most Republicans aren't rich and many of them go to food banks. The corporate mentality toward the food system clouds people's thinking.

photo credit and video credits: I Am Grambling
Twitter capture: @balanceoffood

Preserving local summer fruit to get through a rough winter

I recall the Ant and the Grasshopper from my childhood. The Aesop fable shows an ant preparing food for the winter while the grasshopper dances away in the summer. Winter comes and the grasshopper is starving and asks the ant for food.

If you live in a space where winters can be terrible, going out and finding fresh fruit is problematic. Yes, there are individual quick frozen (IQF) options but they can be expensive.

Our solution involves being more ant than grasshopper. Buy up local fruit. My local farmer sells blueberries in 5 lb. boxes. Get the box home and put the blueberries into containers. Put the containers in the freezer. Wait for winter to come and then enjoy local summer fruit in winter.

"The fruit won't be as lovely as it is in late July." You are correct. Not as lovely yet very good in other ways. I make blueberry lemonade in the winter. I sometimes will pop a few straight out of the freezer. Pure blueberry goodness.

Alton Brown offers a way to frozen strawberries that sounds impressive. While we think strawberries are better than blueberries, we think frozen blueberries do better than frozen strawberries. Plus, I am not using dry ice in any form.

I also love the convenience of not adding fruit to my winter shopping list. I don't have to run out into a blizzard to chase down fruit. I don't have to succumb to buy a Driscoll box in the middle of winter.

Podcast: Making blueberry season last as long as possible

Some will take fruit and can the fruit or make jams. Hats off to you if you have that energy, kitchen space, and patience. I have none of those things. My method may not win blue ribbons. I get local blueberries at the opposite time of the year.

BalanceofFood.com farmers market coverage

I do take some of the blueberries to put them in a smaller container to thaw them in the refrigerator. That is a common question I get when I tell people about this way to get summer goodness in the middle of winter.

I do supplement the winter blueberries with seasonal apples at the winter farmers market. I just know that if the weather gets really bad, I don't have to worry about getting fruit and Vitamin C in a blizzard.

If you are the grasshopper and your friend is the ant, you have to decide about helping out the ant. Include a life lesson to prepare something for winter. 

Let us know what you do for local fruit when winter comes. Being a grasshopper sounds more fun in the summer yet the ant wins out in winter.

photos credit: me

Pizza Hut draws attention to tavern style pizza but the style is not special

If you hear the words Chicago and pizza, you might think of deep dish, a food that Jon Stewart described as "not pizza." Chicago has a style of pizza outside the tourist traps: tavern style pizza.

The Great Lakes region of the United States already has Detroit style pizza. Detroit style pizza is distinct from the auto parts container used to bake the pizzas to the unique cheese structure and the order for the ingredients.

Tavern style pizza is, well, pizza. The main distinction to tavern style pizza is, well, how the pizza is cut. The pieces are much smaller so you can put them on a bar napkin instead of using plates.

Somehow, Pizza Hut decided to copy the tavern-style pizza from Chicago. Why?

Tavern style pizza, unlike deep dish, is actual pizza. There are subtle nuances. The thin crust is truly thin and yeast is reportedly used. Most of what makes tavern style is how the pizza is cut.

Monica Eng, whom I know in real life, compares and contrasts the Pizza Hut version with a local version. I trust her take on the pizzas.

Your humble narrator hasn't tried either one but has had multiple tavern style pizzas over the years. Regular readers know your humble narrator has an intolerance to mozzarella cheese and might wonder how I could have had those pizzas over the last few decades. I had to figure this intolerance after not making the connection. So I have had tavern style pizza and it's just pizza cut in funny shapes.

Temptation of the Week: Out-of-town pizza through the eyes of Jon Stewart

Canadian film review: The Pizza City You've Never Heard Of (CanadianCrossing.com)

A lot of Detroit people ignore Windsor and Canada. Windsor has its own style of pizza that is very different from Detroit style pizza. A river and international border runs through the 2 pizzas.

I was skeptical about how distinct Windsor pizza would be from regular pizza. My Windsor friends swore this was different. The differences are there. The documentary we reviewed goes into those details.

