Balance of Food

How Trevor Noah and The Daily Show poked fun at the food supply

Trevor Noah and The Daily Show couldn't live up to the standard on criticism of the food industry set by Jon Stewart in that incarnation of the U.S. TV program. Still, the Trevor Noah era — which started in 2015 and ends tonight — did weigh in on food topics.

We thought an outside perspective on the U.S. approach to food would have been a natural fit for Noah's comedy. While Stewart weighed in from the desk, Noah let correspondent pieces speak for themselves.

Here are the stories we covered that The Daily Show covered in the Trevor Noah era.

Food banks now more important than ever in COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Daily Show looks into alternative meats

Will people come back for the Popeyes chicken sandwich?

Daily Show addresses increased junk food in school lunches

Meals on Wheels symbol of Trump attack on food supply

McDonald's Canada kale salad high in calories, but consumers have options to reduce calories

Roy Wood Jr., who is under consideration to be a host or a rotating host, had particular fun with the Meals on Wheels segment, the junk food in school lunches, alternative meats, and the obsession over the Popeyes chicken sandwich.

Appreciating Jon Stewart, The Daily Show on food and nutrition

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

Saying goodbye to the Colbert Report

The new host or hosts take over on January 17. Hoping the new regime takes a look at the ridiculous state of the U.S. food system.

The Daily Show runs Monday-Thursday at 11 pm Eastern on Comedy Central.

photo credit: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

Food banks now more important than ever in COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Lines of cars waiting to get food for a food bank. The Texas National Guard packing up boxes of food in Dallas. Food insecurity was a huge issue in the United States even before the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

The mainstream media told of the "great economy" yet millions of Americans struggled with being able to afford food.

The images aren't of people waiting in line these days. People stay in their cars while workers load the boxes into hatches and trunks. This is significant because in normal times, there is this shame as people might be lazy or unmotivated and that is why people struggle with getting food. Maybe those waiting in their cars won't feel shame.

The loss of schools means children are not getting school breakfast and school lunch. For a lot of children, that makes a big difference in their day. There are struggles with learning from home made worse when you have to mute your microphone until your empty stomach noises dissipate.

Hitting a plateau in the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Grocery store workers are the heroes during COVID-19 coronavirus

Embracing your stress eating during the COVID-19 coronavirus

Alternative foods if your grocery store has been raided due to COVID-19 coronavirus

Will COVID-19 play a role with farmers markets?

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

Victory gardens was a thing during World War II. We have advocated people planting gardens in their front lawns instead of grass. We've seen a bit of a comeback to the idea of planting gardens to supplant food. The Northern Hemisphere hasn't had conditions for planting until about now. Victory gardens can work if you own your home, have ideal sunshine in the back yard or front yard. Urban gardens on a rooftop or in a shipping container are part of the solution to feed people.

Tastemakers spotlights local food growers who are making a difference

Thanks to the Daily Show with Trevor Noah for having on Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot to talk about food banks. If you are among millions, you shouldn't have to worry about stigma. The 1% and other rich people are having their groceries delivered to them in this pandemic. The people forced to risk their lives who work for these shopping services serve at the behest of the people who really don't have to go outside.

This is one of many photos spotlighting the number of people who are getting in long lines hours before the food banks open up. Let us remember these images when the pandemic subsides. Hunger is real for a lot of people. They should feel no shame for getting help.

video credit: Daily Show with Trevor Noah
photo credit: Neil Blake/Grand Rapids Press/AP

Daily Show looks into alternative meats

"Have a burger once a week." — Michael Pollan to Roy Wood Jr. on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

Roy Wood Jr. loves burgers and fast food. His quest was to find out more about the alternative meat choices. Michael Pollan suggests Wood try some of the plant-based alternatives.

Wood's quest takes him to San Francisco to Impossible Foods. He tries the Impossible Burger at Impossible Foods. "How did you make the plant burger taste like the meat burger?" In the angel-devil scenario, the devil points out Wood is too old to switch sides.

