Red Light Eating

The Food and Drug Administration is making efforts to remove leading labels from the front of food boxes in stores. More notably, the label “Smart Choice”, used by big name companies like Kellogg’s on cereal boxes like Froot Loops.

What’s more, according to an FDA announcement Americans could expect to see dramatically clarified front-box labeling in the form of a traffic light system. This system is currently used in Britain to show different content levels of salts, sugars and fats.

Good Agricultural Practices Workshop

November 5,2009 Sheraton Hotel Portland Oregon To register online please click on register or visit our website: http://foodsafety.wsu.edu/ag/index.html Agenda 7:45         Registration 8:15         Welcome 8:30        Produce Food Safety Update Dr. David Gombas, Senior Vice-President, Food Safety and Technology, United Fresh Legal Perspectives on Food Safety Drew Falkenstein, Attorney, Marler Clark, LLP PS 9:45       Break 10:00    Produce…

Value-Added Producer Grant: Application Workshop

(Mount Vernon, WA) The Northwest Agriculture Business Center in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture will host a half-day grant writing workshop to assist producers in applying for a USDA Value-Added Producer Grant. The class will be taught by Sharon Exley, USDA Business Programs Specialist, and will be held on October 20th from 8:30 am -12:00 pm at the Burlington Public Library located at 820 East Washington Avenue, Burlington.

America’s Fruit and Vegatable Deficiancy

A recent CDC report highlights the lack of fruits and vegetables in American diets. The report offers brand new data with State by State breakdown of fruit and vegetable consumption. Using a standard of 2+ fruits and 3+ vegetables daily, Washington State’s consumption for adults is at 15.1% meeting that requirement, compared to a national average of 14%. Washington State does not have data on adolescent fruit and vegetable consumption but national trends suggest that it is significantly lower in adolescent populations.

PSFN's First Transaction

With our system on its way to full functionality, the Puget Sound Food Network is already making connections within the Puget Sound region. Our first official transaction took place yesterday when Growing Washington delivered products including cukes and a braising mix to Western Washington University in Bellingham. This well received transaction will be the first…

Washington's Agricultural Statistics/ Top 10 Commodities

Today, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service released the 2008 figures for Washington State’s agricultural value and the top forty commodities. What’s changed since 2007? Overall, Washington State’s agricultural production value has decreased from $8.32 billion in 2007 to $7.88 billion in 2008.  While this is a significant drop, compared to other states, Washington has…

Basis: Farm to Chef

PSFN Team Member Lucy Norris just passed on this interesting tidbit about the formation of a new organization in New York called Basis. The brainchild of former management consultant Bion Bartning, Basis is a newly formed company that recently acquired (and greatly expanded) Farm to Chef, a wholesale distributor connecting small local farms to haute…

USDA Rolls Out More Web-Tools

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced on Wednesday the launching of new online tools to guide consumers through the wide-world of food. These tools evidence a new stance on food education from the USDA and an embrace of technology as communication tools. USDA web-tools: Know Your Farmer promotes food issues, presents dinner options and celebrates food…