Monthly Archives: April 2014

You Can’t Sue Me Now

by food fraud, gmo, grocery

General Mills wants to turn Facebook likes into a legal agreement. The company has created a new privacy policy which basically states that anyone who has received “any” benefit from General Mills gives up their right to sue the company.  Even if the product in some way harms them or makes them ill.  General Mills has gone so far as to include giving them a “like” on their Facebook page as a benefit to the consumer.  The concept of benefits also extends to downloading coupons, signing up for contests, or any other form of interaction.  A consumers only recourse if they have an issue with the company will be either a negotiation process with the company or a binding arbitration, with the arbitration team no doubt chosen by General Mills.

Why was this policy enacted?  It appears to stem from an incident where two moms sued the company for deceptive marketing over their use of the term “natural” on a product which contained high fructose corn syrup and genetically modified ingredients.  Last month it came before a judge who refused to dismiss the case so it will be moving forward.

This is not the first time General Mills has been sued for deceptive practices.  In 2012 it was sued for using the word “strawberry” on a fruit roll-up product that contained no strawberries.  The case was settled and General Mills agreed to stop using that word on the package.

So why is there a picture of a Larabar at the top of this post?  Because guess who owns that brand?  In the “Who Owns Your Food” section of The Pantry Principle I share a graphic which highlights just how confusing and overwhelming the web of food has become in this country.  While I'm not sure (because I'm not a lawyer) if this position is defensible, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say it's stupid.  If you don't want people to get upset about what you do to your food, don't do that.  If you claim ingredients which aren't in there, people have a right to be upset.  If you use deceptive marketing you should not be allowed to get away with it simply to make a buck.  Why defend your position to do the wrong thing?  That makes no sense to me.

And a startling thought that occurs to me, I  wonder if they will extend this legal stance to other brands where the consumer may not be aware of ownership.  So I'm highlighting the brands that I'm aware of which are owned by General Mills below.  Many of them may surprise you.

  • Cascadian Farms Organic
  • Food Should Taste Good (chips/snack product)
  • Larabar
  • Muir Glen tomato products
  • Liberte yogurt
  • Häagen-Dazs
  • Nature Valley
  • And if you're interested…the list of mainstream Big G products is HUGE.  If you want to see all of them (and there are hundreds) you can look on their website http://www.generalmills.com/Brands

Want to let General Mills know how you feel about this issue? Sign this petition

And then buy a copy of The Pantry Principle: how to read the label and understand what's really in your food.

Update:  After a furious backlash from consumers and an overwhelmingly negative media focus General Mills has reversed itself on this decision.  Their blog post (entitled “We've listened – and we're changing our legal terms back”) claims that “Those terms – and our intentions – were widely misread.”  They also offered an apology.

Whether their lawyers had a specific purpose in mind or if indeed the intent was misunderstood, it is a given that companies are going to spin things their way every change they get.  The most important thing to remember, as far as I'm concerned, is that this once again shows the effect a highly motivated and vocal public can have on corporate policy.  They won't change and do better unless they believe they have to.

Let's not forget one of my favorite quotes by Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world.  Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” 

 

photo: Bradley Stemke

Kitchen Tools

by crockpot, Uncategorized

I frequently get questions from people wanting to know what sorts of tools I have in my kitchen.  I get the impression that folks think I have a huge gourmet kitchen with all of the latest gadgets and fancy equipment.  While I have at time had kitchens that are very large, right now I have an extremely tiny, inefficiently designed kitchen with approximately 3 feet of usable counter space.  We're eventually going to redesign the space but for now we work with what we have.  And I'm here to tell you that it is possible to make real food meals even in a tiny space.

I do, however have a number of important tools that I use on a regular basis.  This is a list of appliances, it does not include other kitchen tools which are a definite must have such as a good chef knife, paring tool, grater, etc.  Here are five of my favorites and how I use them.    These are listed in no particular order:

Crockpot – I can't say enough about this wonderful appliance.  I write about crocking frequently and share a number of great recipes.  It truly is one of my most versatile appliances, I use it for breakfast, dinner, snacks, and as a means of preparing some of my foods such as rehydrating beans.   One of these days I will buy my dream crockpot/slow cooker, a VitaClay.

Vitamix – I use my vitamix on a regular basis to make smoothies and other great recipes.  It's great for frozen desserts as well as for mixing nut butters, making alternative milks, and more.  I don't use it for dry mixes as I don't have a dry grains container but if you bought one you could do that too.

Immersion Blender – my immersion blender is the handiest, dandiest, most wonderful small appliance ever invented.  I use mine for making dressings, mayonnaise, blending soups and more.  I no longer use my applesauce mill (although it's a way cool looking appliance) because I use the immersion blender instead.  It's worth it to get the one with the attachments so you can chop herbs and other things in the little container attachment.

Pressure Cooker – I can't believe I waited so long in my life to get one of these.  They are, quite simply, fabulous!!!  I make many meals in the pressure cooker mostly because it's so very quick and easy.  Our family favorite is my curried rice and beans but I would highly suggest getting Lorna Sass's terrific book Cooking Under Pressure; everything I've made from this book has been great.   If you're going to get a pressure cooker of your own consider getting a combination pressure canner and cooker.

KitchenAid Mixer – for many years (and I mean A LOT) I mixed everything by hand and it sure took a long time to get things done sometimes.  Especially around the holiday season with all that baking.  Then my amazing DH bought me a KitchenAid Mixer and I've never looked back.  I use it for more than mixing cookie dough.  When I make a meatloaf or meatballs, it all goes in there and I let the machine do the work.  If you get some of the fancy attachments you can make pasta, sausages, ground meat, and more.  This is definitely a cool machine to have around.

And one more thing…

One Gallon Jar – okay, so not an appliance, but still, you need one (or more) gallon glass jars if you're going to make kombucha.  This is a permanent fixture as I keep my culture going.  On a side note, this is also an excellent reason to avoid harmful chemical exposure from plastic and recycle other glass jars.  1/2 gallon ones are great for a kombucha scoby bank.  Snapple jars (friends give these away by the dozens) are great for taking your kombucha drink with you.  And I collect other jars to store all sorts of dry goods or even leftovers in. Glass jars are definitely a good thing.

Interested in finding out what I cook in my kitchen?  Be sure to get a copy of The Pantry Principle.  It has delicious recipes for breakfast, soups, condiments, desserts, and more.

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