The Frustrated Bunny

Technology. Science. Politics. Geek. Etc.

Tagged: food

Politics

Rick Santorum cites obesity rates as reason to eliminate food stamps

At a campaign event in Iowa last week, Rick Santorum promised to radically reduce federal funding for food stamps, claiming that high obesity rates among the poor indicate the program is no longer necessary. Santorum wonders why obesity is a problem among people who rely on food stamps to feed themselves and their families. If he honestly doesn’t know the answer to that question, or at least doesn’t have a pretty good idea of the factors that have resulted in high obesity rates among the poor in this country, I don’t see how he possibly can say with a straight...

Food / Random

How to eat your veggies and cut your grocery bill

This week, the USDA released “MyPlate,” the improved successor to the ubiquitous but oft-criticized food pyramid, that visualizes thee proportions of each food group a person should consume at meals. Among the things that this new visualization reveals (but that actually hasn’t changed) is that half of the volume of each meal should be made up of fruits and vegetables. Even though this is not technically a new recommendation, MyPlate makes this more obvious, and some people are treating this information with a certain amount of surprise. In particular, the reactions I’ve seen to this have revolved mainly around “how...

Food / Politics

Do you live in a “food desert”?

The USDA defines a “food desert” as a census block or tract where 500 people and/or 33% of the population is more than a mile from a large/full-sized grocery store (10 miles for non-urban areas). This phenomenon is considered by the USDA as a leading cause of malnourishment and obesity among poor and/or rural populations, as the only regularly accessible food is often in the form of preprocessed items from small convenience stores. Earlier this week, the USDA released an online tool that allows people to visualize what parts of the country are considered food deserts. The tool isn’t perfect–some...

Food / Georgia Tech / Personal

Farewell, Junior’s

Earlier today, word was leaked that Junior’s Grill, a Georgia Tech tradition and institution, will be closing tomorrow afternoon for the last time with the retirement of owner Tommy Klemis. Klemis’ decision to close the restaurant rather than sell it upon retirement seems to stem from a decline in business over the past couple of years, coinciding with an expansion of on-campus dining options and a decline in interest from underclassmen, many of whom appear to believe, rather incorrectly, that Junior’s long history with the school implies that it’s no better than the dining halls. “Business has changed a lot in recent...

Conventions / Food

Surviving convention season: Part 2 – Food

Conventions have a certain quality of being overwhelming; that is, there nearly always seems to be too much of everything and not enough time for it all, but there’s one, perpetual exception: con food sucks. It seems that regardless of the size or location of conventions, one recurring theme is that nobody eats well. It’s entirely possible to survive solely off of fast food and food from the consuite (if there is one), but by the time the show is over, you’ll feel the effects of your poor diet for days, if not weeks. And if you have any special...