• flour crust with cornmeal on the bottom
• sweet sauce using sweeter tomatoes such as San Marzano or tomatoes from California
• Galati cheese company making high fat mozzarella that is stringy when you pull out a slice
• shredded pepperoni
• canned mushrooms

The list shows a way more distinct pizza than tavern style pizza in Chicago. A thin crust and smaller pieces versus these significant differences. The Windsor style pizza is a lot more distinct than tavern style pizza. Of course, Pizza Hut, Canada or United States, will not cross the border to copy Windsor style pizza.

New Haven, CT style pizza is more distinct than Chicago tavern style pizza.

The point of Pizza Hut's newest pizza isn't to be innovative or imaginary. You likely haven't heard of tavern style pizza even if you have visited Chicago. Pizza nerds know yet not regular people.

You won't compare the differences. You know the national chain wouldn't come close to duplicating a local version of any food. Imagine a national chain trying to duplicate Cincinnati style chili or a Detroit coney dog.

Perhaps the Pizza Hut people got inspired by the obsession over The Bear TV show set in Chicago.

Everyone: Make us a true Chicago pizza
Us: YES, CHEF pic.twitter.com/nisTe2LW5G

— Pizza Hut (@pizzahut) June 27, 2024

The Bear mocks the basic sandwich establishment for another unneeded high-end restaurant

Cheap pizza comes to Canada but at what cost

What's Tempting: Getting the larger pizza

As we noted in a long ago time, travel to places to have the unique foods of a region. Detroit has its style pizza that is worth exploring as does Windsor, across the Detroit River in Canada. If that isn't practical, Cook's Country has a version you can try at home.

Come to Chicago for the hot dog, Italian beef sandwiches (trashed in The Bear), and perhaps the pizza and "not pizza." Don't come to Chicago just for tavern style pizza. If you come for other reasons, find out for yourself if tavern style pizza is distinct.

photo credit: Pizza Hut
video credit: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart/Comedy Central
Twitter capture: Pizza Hut

Bourdain Day 2024: Dealing with reduced enthusiasm

For those of us who wished (wish?) to have the kind of life Anthony Bourdain enjoyed in the second half of his existence, reduced enthusiasm feels very unlikely. Travel more than 200 days each year, eat and drink well, and having amazing adventures.

If you are around the age, okay a bit younger than Bourdain was at the end of his life, your enthusiasm is not at the level where it used to be. Less energy, less focus. Generating that level of enthusiasm leads to thoughts of nostalgia to times when you had the adventures that shaped your youth.

Parts Unknown was less physical, less snarky, and less adventurous than No Reservations. The Anthony Bourdain speed wasn't in 5th gear, maybe more like 3rd gear.

Bourdain, who didn't have much good to say about Scandinavia, did a trip to Copenhagen for Parts Unknown. That episode was mostly about going to Noma.

Reduced enthusiasm is a reality for people of a certain age. The question is how to overcome that concern.

"You can't teach an old dog new tricks"

Your humble narrator is more a fan of No Reservations than Parts Unknown. Yet the reduced enthusiasm with a lot less sarcasm that Bourdain had on the latter series: well, we can learn from that as well.

Bourdain still ate well, having more intense and deeper conversations in Parts Unknown. He kicked up the maturity from his initial A Cook's Tour when he was in his 40s into No Reservations.

We can think that we know a lot about food at a somewhat advanced age. Then again in the last few years, your humble narrator fixed butter chicken with a jarred sauce, invented bagna cauda spaghetti, and cooked bone marrow at home.

The incentive to experiment is enhanced if you have an audience to cook for in your domicile. This does not include a cat or dog who just want a sample of your food, and quite frankly, won't offer significant feedback (unless they won't eat it). Cooking for one with reduced enthusiasm can lead to … bowls of cereal for dinner.

“I know that I will never understand the world I live in or fully know the places I've been. I've learned for sure only what I don't know — and how much I have to learn.”
–Anthony Bourdain#AnthonyBourdain #MondayMotivation #travel pic.twitter.com/nTsbessFfx

— Friends of Anthony Bourdain (@bourdainpodcast) June 10, 2024

Honoring Anthony Bourdain is making a better than average meal when your body or mind doesn't want to do a whole lot. Honoring yourself in a way. After all, the best meals Bourdain had on television were always in someone's home.

