Family Food Bytes
PORK DONATIONS MARK CHRISTMAS IN JULY (FarmWeek) - Nine regional Illinois food banks (including the Greater Chicago Food Depository and the Northern Illinois Food Bank) received more than 4,000 pounds of ground pork – a Christmas in July donation as part of the Pork Power: Partnering to Fight Hunger in Illinois campaign. Sponsored by the Illinois Pork Producers Association along with the Illinois Corn Marketing Board and the Illinois Soybean Association Checkoff Program, the campaign has supplied nearly 570,000 pounds of pork to Illinois families since its inception in 2008.
FORECASTED FLAT TO LOWER PRODUCE PRICES (FarmWeek) - Retail prices for fresh fruits and vegetables are expected to remain steady for the rest of 2018 and into 2019, according to a USDA report. In July’s food price report, USDA reported fresh vegetable prices fell .2% from May to June, and were slightly lower than in June 2017. Retail fresh vegetable prices are expected to remain steady throughout the rest of the year. USDA forecasts fresh fruit prices to grow slightly during the rest of the year.
IN DEMAND (Bloomberg) - The job search site Indeed.com reports that job postings for DNA scientists surged 64 percent over the last two years. Those in the field are manipulating DNA to improve animal welfare, create better crops, and treat human disease.
FOOD POISONING NUMBERS RISE (Herald & Review) - A foodborne illness that has sickened people in several Midwestern states has caused symptoms in at least 266 people in Illinois. The Illinois Department of Public Health says about one-third of them reported eating salads at McDonald’s restaurants in the days before becoming ill.
CALLING ALL (WOULD-BE) VOTERS (Illinois News Network) - Illinois’ State Board of Elections is gearing up to spend more than a quarter-million dollars on a required voter outreach program. The state must try to reach people who are eligible to vote but who aren’t registered.
GONE VEGAN? NOPE. – According to a recent Gallup poll, few Americans follow vegetarian or vegan diets, despite long-running campaigns from animal rights activists. Fewer than one in 10 Americans adhere to such diets, with 5 percent in the U.S. identifying as vegetarian and just 3 percent identifying as vegan. Those numbers are little changed in recent years.
About Family Food Bytes: This is a collection of articles gathered from both mainstream and agriculture media and is designed to keep you informed as a member and leader within the Cook County Farm Bureau organization. The articles summarized above are not intended to represent Cook County Farm Bureau policy or positions, but rather to provide members an idea of what is being reported regionally, nationally, and globally.