USDA

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Watchdog: USDA Carried Out 'Cannibal Cat' Experiments

Lawmakers want experiments—including dog remains being fed to cats—to end

(Newser) - Government scientists have fed dog remains to cats, injected cat remains into mice, and conducted other experiments on animals that one member of Congress says "need to end now." The White Coat Waste Project, a nonprofit watchdog, drew the information from USDA publications for a report it plans...

Trump Administration May Get Its Food Stamps Wish After All

USDA proposal would tighten waiver eligibility on work requirements

(Newser) - It may soon be more difficult to get food stamps if you're jobless. The Washington Post reports the USDA has a new proposal that would tighten eligibility for food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and it's tied to unemployment. Under the current system, most adults who...

USDA Has Bad News for Happy Livestock

It walks away from stricter Obama-era animal welfare regulations for organic livestock

(Newser) - New rules, decades in the making, that would have required organic meat and egg producers to abide by stricter animal welfare standards were withdrawn by the feds on Monday, reports the AP , frustrating organic farmers and animal welfare groups but leaving some traditional farm groups rejoicing. The US Department of...

Trump's Plan: Deliver Food Boxes Instead of Food Stamps

But critics say the idea of an 'America's Harvest Box' is 'prone to failure'

(Newser) - Trump administration members are hailing their newest idea as a "bold" approach that would save the government billions and feed more than 38 million people in low-income households, but critics are calling it an approach that's "prone to failure." President Trump's 2019 budget plan was...

Mueller Investigation Sinks a Trump Nominee

Sam Clovis, a climate change skeptic, pulls name from consideration for science post

(Newser) - A former Trump campaign official linked to the Russia investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller has withdrawn his nomination for an agriculture post. Sam Clovis, a former Trump campaign national co-chairman and chief policy adviser, wrote in a letter to President Trump dated Thursday that he does "not want...

USDA Wants to Do Away With 'Sell by' and 'Use by' Labels

And replace them with a standardized 'best if used by' date

(Newser) - The USDA wants Americans to know it's probably fine to eat that yogurt hiding in the back of the fridge. Consumerist reports the agency released new guidance Wednesday asking meat and dairy producers to do away with the various "sell by" and "use by" dates they put...

Petco Drops Small-Animal Supplier After PETA Video

PETA went undercover, documented what it says is evidence of awful conditions

(Newser) - Petco, one of the biggest pet retailers in the country, severed its relationship with a Pennsylvania small-animal dealer amid a federal investigation into conditions at the facility where it keeps thousands of hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, and other species. Petco said in a statement Tuesday that Holmes Chinchilla Ranch and...

America's Nutrition Guidelines Take a Mediterranean Shift

Also, coffee gets a boost, and there's a shift in cholesterol thinking

(Newser) - You can relax your grip on that cup of java: "Moderate coffee consumption" can be part of a healthy diet, according to new federal dietary guidelines released Thursday. In fact, three to five cups is apparently just fine, notes the Los Angeles Times . The guidelines emphasize veggies, fruits, and...

Feds Open US Border —to Santa's Reindeer

'USDA wants to do everything in its power to help Santa'

(Newser) - If you wake up Christmas morning and don't find any gifts from Santa under the tree, don't blame the federal government. On Wednesday, the USDA issued permits to Santa's reindeer to come and go through any of the country's northern border ports beginning Christmas Eve and...

Group: Video Reveals Inhumane Treatment of Pigs

'This plant is the symbol of everything that is wrong with the meat industry'

(Newser) - "If the USDA is around, they could shut us down," a worker at one of the largest pork producers in the country can be heard saying in an undercover video released this week. The Washington Post reports the video was filmed by someone working for the animal rights...

American Egg Board in a Boil Over Vegan Mayo Company

The board is prohibited from 'disparaging non-egg commodities'

(Newser) - You could say the American Egg Board has egg on its face after the group was allegedly caught trying to sabotage the makers of a vegan mayonnaise it considered to be a "major threat," the Guardian reports. The problem is the board—as a government-backed food lobby—is...

Scientists Create a Healthier Peanut

It's said to be more resistant to disease

(Newser) - If you've been puzzling over ways to get more oleic acid into your body, the USDA has just come through. In a joint venture with Oklahoma State University, the agency has released a brand-new peanut that's said to boast a richer flavor, health benefits, and resistance to crop...

Why the Feds Killed 3 Million Animals Last Year

Controversial culling hits starlings the worst

(Newser) - Mother Jones calls it President Obama's "kill list," but it's probably not one you'd expect. This newly released list covers the nearly 3 million animals among 319 different species that the government killed last year. Most were classified as invasive species in one regard...

Feds to Ditch Warning on High-Cholesterol Food

Panel will no longer advise people to avoid eggs, other foods: Washington Post

(Newser) - It looks like Americans will be able to eat their eggs guilt-free soon. The Washington Post reports that the federal government is poised to drop its decades-long warning about eating foods high in cholesterol. In classic bureaucrat-speak, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee has concluded that cholesterol is no longer a...

This Year's Craziest Restaurant Meal: 3.5K Calories

Watchdog group lists diet-annihilating dishes from US chains

(Newser) - Nearly 3,550 calories for a burger, fries, and shake sounds about right—if it's one of the meals called out on a watchdog group's annual list of fatty, sugary, calorie-heavy foods served at US chain restaurants. The Center for Science in the Public Interest pored over nutritional...

Dozens of Giant Snails Stopped at LAX

Invasive species was labeled as food

(Newser) - A slow-moving Nigerian delicacy was stopped at Los Angeles International Airport when 67 giant land snails were discovered packed in picnic baskets, authorities said yesterday. The live African snails—which can grow to be 8 inches long, 5 inches wide, and live to be 10 years old—arrived with paperwork...

Schools: Healthy Lunch Rules Go Too Far

Teens see Michelle Obama as culprit

(Newser) - Schools are struggling to adhere to new government rules on healthy lunches, and school officials are asking Washington to step back. "The regulations are so prescriptive, so it's difficult to manage not only the nutrition side of your businesses but the business side of your business," a...

8.7M Lbs. of 'Diseased, Unsound' Meat Recalled

California-based firm's beef, veal products weren't properly inspected

(Newser) - Bad news for Americans who consume food, specifically of the meat variety: California-based Rancho Feeding Corporation is recalling some 8.7 million pounds of beef and veal products after feds determined that it "processed diseased and unsound animals and carried out these activities without the benefit or full benefit...

USDA Shuts Poultry Plant Over Cockroach 'Infestation'

Foster Farms facility was implicated in last year's salmonella outbreak

(Newser) - "Cockroach" and "infestation" are two words you don't want anywhere near your dinner, but the USDA says it encountered just that at a California poultry plant that it wasted no time in shutting down yesterday. Foster Farms said that it immediately conducted "enhanced sanitizing" at its...

97% of Chicken Covered in Bacteria: Consumer Reports

Study finds half of store-bought chicken contains fecal matter

(Newser) - Consumer Reports' latest report isn't for the weak of stomach: Some 97% of the 316 raw chicken breasts it purchased at US stores in July contained "worrisome amounts of bacteria." While it admits it's "unrealistic to expect uncooked chicken won't contain any potentially...

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