DadTalk

More Signs of Moldy Food Supply in U.S.

Let’s say you have millions of pounds of tomato products that have high levels of mold. Do you:

1. Throw the stuff away and claim a tax break?
2. Reprocess the sauce as animal feed?
3. Bribe a food industry exec and certify the products as safe?

If you answered 3, you might be qualified to work in America’s food industry. Note I said United States, not China. You see, that is what happened according to The New York Times.

In fact, four purchasing managers at Kraft, Frito-Lay, Safeway and B&G Foods “have pleaded guilty to taking bribes.” While I’m sure these companies were as shocked by the allegation as those of us feeding our kids these products, the cases illustrate the problem of monitoring the food suppliers.

In this case, the problem allegedly was SK Foods, which for some reason had a lot of yucky tomato paste and puree on hand:

Food Recalls Kids Favorite Granola Bars Pulled Because of Salmonella

I was checking out at Trader Joe’s a couple days ago when I noticed a note taped to the raised chunk of wood customers use to sign checks. Customers were being warned to not eat Chocolate Chip Chewy Coated Granola Bars or else risk getting a serious food-related illness.

The first thing I said to the cashier: “That’s my kids’ favorite granola bar.” The second thing I said: “The note is too late. If you’re here again to shop, you’ve already eaten them.” He didn’t seem to understand what I meant by that, but I didn’t make a bigger deal about it since we hadn’t bought any recently.

I forgot about the incident until this morning, when a blogger, who had a different – but equally valid beef with the recall – reminded me I need to post on this topic. (The blogger was irritated that the word “salmonella” was conveniently left off the store recall notice.)

Be Careful, MJD Is Contagious to Those With Vulnerable Genes

My wife is afflicted with MJD. When I met Anne back in the 1990s, the symptoms were mild and mostly contained to beads.

For whatever reason, the disease did not take root in me, though sometimes the beads would become ingrained in my flesh when I stepped on them.

In the last year or so, the disease suddenly became acute, taking up larger and larger portions of the house. When the symptoms were really bad, I’d send Anne into the back yard so the kids would not be overcome by contaminated dust. It didn’t always work, though. The kids wanted to be around mom, even when she was at the height of her fever.

One of the nastier symptoms of this ailment is an uncontrollable urge to buy tools. At this point, Anne has a nicer collection of pliers than anyone I’ve ever met, male or female. Another popular tool amongst those suffering from MJD are Dremels, ball peen hammers and stamps. What’s really whacky is that this disease also generates a craving for silver and copper.

One time, in an attempt to cure herself, Anne bought liver of sulfur. I’ve heard that beef and chicken liver can cure all kinds of ailments, but this stuff came in a block with warnings that eating it will result in a horrible death.

Cybils Best Kids’ Books of the Year

If you are trying to pick out books for your children or teens to read, my wife offers this years’ Cybils winners on her site. Judges poured through the books of 2009 to find parents the best of the best for their children. It’s a great list!

Overheard

"I'll keep you from reading if you don't give me another Skittle."

-- Lael, employing a classic technique for extorting candy from her brother.

They Serve This Stuff to Our Kids in School?

For chicken, the USDA has supplied schools with thousands of tons of meat from old birds that might otherwise go to compost or pet food. Called “spent hens” because they’re past their egg-laying prime, the chickens don’t pass muster with Colonel Sanders – KFC won’t buy them – and they don’t pass the soup test, either. The Campbell Soup Company says it stopped using them a decade ago based on “quality considerations.”

-- USA Today

Ever since starting DadTalk, I’ve followed issues that effect parents. Early topics included vending machines in schools, childhood obesity, lead in toys and the housing bubble.

Lately, I’ve been focused on food policy, which may be the most singly screwed up aspect of American culture, politics and society – EVER. (Okay, energy policy might be equally frakked up.)

If you have any doubt, just re-read the quote at the top of this post. Fortunately for my kids, I decided to stop buying school lunches at the end of last year.

It’s enormously stressful trying to get lunch ready for two kids every morning, but reading quotes like the one above and below comforts my frayed nerves.

“We simply are not giving our kids in schools the same level of quality and safety as you get when you go to many fast-food restaurants,” says J. Glenn Morris, professor of medicine and director of the Emerging Pathogens Institute at the University of Florida. “We are not using those same standards.”

USA Today wrote the above story following what has happened with the recall of 825,769 pounds of tainted beef in August; schools received suspect meat while food companies did not. Here’s what happened:

Girl With a Scissors

My daughter is big on cutting things up; she'll use the scissors on just about anything. I decided to blog this straight from my new Blackberry Tour, though I'm guessing the photo will be turned the wrong way. (Yup, looks like I'll have to remember to always shoot the camera straight up.)

Overheard ‘We’re on a Date’

“Dad, we’re pretending we’re on a date.”

That’s what my 7-year-old son said as he sat on a rocking bench with his arm around a red-headed girl 4 inches taller than himself.

Actually, the girl, who Seth plays golf with, is only one day older than my boy. But her dad has a good 4 or 5 inches on me, so I guess her height shouldn’t have been a total surprise. Seeing my son with his arm around the girl, however, was.

Later, at home, I asked Seth whose idea the seating arrangement was, and he said the girl. Phwew, the laws of physics have been restored.

Crud, She Washed the Camera

Lael is always thinking. Thinking of ways to cause trouble. Oh, I don’t think she means too, but, well, she’s creative.

Today as I walked into the bathroom, I noticed her pink camera sitting in the sink.

At first I thought it was dry, just sitting there, but water poured out as I picked it up.

“Lael! Your camera is in the sink.”

“I was cleaning it.”

“You can’t clean electronics!”

“But it was dirty.”

“It doesn’t matter if it was dirty, water ruins electronics!”

If I’m sure of one thing, it is this. Lael did NOT get the message. She’s the master of not listening to what she doesn’t want to hear. She barely skipped a beat while playing with Seth.

I opened up the camera to let the inside dry, but I don’t have much hope. Thank goodness the thing is a toy and not the real thing. I’m not sure how I’d react if she had washed my Canon EOS 10D.

‘Is That Rudy G?’

The restaurant was one of those non-descript salad bars. Nothing special, but a popular place near downtown Phoenix for a quick work lunch.

I was there to meet a friend and client. He wanted me to meet his “radio guy.” After the radio guy left, my friend paused, clearly distracted.

“Is that Rudy Giuliani?”

I copped a quick look around me. There, in a perfect suit and pink tie, looking tan and healthy, was the former New York Mayor and presidential candidate. The TV captures his appearance perfectly.

Knowing my friend, I was not surprised at what happened next. As we left the restaurant, he stopped to shake the guy’s hand, all the while saying that Rudy should be the next president. My friend squeezed a 5-minute speech into those 12 seconds of interaction.

Because I was directly behind my friend, I shook Rudy’s hand too. “Nice to meet you,” I said. He gave me a look – in a nice way – that said, “thanks for letting me get back to my lunch.”

Turns out Rudy was in Phoenix for a Get Motivated Seminar that included Colin Powell and Laura Bush. I know it’s stupid, but I still got a thrill out of the whole thing.