Wood stays in San Francisco to go to Just Inc. to try real meat from cloning. "What we do is find the best tasting cows in the world. We take cells from those cows. You put that cell line in a bioreactor. The bioreactor enables the cell to double. At the end of it, you have raw meat." — Josh Tetrick, CEO, Just Inc.

He tries a chicken nugget that would cost about $50. Wood points out that a 6-pack would be $300. Tetrick points out that they don't have a burger yet.

Wood points out the plant burger costs more than the "fart burger" i.e., comes from cows.

Pollan's idea of limiting meat consumption to once a week is labeled as "crazy" by Wood. "You should be in comedy," Wood says to Pollan.

Wood refers to "broke-ass carnivores" such as himself. Ignoring the fact that eating hamburgers with buns means you are not a carnivore, Wood hits on the issue in the marketplace. People can switch if the costs are comparable. Those who can afford the Impossible Burgers aren't people likely struggling with food costs. The cloned meats will come down in price over time.

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

BalanceofFood.com fast food coverage

The true efficiencies in switching to alternative meats will come in getting the price point to be seen as viable in the average consumer. This is grossly unfair given that mainstream meat production is subsidized by cheap feed and practices that sacrifice quality and taste. Fast food burgers should cost twice as much but the reality is that consumers won't pay that much.

The "good news" is that the alternatives don't have to taste as good since the quality marker is a typical fast food burger.

Pollan may have the solution: eat better quality meat but eat less meat.

video and photo credit: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

Will people come back for the Popeyes chicken sandwich?

I haven't tried the Popeyes chicken sandwich. Perhaps the sandwich is as wonderful as the hype has claimed. Likely not, but I haven't tried the sandwich.

I do like a good fried chicken sandwich. I've had the Chick-Fil-A regular and spicy versions. There is a local, mildly spicy version on a buttermilk biscuit that is the best I've had.

Those who were fast enough got the Popeyes sandwich. Many didn't get a sandwich.

Weeks have gone by without a return of the sandwich. Will people come back to the sandwich?

Popeyes announced the shortage on August 27, a mere 8 days since the online battle with Chick-fil-A. Brevity on Twitter was never done as well as "...y’all good?"

The timing of the sandwich was ideal: late summer when the news is slow. When (if?) the sandwich returns, there will be plenty happening in the news. The Tennessee lawsuit will not repeat itself.

Those who tried the sandwich should come back for the sandwich. If they liked the hype more than the sandwich, well, the hype won't be there when the chicken comes back.

Those who didn't get a sandwich won't get the hype of the chicken sandwich. They can get the chicken sandwich and see for themselves.

In the height of the chicken sandwich craze, you couldn't speak up and say the sandwich was okay or that you've had better. You could only say the sandwich was awesome. After all, if you wait for an hour for a fast food chicken sandwich, you won't say it's okay or not that good.

Popeyes will get plenty of chicken for the chicken sandwich and won't bring the sandwich back until the company is sure the sandwich won't run out. That may be a different kind of problem. Were people eating the chicken or the hype? The sandwich might not be that special without the hype.

Popeyes had a little fun with the delay by having people buy chicken tenders and put them on the bread you bring into the restaurant.

The emphasis is on "little" since the chicken hopefully is better than the regular chicken tenders on the menu. Also, pickles.

Popeyes sure proved that the company is doing better accidentally than when it actually tries to do something.

Chick-Fil-A twist proves restaurants need to be about love, not hate

Temptation of the Week: Can Chick-Fil-A co-exist with gay?

Chick-Fil-A or gay: you should choose, but choose wisely

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

BalanceofFood.com fast food coverage

I've had Popeyes chicken. The chicken experience is pretty good flavor for fast food chicken. The pieces were incredibly small. The sides are decent to fine. The hype that Popeyes could come up with a chicken sandwich that is so much better than their actual menu would be quite a surprise.