Breaking down barriers so people will try new foods

Coping with reduced enthusiasm for food

Anthony Bourdain offered good advice on what not to do with food and travel, such as his advice to stay away from the breakfast buffet at hotels. Sometimes, knowing what you shouldn't do is almost as needed as what you should do.

Shopping at local markets, a mainstay of Bourdain adventures, is a great way to jumpstart new foods and, with a lot of foods at the markets, little to no cooking required.

Bourdain Day 2023: Celebrating a loss with food

Bourdain Day 2022: Coming out of a worldwide pandemic

If reduced enthusiasm is a concern, you don't need to have 3 exciting meals every day. Think about a Saturday night dinner where you have time to put some effort into a meal. I did this on Saturday nights during the pandemic with the bagna cauda spaghetti. Listening to a jazz show out of Canada gave me a cooking soundtrack.

Take pictures of the process and meal, even if you don't post them on social media. You might be the only one who sees the meal. You can feel better looking at the pictures, knowing you are capable of making a special meal.

You can also challenge yourself to make a meal better than a local restaurant for a lot less money.

Bourdain Day 3: How Anthony Bourdain helped me get through a pandemic

On the second Bourdain Day, how Anthony Bourdain would handle a worldwide pandemic

Bourdain Day is a way to celebrate the love of food and food cultures

Anthony Bourdain would have been 68 today.

photo credit: Instagram Anthony Bourdain
Twitter capture: @bourdainpodcast

Double Big Mac is a novelty that suits the U.S. fast food appetite

Canadians have had easy access to the Double Big Mac at McDonald's Canada for years. Not a random, limited time opportunity. Day in and day out on the menu.

Americans have had this since January, according to reports.

To educate Americans on the Double Big Mac, only the meat gets doubled. The lettuce, cheese, pickles, onion, and special sauce are at the same level as on a regular Big Mac.

We haven't had a Big Mac for a long time. The few McDonald's burgers we've eaten have been virtually free of liquid condiments (ketchup, mustard) not by my doing. An odd trend that when mustard is included, you can see a small yellow streak that doesn't register on your tongue as being a significant amount of mustard. Lately, ketchup is also disappearing.

You would need a lot of special sauce to overcome the dry hamburgers.

If you do a McDonald's hamburger of any kind, make sure you are getting liquid condiments. The pickles show up regardless. We order without onions but they show up sometimes even when you don't order them.

McDonald's had bad timing when introducing the Double Big Mac in the United States in March 2020. Oops.

The texture of 2 patties is why I never ordered a double cheeseburger from McDonald's or any other fast food place. Give me a thicker burger with one patty. Thicker also means you can get a burger to temperature (not at conventional fast food places).

Your humble narrator is in the minority. The idea of double thin patties and/or smashburgers is huge in the United States. So why shouldn't McDonald's compete with that. 4 is more than 2.

Cutting way back on major label fast food

McDonald's aim for adult nostalgia in Happy Meals falls short

McDonald's Quarter Pounder hot and juicy claims are laughable

As U.S. fast food prices increase like wildfire, the idea of a Double Big Mac means "more food" even at higher prices. A Big Mac doesn't seem as impressive compared to a Double Big Mac.

BalanceofFood.com fast food coverage

BalanceofFood.com temptations coverage

I certainly had a chance to have the Double Big Mac long before most Americans would have. The 22-year-old version of myself might have been excited about a Double Big Mac. Then again, I was one of the few McDonald's consumers who enjoyed the McLean Deluxe. You got ketchup, mustard, a whole lettuce leaf, pickles, a sliced tomato, and a reduced fat patty. I didn't even mind the seaweed extract aka carrageenan.

I'm excited for Americans to finally get the Double Big Mac, even if I am not likely to participate in either the United States or Canada.

photo credit: KTTV/Los Angeles via McDonald's

The necessity of a grocery store boycott

Our American readers might be really interested in the idea of a grocery store boycott in response to rising grocery prices. The profits are growing as spending power is shrinking.

