| Recalled beef puts Snohomish County schools to work
At lunchtime on Friday, Barbara Lloyd helped toss half a ton of hamburger patties, beef Rib-B-Que, beef crumbles, meatballs and country beef steak strips into the garbage piles at the Mountlake Terrace transfer station.
The meat, intended for school lunches in Edmonds, was taken from freezers as part of the nation's largest meat recall ever. Schools in Washington have until Monday to destroy the recalled beef, which came from a California slaughterhouse.
"I personally was throwing the cases," said Lloyd, food service director for the Edmonds School District. "It's a sickening feeling to watch all of this good nutrition go down the drain because something in the pipeline went wrong, but it had to be done."
Hundreds of thousands of pounds of beef are being dumped in landfills, covered with bleach or, in some cases, sent to plants that may process them into dog food or glue.
Christopher Magryta column: Back to old-school parenting
As an advocate for the health of the children of Rowan County, I want to help give parents the tools they need to help their children live a life in wellness. I want to encourage parenting with responsibility. Let's look at the state of our youth's nutrition today. Our children are more obese than ever, prone to more chronic disease and relatively unaware of the poor quality of life that awaits them. Whose fault is this? Corporate fast food? Our work schedules? School vending machines/lunches? I think not, although maybe partly. The fault lies with our collective inability to make healthy choices and to educate our children to do the same. Simply, we do not parent effectively. How does one effect change? I have been fighting this battle in my head and at Salisbury Pediatrics for nine years.
Schools remind parents of reduced-cost meals
Collier County's public school district is reminding parents and guardians that reduced-price breakfasts and lunches are available at each public school. The price of lunch in the elementary schools is $1.85 and in the secondary schools is $2.10. Breakfast for students at all grade levels is $1. Low-income families and those faced with difficult financial situations may be eligible to receive school meals either free or at a reduced price and their child's meal status will be confidential. To find out if a child qualifies, visit www.collier.k12.fl.us/foodservice/frlunch/ and click on the "Income Chart" link on the left side. If you qualify, print the online meal application, full in the requested information and mail the completed application to: The Department of Nutrition Services, 5775 Osceola Trail, Naples, FL 34109.
2007 Quill Award Winners
Al Roker and Ann Curry announced this year's Quill Book Award winners on The Today Show. Click here to watch Today's Al Roker and Ann Curry announce the Quill Award winners of the fiction, history, romance and children's chapter book.
Nominees in popular categories from romance to biography to graphic novels were announced at Book Expo America on June 2. Click here to watch the announcement.
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I’m Just Sayin’: Are you a social drinker?
We have our share of teetotalers, alcoholics and everything in between that relates to using alcohol here in Southwest Florida. A survey about alcohol usage probably would show that 99 percent of people who drink are merely “social drinkers." One percent would have no opinion or could not remember. While chatting with friends about how we all probably drink more or at least more often than our parents and grandparents did, I wondered what being a “social drinker" means. Most people probably would say a social drinker is anyone who drinks about the same amount he or she does. It's like asking what being “middle aged" means. I think of middle age as about 10 years older than I am, although that definition increasingly strains credulity. Back to drinking — Let's face it.
News Of The Day
The DN takes a dim view of Councilman Simcha Felder's proposal to ban feeding piegons. Three MTA board members have skipped every one of the eight public hearings on the proposed fare hike. In the race for the White House… Rudy Giuliani dismissed Judith Regan's allegation that she was forced to lie about her affair with former NYPD Commissioner Bernie Kerik to protect his ex-boss' presidential aspirations. Giuliani released his first TV ad - in New Hampshire - in which he acknowledges his imperfections. Barack Obama's body man is a former sports star, not a Washington insider. .
2008 Natural Products Expo West Proves 'Organic' And 'Sustainability ...
Natural Products Expo West is set for more than 300,000 square feet of natural and organic foods and personal care, healthy ethnic, sustainable living and alternative medicine products, with more than 1800 exhibitors showcasing their offerings. The trade show, produced by New Hope Natural Media, a division of Penton Media, will draw more than 47,000 attendees March 13-16 to the Anaheim Convention Center in California.
Consumer interest in healthy products continues to grow. Natural products sales in the United States grew 9.7 percent across all retail and nonretail channels in 2006, topping more than $56.7 billion [up from $51 billion in 2005], according to The Natural Foods Merchandiser. For the first time since 1999, the mass market saw double-digit growth of natural products sales at 10.5 percent.
Nutritious diet helps keep bones strong
Living a long and healthy life requires keeping the body in good condition, including the skeleton. After age 50 the risk for osteoporosis and bone fractures increases greatly. Consuming adequate calcium, vitamin D, protein and a host of other essential nutrients helps to reduce the risk, but many people might need the additional help of bone medications. The most common drugs currently used in the U.S. are the well-studied bisphosphonate drugs such as Fosamax and Boniva. Recent news about rare but serious side effects of these effective drugs has been confusing for consumers, and there is growing interest in alternatives. Question: Are there any new alternatives to bisphosphonate drugs? Answer: A drug called strontium ranelate is commonly prescribed in several European countries.
Raga Asian Indian Restaurant, Clearwater
The restaurant has a spice corner in which they grind their own garam masala and so forth. At lunch during the week it's a Northern Indian buffet, but on Sunday a grand buffet showcases the lesser-known vegetarian delights from Southern India. And at night it's a la carte, with an interesting smattering of Chinese-inspired dishes. Raga boasts a full bar, a rarity in Indian restaurants. So, there's a lot going on. The menu reflects that, too, with a synergy of smoldering curries, cooling yogurts and pungent sauces. At lunch during the week, the buffet is not vast. Glide past the steam tray and maybe you'll see a nice chana masala ($10.95 at dinner), chickpeas stewed gently with ginger and onion. Down at the end there's a saag chicken ($13.95 at dinner), a major slow burn of chicken pieces with soft spinach.
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