Those who will try the chicken sandwich will wonder if the hype was worth the wait. Their expectations will be heightened. In the end, this is just a fast food chicken sandwich.

If your world involves finding the best chicken sandwich under $10, Popeyes has a few advantages over Chick-Fil-A. Popeyes isn't giving money to anti-gay organizations and is open on Sunday.

Then again, you might find that the best chicken sandwich is at a local place that uses better quality chicken. Not much hype there but eating food is about quality and taste, not hype.

video credit: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah; Popeyes
photo credit: Popeyes

Daily Show addresses increased junk food in school lunches

The news on American school lunches has not been good since January 20, 2017. Roy Wood Jr. and The Daily Show team along with Margo Wootan, vice president for nutrition at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, compare and contrast the school lunch approach under Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

"Flavored chocolate milk" returned to the menu.

The segment allows Wooten to paint a picture of what lunch was like not so long ago. Food "is supposed to help you learn, not make them fall asleep," Wootan explained. "We give kids choices but all of those choices need to be healthy."

CSPI’s @MargoWootan discusses school lunch with @roywoodjr on @TheDailyShow: Trump administration putting politics before kids’ health by rolling back school nutrition standards. https://t.co/p9v066dV7n

— CSPI (@CSPI) May 7, 2019

She notes that the previous lunch program would reduce childhood obesity numbers by 2 million kids and save $800 million in health care costs.

"Three-quarters of kids who get school lunches come from low-income families," Wootan noted.

Wood takes on a drill sergeant motif to convince the kids to not eat the junk food. Wood's mantra of "nutrition now, nutrition tomorrow, nutrition forever" is a homage to "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever" from George Wallace's 1963 Inaugural Address in Wood's home state of Alabama.

This illustration gives a sharp contrast filled with subtlety. The color of the bun indicates more whole grains and leaner meats have less visible fat. Carrots vs. French fries is a bit more obvious, even if Wood points out the potatoes also grow in the ground. Carrots are high in natural sugar compared to most vegetables but checks off more nutrition boxes than French fries.

The pictured chocolate milk in the segment is skim milk, robbing kids of fat from milk that can make them feel more full.

Blanche Lincoln, who worked hard to cut school lunch increase, lost her Senate race

Chipping away at the few school lunch gains under Barack Obama

Donald Trump wants to gut food safety regulations

Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump on how they approach food

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

Just so this story isn't completely depressing, Higher Ground, Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, is working on a half-hour series for Netflix called Listen to Your Vegetables & Eat Your Parents. The program will “take young children and their families around the globe on an adventure that tells us the story of our food.”

Since the show is aimed at kids, this might be an animated series though that is purely speculation.

We have said, even during the Obama Administration, that government can only do so much to instill better eating habits. A Netflix show can help more than the current regime.

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah airs Monday-Thursday on Comedy Central.

video and photo credit: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Twitter capture: @CSPI

Meals on Wheels symbol of Trump attack on food supply

If we have learned one thing about the phenomenon that is Donald Trump, people are starting to pay attention to things that might be lost if the Trump budget were passed as is. When was the last time you thought about Meals on Wheels? But now you have people fighting for Meals on Wheels.

The GOP has been on the attack against PBS and NPR for years, going after the CPB that partially funds PBS and NPR. The PBS stations are on the financial brink even before January 20 came along.

Gutting the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) sparked people's interest in saving PBS. No offense to the Food Network and the Cooking Channel, PBS is full of excellent, quality cooking shows that air without commercials. If your PBS station has the Create TV channel on its subchannel list, please take advantage of amazing cooking shows. For example, Create TV is on 11-3 in Chicago. And you don't need cable to access the channel.