We are offering up a take on the current boycott against Loblaws and its many subsidiaries in Canada. Yes, we write about Canada a lot but this example is highly relevant. The boycott is for all of May so we can get some idea as to what is happening.

The Canadian company owns other food outlets, such as Atlantic Superstore, Dominion, Loblaws, Maxi, No Frills, Provigo Le Marché, Valu-Mart, Real Canadian Superstore, Wholesale Club, Your Independent Grocer, and Zehrs. While Shoppers Drug Mart is mostly a drug store, they sell groceries.

Loblaws and other grocery store companies got the Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent treatment this spring based on an actual price fixing scandal over bread.

For Americans who love to complain about grocery store prices, Canadians would say "hold my beer," which is better tasting beer.

A history of why the Loblaws grocery store boycott was necessary (CanadianCrossing.com)

Canada (finally) introduces a national school lunch program

Grocery rebate is a nice idea but only a short-term solution to rising food prices

Pirate Joe's had a good run in Vancouver

BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage

Traditionally, we run the full story on BalanceofFood.com and link to the story on CanadianCrossing.com. This time, we invite you to read the story and learn about the ups and downs of a real, live grocery store boycott.

photo credit: @foodprofessor (where I found the photo but not knowing the original source)

The lure of eating at a restaurant with a celebrity chef

Eating at a place from a celebrity chef? Not much enthusiasm from your humble narrator. I thought about this when on the tarmac at the airport in Las Vegas. The woman next to me went on and on about eating at Gordon Ramsey's place and Bobby Flay's place in Las Vegas.

I was detoured to the Las Vegas airport by Southwest when I should have been killing time in Denver. I was eating airline snacks that day and even the lure of a meal from Ramsay or Flay didn't make me salivate.

These celebrity chefs aren't cooking your personal dinner. They lend their approach and recipes and then jet off somewhere to be on food television.

As the woman switched topics to the excitement of gambling in Las Vegas, my mind wandered to a question I never thought I would ask myself: "Would I eat at a restaurant from a celebrity chef?"

I have eaten at a few places of somewhat famous people: Xoco from Rick Bayless (Chicago), Chez Panisse from Alice Waters (Berkeley, CA), and Garde Manger from Chuck Hughes (Montréal). I admit this with the idea of disclosure. Maybe they qualify as "celebrity chefs" but they are restaurateurs who happen to be moderately famous. If you view them as "celebrity chefs" on the level of Ramsay and Flay, then perhaps you think I am a hypocrite.

I am tempted by a José Andrés restaurant in my city, mostly because I think this might be more authentic Spanish food. I have not dined there.

Coping with reduced enthusiasm for food

I would go to a place if Alton Brown had a restaurant and they served his oyster po' boy sandwich the way he did in that episode.

I would order coq au vin at a theoretical Julia Child restaurant, provided the dish was made in the spirit of The French Chef, her TV show.

The lure of an old hen, French wine, and a solid cooking technique. A dish that is difficult to duplicate at home. Going to a Julia Child celebrity restaurant for a lovely plate of coq au vin would be nice on a Friday night or even an early dinner on a Tuesday.

Alton Brown did an episode on coq au vin. Even by his standards, this was a complicated dish. Brown fully admits in the episode that finding an old hen is rather difficult.

Does Julia Child, if she were alive, have to cook this dish herself? No. The staff would have Child's recipe and ideally the dedication to bring that to fruition, so the standards for her coq au vin would remain.

This is also why there never was a Julia Child celebrity restaurant. The standards would be too high, even if that would lead to an enjoyable meal.

BalanceofFood.com travel coverage

I did order the lobster poutine at Garde Manger in Montréal, Chuck Hughes cooked that same dish on Iron Chef America in defeating Bobby Flay. I didn't see that episode until after I had the lobster poutine. I did smile a bit, knowing I actually had that dish.

I enjoyed the fact that Hughes beat Flay in that episode more than the coincidence of eating a dish served on Iron Chef America yet I enjoyed both within that episode.