Chipping away at the few school lunch gains under Barack Obama

Sonny Perdue is a large step closer to becoming the Secretary of Agriculture. The Senate Agriculture Committee last week approved Perdue’s nomination by a voice vote. Besides the abstention of Perdue's cousin, Sen. David Perdue (R-GA), the only contrary voice came from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who is becoming my personal hero over her consistent take on Trump cabinet nominees. During the hearing, Sen. Gillibrand criticized Perdue’s record on food stamps while he was governor of Georgia.

The Department of Agriculture doesn't get enough money, but if the Trump budget goes through, the department will receive a 21% cut in funding. Perdue will have to do less with even less money.

Donald Trump wants to gut food safety regulations

Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump on how they approach food

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

BalanceofFood.com Daily Show coverage

The uncertainty effect is doing its damage from people being afraid to take advantage of food stamps to regional food stamps cuts tied to cuts in heating aid to  growing concerns of not enough people to harvest the crops on American farms.

The Trump budget also cuts $200 million for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). The Trump budget has significant cuts in international food aid, including Food for Peace.

The Department of Health and Human Services, home of the FDA, is set for a 18% cut in the Trump budget. Food inspections for protein such as meat, chicken, and eggs will be safe, pun intended. But other food inspections could be at risk, increasing concerns over food safety.

Then again, Trump reportedly doesn't like vegetables but eats plenty of fast food meat.

While we hear over and over that the Trump budget will not pass as is, there is quite a bit of damage the GOP could do in the 2018 federal budget.

Celebrating the Michelle Obama legacy for food and nutrition

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah hasn't been nearly as funny as in the old regime. The show has spent very little time on the food supply. Still, the idea of tying the military into Meals on Wheels was hilarious. The spoof illustrated how Meals on Wheels is also important to our nation's veterans. We should be compassionate for the sake of being compassionate but if a military edge is what it takes, people need the food help.

Do you have a favorite PBS cooking show? Let us know in the comments section.

video credit: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah/Comedy Central

Celebrating the Michelle Obama legacy for food and nutrition

Michelle Obama will leave behind an incredible legacy as First Lady of the United States on food, nutrition, childhood obesity, and school lunches. Let's Move made an impact on trying to get kids to spend less time on screens and more time playing.

The First Lady used television well in a natural manner to spread the message. iCarly fit in well to attracting young people to hear the message. The Biggest Loser was a natural fit with people trying to lose weight. Let's not forget the many talk show appearances from Ellen to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

You might think that her natural grace and flair comes easy. Some of us still can't shake the image of Nancy Reagan on Diff'rent Strokes talking about drug abuse. Nancy Reagan used to be an actress.

Like Batman, Michelle Obama had her list of enemies: Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Chicago Tribune, Basil Marceaux, James Sensenbrenner, those against federal school lunch programs. Instead of being constructive, they were destructive. Obama played it cool every time, even when the other side won significant victories. As she noted during the 2016 election campaign, "when they go low, we go high."

The White House organic garden started out as a powerful symbol but also proved beneficial to people in the capital city with bountiful produce.

Regardless of who the next president of the United States was going to be, Michelle Obama's legacy needs to be applauded. Michelle Obama, private citizen, will still have a platform after January 20 and we hope she takes advantage of that opportunity. The Obamas are staying in Washington until Sasha graduates from high school. The organic garden isn't too far away from their new home, if the new tenants will let her.

Her enemies, who fought hard and mostly without facts, will work to destroy anything Obama accomplished in her 8 years in that role. They can't take away her legacy, the idea that someone with power wanted people to eat better and exercise more. Obama talked about "vegetable feasts," not "federal food nannies." Her positivity can't be shattered.

Since there will be significant changes in the government, keeping the legacy of Michelle Obama alive requires the help of the people. We have touted the need for government to help where it can. The American people need to help out that legacy. Fight for school lunch reform. Encourage people to grow gardens. Focus on new food labels with an emphasis on added sugars.

The fear is that her legacy reads more like an obituary. Let's not make this an obituary.

BalanceofFood.com U.S. food policy coverage

BalanceofFood.com Congress food policy coverage

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

Here are a few stories we have written over the years about Michelle Obama. The articles are in reverse chronological order so you can go back to the beginning.

2016

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

2015

Appreciating Jon Stewart, The Daily Show on food and nutrition

President Obama needs to replace Sam Kass with a nutrition czar

2014

Saying goodbye to the Colbert Report

Election Day back when school lunch reform made headlines

Michelle Obama fights back against GOP school lunch cuts

2013

Barack Obama has 4 more years to improve U.S. food supply, but we need to help

2012

Election Day through the eyes of the food supply

BalanceofFood.com endorses Michelle Obama to be First Lady for 4 more years

Sarah Palin's diet/fitness philosophy likely similar to Michelle Obama's approach

iCarly tries to make veggies 'wacky' to appeal to young children

Michelle Obama talks of vegetable feasts on 'Daily Show'

Michelle Obama uses 'Biggest Loser' to push 'Let's Move'

Latest school lunch improvements prove it's important who gets elected

Temptation of the Week: Resist the non-existent message that government wants to tell you what to eat

2012 braces to be rough political year for food advocacy

2011

Rep. James Sensenbrenner latest to pile onto Michelle Obama

'Federal Food Nannies' aren't real, despite Chicago Tribune editorial

What should Michelle Obama do if she wants to order fast food in public?

Christie, Huckabee stand up for Michelle Obama, but repeat Sarah Palin's lies in the process

Rush Limbaugh better off learning Michelle Obama's 'rules' before he criticizes them

Podcast: Sarah Palin, Michelle Obama, and the politics of breastfeeding

2010

Obama signs school lunch bill, still waiting on food safety bill

Sarah Palin could help improve food supply if she argued policy, not politics

Seek out White House reminders of fresh local food

Basil Marceaux's paranoia aside, government will never measure waistlines

Michelle Obama also strikes the balance of food

Going back to 1970s might be best way to cut future childhood obesity

Should hear soon about White House childhood obesity task force

Michelle Obama's 'Let's Move' gets Kids Choice Award seal of approval

Michelle Obama takes obesity fight straight to corporations

2009

Has Barack Obama found the Balance of Food?

Why White House organic vegetable garden is so important

photo credit: iCarly/Nickleodeon

McDonald's Canada kale salad high in calories, but consumers have options to reduce calories

We know McDonald's Canada had introduced kale in its breakfast wraps. But when the kale salad came out, McDonald's Canada came under fire for the nutrition numbers for its kale salad.

Breaking down Canadian food ads from fall 2015 NHL telecasts

There is shock, surprise that a fast food chain would have bad numbers for a fast food salad. Those of us who remember the candied walnuts in a previous U.S. McDonald's salad know that fast food chains instinctively have to balance "good" with "bad."

The numbers are "scary": the kale salad in question has more calories, fat, sodium, and protein than a Double Big Mac. (yes, Americans, Canada has a Double Big Mac — a Big Mac with 4 patties. Really.)

Nutrition comparison
Food	Calories	Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)	Protein (g)
Kale salad	730	53	1400	28
Double Big Mac	680	38	1340	40
Salad includes dressing. Burger includes all ingredients.

Comparing a salad to a fast food burger is a bit like apples to candied walnuts. You are getting nutrition from a salad from vitamins not found in a Double Big Mac.

Let's break down that high-calorie kale salad: This is the Caesar Salad with Crispy Chicken. If you want grilled chicken, you can subtract 160 calories, going from 520 calories to 360 calories (minus dressing). Ordering the grilled chicken version drops the fat grams from 31 to 17, and somehow increases the protein in grams from 27 to 31.

Those high numbers from the chart include the Asiago Caesar creamy dressing, so reduce the dressing to save more calories.

You also get roasted garlic focaccia croutons on your salad. While they add "fun" to your salad, they do add calories.

McDonald's Canada has Greek salads that also have kale. Those nutrition numbers are significantly better.