The lure of a celebrity chef is that you love them on TV, feel like you can relate to them and their recipes, and feel comfortable in a celebrity chef type restaurant. Those people flock to Las Vegas and eat at a place because of that celebrity chef endorsement.

You should try a celebrity chef restaurant as long as you know the parameters involved. Just lower your expectations.

video credit and photo credit: The French Chef/PBS

The Washington Post should point out dietitians who abuse their position

Despite what dietitians, good dietitians say, getting helpful, practical advice on eating and diet (in the general sense of the word) is difficult. We have noted that for years.

Back in the day when I hung out with dietitians, most of them were trapped in PR firms, justifying corporate food decisions. Few of them actually did what you think dietitians would do: help guide people to making smarter food decisions.

Helping patients doesn't pay well. PR firms pay well.

Besides being invisible, dietitians are generally quiet. The Washington Post and The Examination, a new nonprofit newsroom specializing in global public health, recently wrote a story about "anti-diet" dietitians on social media. Not all of the dietitians involved acknowledge their links to corporate food companies. Even those whose posts are listed as sponsored should be seen with a critical eye.

The "anti-diet" concept sounds intriguing if taken with a sincere lens in navigating the food scene but is mostly used to justify consuming big company breakfast cereal and other such food.

Social media and influencers are not the best sources of food information, sponsored or otherwise. I can rationally say that and mean it. Doesn't mean that millions of girls and young women aren't vulnerable to that influence.

So who do dietitians attack for such information being released? The dietitians? Social media? The misleading information? Nope. If you said the media, you would be correct. You can find such examples here and here.

Dietitians know about nutrition and specialize in communication to get that message out to people. Blaming the media is not as constructive as talking about the good work of dietitians and scolding bad behavior.

I am not a dietitian. I don't get sponsorships because I am not selling anything or my ethical standards. I do know how to communicate.

When Alton Brown did his "diet" episode, Brown talked about the general use of the word diet. In this sense, we are all on a diet. In this sense, we shouldn't be on a diet in the mainstream definition.

Dietitians run into this madness with the mantra of "there is no good or bad food." There are some very good foods and very bad foods. There are: sorry, dietitians. Most countries don't deal with high-fructose corn syrup. Most countries have a sense of banning food dyes and ingredients that should be outside of the norm. The United States and Canada (to some extent) use the "nothing can hurt you" rule where food safety is concerned. Processed food can have a place but using an anti-diet cloak to justify processed food to serve corporate food overlords is exactly what dietitians should fight to prevent that happening.

Foods can be utilized in smaller quantities. Theoretically, breakfast cereal can serve some purpose: in lieu of a dessert, measure out a cup with a cup of the milk of your choice, a splurge when feeling down.

The story points out how General Mills specifically promoted the anti-diet message at the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo (FNCE) convention in Denver last fall. Be entertained by the temptation but don't follow through.

The social media influencers make a louder sound because the hard-working dietitians who are helping people are quiet. March was National Nutrition Month and we do hear more from dietitians during that time. Not so much from April to February.

As obesity rises, Big Food and dietitians push 'anti-diet' advice (The Washington Post)

Are online dietitians influenced by food industry money? (The Current from CBC Radio)

20 years ago this month, I was that person who needed help. My doctor turned me over to a certified diabetes educator who was helpful on the basics. I did a lot of research in the coming weeks. I shook a lot of bad habits and added some good habits.

I hit a plateau and figured out to ask, "how do I get out of a plateau." I changed some things and I was moving in a good education.

My anxiety and depression make eating these days a struggle. I know what to do but I struggle to do them properly.

I know enough to know if I was being scammed or sold a false bill of goods. The food system, especially in the United States, is a raging river and most people don't even have a raft. The bad people speak up because the good people don't, until someone in the media writes about it, and then they whine about the media.