Even the Greek Salad with Crispy Chicken only has 440 calories. If you want grilled chicken, you can subtract 160 calories. Ordering the grilled chicken version drops the fat grams from 26 to 12, and somehow increases the protein in grams from 23 to 27.

The Greek salads substitute herb and garlic pita chips for the croutons, feta for the shaved parmesan, take out the bacon, but add a couscous blend with red pepper strips and cucumber.

All the salads mentioned have a lettuce blend, baby kale, and premium lettuce mix.

This also assumes you eat the food as is. The best way to save calories in the Double Big Mac, while keeping the 4 patties, is to ask for "no sauce."

Picking the feta cheese off the Greek salads will reduce protein, but also sodium and fat.

A salad, especially one with good fat, can keep a person fuller longer than a fast food sandwich. That might be worth a few extra calories.

The burger has lettuce, pickles, and onion plus the cheese, if you don't remember the jingle. Even though it's a Double Big Mac, you don't get double the extra ingredients. The lettuce is usually iceberg with little nutrition.

There are definitely issues with the sodium in these salads. The chicken is definitely salted, and feta is high in salt. But you are eating in a fast food restaurant: making good choices in that environment is what we are addressing.

Related story: The Daily Show on the decline of American fast food

Let's break down the dressing numbers:

Nutrition comparison
Dressing	Calories	Fat (g)	Sodium (mg)
Asiago Caesar	210	22	260
Asiago Caesar (calorie-wise)	150	14	340
Greek Feta	150	14	310
Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette	120	8	250
Unknown quantity. Total based on using all the dressing in the packet.

The fat from the regular Asiago Caesar dressing comes from canola oil, extra virgin olive oil (4th on ingredients list behind water and garlic), and 3 different kinds of cheese.

You can reduce calories and fat by asking for an alternative dressing. The low-fat version of the Asiago Caesar has a higher sodium count; low-fat dressings have to make up flavor for the lack of fat, and sodium is often a source.

You need fat with a dressing in a salad, but you have choices even at McDonald's Canada. If you bring the salad home, you can do oil and vinegar. The best way to save calories, especially on site, is not to use all of the dressing.

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The breakfast wrap we mentioned earlier has the baby kale with the feta cheese along with a tomato slice, a scrambled egg, and a whole wheat tortilla. The wrap has 400 calories with 19 grams of fat, 840 milligrams of sodium, and 21 grams of protein.

If you were making breakfast at home, you could do better. But you could definitely pick worse options when dining out, especially for breakfast.

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Given the amount of lettuce vs. kale, and the huge number of toppings in these salads, you have nothing to fear with dealing with the taste of kale. Also, baby kale is likely to be easier on the palate.

You are getting a fast food salad with a good amount of calories and lots of fat and sodium. You are getting just enough kale so you can brag that you ate a kale salad.

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photo credit: McDonald's Canada

Appreciating Jon Stewart, The Daily Show on food and nutrition

Unlike the Colbert Report, The Daily Show isn't going off the air. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is leaving the airwaves tonight. We don't know quite what to expect for the future Daily Show.

Let's start by pointing out that the actual show is taking a hiatus until late September. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah debuts on September 28. We don't know how much the new incarnation will spend on food trends or nutrition issues. The new host might be more aghast at American food trends.

The Daily Show has been taking its own look back at the amazing Jon Stewart era, mostly in silly ways such as his singing ability, noises, and his (mostly early) ritual of saying he hadn't seen or read the guest's work.

Daily Show coverage on BalanceofFood.com

Saying goodbye to the Colbert Report

We wanted to take our own look at what Jon Stewart and others on and off the screen at the show have contributed to bringing awareness to food and nutrition trends.

While Stewart's focus wasn't as much on food as his counterpart Stephen Colbert on the Colbert Report, The Daily Show has had some fun while shining a badly needed light on hunger issues, school lunches, food safety, and even some time for Baconnaise.

Jon Stewart would occasionally take on the indulgences of food, such as his "love" for Baconnaise and Jimmy Dean's pancakes and sausage on a stick.

Who can forget Stewart's odd obsession with Arby's? We are going to miss that and a lot more.

We are going to miss Jon Stewart and what he has brought to The Daily Show since 1999. We are especially going to miss what he and the rest of the crew have said about food and nutrition trends.

Food stamps/hunger

Jason Greenslate is no proof of food stamps fraud

Expensive seafood on food stamps is latest conservative lie

Daily Show on the real life Hunger Games

Temptation of the Week: A Place at the Table

School lunch

Paul Ryan school lunch lie is why we need truthful discussion

850 calories argument makes for good TV, but falls short on honesty

Food safety

Daily Show takes on Subway yoga mat bread

Pink slime conversions prove that food quality battle is all about PR

Jon Stewart, Spaghetti O's, and the food safety bill

Corporate food

Daily Show slams Monsanto's seed dominance

Daily Show takes on ag-gag laws

Other highlights

Dylan Ratigan making nice transition to helping veterans become farmers

Daily Show finds the bliss point with Michael Moss

Daily Show has fun with Quebec maple syrup heist

Temptation of the Week: Reducing drink sizes

Michelle Obama talks of vegetable feasts on Daily Show

Daily Show tells us we are getting just a little fatter

Daily Show takes on Happy Meals in San Francisco

Setting food rules is good, but make them your own rules (Michael Pollan)

Robert Kenner on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Daily Show takes on backlash toward White House organic garden

Can baconnaise be part of the balance?

photo credit: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Slider Bites: MSNBC focuses on food waste

Food waste is as important as underreported. MSNBC took time this week to delve into this valuable topic on "Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story."

The news channel showed part of the documentary "Just Eat It." The documentary was introduced by celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, who is now MSNBC's food correspondent.

The documentary follows Jen Rustemeyer and Grant Baldwin as they attempt to go 6 months eating only the bounty of wasted food, though they could eat other food at friends and family.

When we don't hear from the couple, we get a lot about how grocery stores and restaurants want beautiful looking produce and perfectly good food is thrown out over vanity.

• What's Tempting: Ugly fruits and vegetables

Grant and Jen were concerned that they might not have enough food. They discovered that food abundance, especially in certain categories, was the issue.

After the documentary aired, Colcchio hosted a panel discussion (see video above). In the discussion, author Jonathan Bloom pointed out that Americans spend less on food than any other nation. If food were more expensive, we'd be less likely to waste it.

You can find more information about the special, click here. For more on the film itself, click here.

Hopefully, we will get more enlightening specials on food stories. Colicchio is a chef, not a journalist. We hope that between food and journalism, we will have more conversations on vital but underreported issues.

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We love the Daily Show's take on food and were glad to see Aasif Mandvi back doing a story on Simplot and GMOs.

We were simply puzzled by what aired. Mandvi found a guy who had some offbeat theories about GMOs. Those who are concerned about GMOs know there are some unconventional takes on anti-GMO theories.

The new GMO potato from Simplot was praised in the story. While the GM potato is different than the other GMOs, the paintbrush felt like GMOs were okay. We expect that from CNN, not the Daily Show.

Mandvi had a bad time with Simplot in an earlier story. Simplot would love this story.

Cornell University's Dr. Walter De Jong in the story plays an economist, saying the anti-GMO people have pushed regulation so that only large companies (e.g., Monsanto) can afford to do GMOs. He should stick to science.

The story wasn't particularly informative or funny.

The GMO potato might be okay. The issues with GMOs stem (pun intended) from use of insecticides, companies such as Monsanto, and a lack of independent information.

The Daily Show normally celebrates the idea of the more information, the better, and with humor. This story had none of those traits. If you watch and disagree, let us know in the comments section or on Twitter @balanceoffood.

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videos credit: MSNBC; Daily Show