Taking a grocery store tour is worthwhile, even if you think you know everything

Spring brings wellness lectures; tips in case you need a refresher

Organic or conventional, you still have to eat fruits and vegetables

Woman's Day exposing food myths led to more food myths

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (the new name for the old American Dietetic Association) has a Code of Ethics (really!). Here is Part 2a:

Nutrition and dietetics practitioners shall: Disclose any conflicts of interest, including any financial interests in products or services that are recommended. Refrain from accepting gifts or services which potentially influence or which may give the appearance of influencing professional judgment.

If you are a dietitian, ask yourself if you follow these guidelines. Also ask if you should care if dietitians violate the letter and spirit of the Code of Ethics. We should care.

Some of the dietitians' angst toward The Washington Post centers around this story from last fall on similar concerns.

Dietitians truly have it rough because they get all this education and then there are financial pressures to sell out to corporate interests so you can put your own food on your table, whatever food choices you make. Society benefits from dietitians free of conflicts. Try to find a dietitian who seems ethical and ideally doesn't have a ton of sponsorships, revealed or otherwise.

photo credit: The Washington Post

Canada (finally) introduces a national school lunch program

We have written a few pieces noting that our friends in Canada don't have a national school lunch program. Canada is the only G-7 country without a national school lunch program.

The federal budget details will become more clear on April 16. The Trudeau Government has leaked the idea of spending $1 billion over 5 years on a national school food program. The government hopes the program will start delivering meals to students by the fall.

The government target is to provide meals to 400,000 more kids outside of those currently getting food from local school food programs. Plenty of kids are getting school lunch even now; more kids are going hungry.

The debate has been on the radar. We wrote this story in 2017 and the topic wasn't new then either.

Canada has a few unique issues with putting together a national school lunch program. Let's look at them:

-- Education is run by the provinces. Provided school lunches are part of education, Canada would have 10 different provincial setups. Your lunch in Quebec may be way different than lunch in Saskatchewan.

-- Some Canadians are very happy with their current school lunch program. A lot of parents like that their kids come home for lunch.

-- Canada has a lot of rural territory. A program that serves Winnipeg, the largest city to the south, and Churchill, a tiny, far north post, in Manitoba.

-- Some northern programs may currently be geared toward Indigenous students and those parents may worry about federal controls over their local school lunch programs.

Where school lunches funding generally is consistent in European countries, Canada could be vulnerable to school lunch funding cuts when the Conservative Party is in charge. School lunch funding is way more political in the United States, though if Canada develops a federal program, that could be a part of the Canadian political landscape.

Canada does have advantages over the United States, as an example. Canadians are more trusting of government in general. A low bar but still relevant. The prime minister is a former teacher who knows the value of learning when children have full stomachs.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau understands the correlation between full bellies and academic success in the classroom.

Unlike in the United States, the political system in Canada makes passing such legislation a lot easier. The federal Liberal Party government is a minority government; the NDP (definitely) and Bloc Quebecois (likely) would be on board for this legislation. The Canadian Senate may take its sweet time but a bill will eventually get passed into law.

Canada election 2019 is underway and food policy should be discussed

Argument is getting louder for Canada to have a federal school lunch program (2017)

Canadian Senate suggests food policy changes U.S. should copy

Celebrating Full Frontal with Samantha Bee for fighting for a better food system

Hospital patients, school children both need better focus on nutrition

Not all of the pushback will be poorly considered. The mantra of "we are feeding kids locally right now" is likely true in many parts of Canada. The idea behind a federal program, even if distributed by the provinces, is to cover more people and set some standards across the board.

I wish I had a better sense of the options Canadian children currently get either through local programs or home options to go back during the school day.

Some of that pushback will be politically oriented. "He's buying votes." "Why is he doing this now 9 years into his government?" As for the former question, you can buy votes with many other topics that aren't school lunch. As for the latter question, Canada's food insecurity may be more of a factor in 2024 than it was in 2015 when Trudeau was first elected.

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage

Whenever we first found out about Canada not having a national school lunch program, the first thought was "Maybe Canada doesn't need an actual federal school lunch program." The United States has been a poor example where non-inflationary financial adjustments are rarer than eclipses. There isn't an incentive to do well by school children south of the 49th parallel. Canada will only benefit with a federal school lunch program if the standards are higher, even in provinces run by conservative governments.

video credit and photo credit: CBC News