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🐶 Snoop vs. Walmart 🔆

Cereal was the case that they gave 'em

Author

Marcus Yarbrough
February 12, 2024

Presented by

COMPOUND OF THE WEEK

C8H8O3: Vanillin is a type of phenolic compound, and its functional groups play a crucial role in its reactivity and interaction with other molecules, particularly in flavor formation and aroma.

ENTERTAINMENT

Snoop vs Walmart

Snoop Dogg and Master P are embroiled in a legal battle with Walmart and Post Consumer Brands, accusing them of sabotaging their venture into the breakfast cereal market with Snoop Cereal. Launching under Broadus Foods, they aimed to establish the first Black-owned cereal company in the U.S., symbolizing a significant step towards ownership in an industry long dominated by others. The lawsuit alleges that after refusing to sell their company, Post and Walmart conspired to prevent their cereal from reaching store shelves, marking a contentious fight against corporate maneuvers to maintain market control and a quest for equitable representation in the grocery sector.

FOODIE SOPTLIGHT

The people behind the food

Influencer: Rosie, a Soul Food blogger based in the Pacific Northwest, shares her passion for Southern cooking through her blog and YouTube channel, "I Heart Recipes." Born and raised in the PNW with family roots in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Rosie brings the traditional values and recipes of her heritage to life for both her real-life and online family.

Chef: Chef Christan Willis, based in Atlanta, has established herself as a leading culinary expert. Her passion for cooking began in childhood, watching her mother in the kitchen. Her career, spanning over 16 years, includes TV appearances and a feature at the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival. Here, she showcased a unique dish incorporating Cayman Jack Margarita, reflecting her innovative approach.

Executive: Jason Buechel, CEO of Whole Foods Market, emphasizes a leadership style focused on purpose, team culture, customer experience, and technology. Since Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods in 2017 for $13.7 billion, Buechel has been injecting new energy into the brand. Organic products represent a significant part of the company, with over 37,000 organic items in more than 535 stores, marking Whole Foods as the only national grocer with organic retail certification.

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RECIPES

How It’s Made

Batch Cocktail: Batching cocktails involves preparing large quantities in advance, which is perfect for hosting events without the stress of making individual drinks. Essential tools include a pitcher or jar for mixing and storage, a funnel for narrow-necked vessels, measuring cups and spoons, and ice trays. Crucially, water must be added to mimic the dilution that occurs when shaking or stirring with ice. The process includes chilling ingredients beforehand, avoiding pre-squeezing of citrus juices, and careful measuring. For larger batches, scaling up the ingredients from a single cocktail recipe is key, keeping in mind the necessary water addition for proper dilution.

Black Eyed Pea Hummus: "Food Heaven Made Easy" shares a recipe for Black Eyed Pea Hummus. This unique hummus variation uses black eyed peas, a legume rich in plant-based protein, fiber, thiamin, folate, iron, and phosphorus. The recipe is simple to prepare, requiring black eyed peas, garlic, tahini, berbere (a spicy Ethiopian seasoning), lemon juice, salt, and ice cubes for a smooth texture. It's suggested to be served with pita chips or as a spread on toast. The recipe emphasizes the versatility and nutritional value of black eyed peas in a creative, flavorful dish.

Jacobsen Salt: Uniquely situated in the highly saline Netarts Bay, produces high-quality salt from seawater. The process involves reverse osmosis to concentrate salt, careful heating to increase salinity and remove impurities, and delicate crystallization in pans. The harvested salt is then rinsed, drained, and dehydrated, with a final sifting to separate different grades. This meticulous two-week process results in pure flake salt, including a rare "pure flake" variety, celebrated for its purity and natural formation.

FOOD DOLLAR

9 ways Gen Z likes to eat

Stats: Gen Z

1. Diet and Eating Patterns: Approximately 72% of Gen Zers followed a specific diet or eating pattern in the past year, with popular choices including calorie counting (27%), clean eating (26%), mindful eating (19%), and plant-based eating (19%).

2. Snacking Behavior: Around 77% of Gen Z report snacking at least once a day, with 34% snacking two times a day. Common reasons for snacking include hunger or thirst (30%), boredom (27%), and needing more energy (25%).

3. Online Grocery Shopping: Over one-third of Gen Z shops online for groceries at least once a week, significantly more than Baby Boomers (35% vs. 11%). When shopping online, 71% find it easy to locate nutrition information, and 56% pay attention to food and beverage labels.

4. Environmental Concerns: One-third (33%) of Gen Z said that environmental sustainability impacts their decision to buy foods and beverages. Approximately 50% believe that their food choices have a significant or moderate impact on the environment.

5. Health Benefits Sought: The top health benefits sought by Gen Z from foods, beverages, and nutrients include more energy or less fatigue (38%), improved sleep (35%), emotional or mental health (33%), and digestive or gut health (29%).

6. Mindful Eating: Over two in five Gen Z respondents practice mindful or intuitive eating for stress management. However, 40% of Gen Z scored low on a mindfulness index regarding their eating practices.

7. Sustainability in Food Choices: Gen Z is highly interested in vegetarian, vegan, and conscious eating options. A significant portion (73%) believes their generation is most concerned about the environmental impact of food choices.

8. Meat Alternatives: About 19% of Gen Z embraces plant-based eating habits, with meat alternatives becoming increasingly popular. Gen Z's interest in plant-based foods is partly driven by environmental sustainability concerns.

9. Health Consciousness: Gen Z is highly conscious of eating foods that bolster their physical and mental health. They look for menu items made with organic, fresh, and sustainable ingredients.

How did we do?

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FOOD SAFETY

Outbreak list

Active Outbreaks:

Recently Closed Outbreak:

  • Listeria Outbreak Linked to Peaches, Nectarines, and Plums (11/20/23-1/30/24)

    • Illnesses 11, Hospitalizations 10, Deaths 1, States 7

  • Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Cantaloupes (11/17/23-1/19/24)

    • Illnesses 407, Hospitalizations 158, Deaths 6, 44 states

Recall Link:

Food Safety Tips: To prevent food poisoning, the EPA advises four key steps: Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill. Handwashing for at least 20 seconds, along with cleaning utensils and surfaces, is crucial. Separate raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs from other foods in shopping and storage. Ensure foods are cooked to the right internal temperature using a food thermometer and keep them hot after cooking. Refrigerate perishable foods within 2 hours (1 hour if over 90°F). The fridge should be set at 40°F or below and the freezer at 0°F. Avoid thawing or marinating food on the counter, instead use the refrigerator.

AGRICULTURE, SCIENCE, AND TECH

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s my groceries

Tech: Google's drone delivery company Wing, owned by Alphabet and partnered with Walmart, is expanding its services to a second location in Dallas, aiming to cater to approximately 60,000 households. The service offers a quick solution for last-minute holiday shopping and urgent needs, such as forgotten gifts or recipe ingredients. With deliveries that can take under 30 minutes and sometimes as fast as three minutes, Wing has already completed over 350,000 deliveries across the U.S. and other countries, adapting to various weather conditions and landscapes.

Science: The Maillard reaction is a chemical process that's crucial for creating the rich, browned flavors in many cooked foods. It occurs when proteins and sugars in food are transformed by heat, resulting in new flavors, aromas, and colors. This reaction not only makes food taste better but also signals nutrition and safety to humans, encouraging us to eat. It's a complex reaction involving multiple steps: the presence of heat to initiate the reaction, moisture control to facilitate it, and time for the flavors and aromas to develop.

NEWS

What else is cooking?

FINDS

🎙️Podcast: Setting the table hosted by Deb Freeman, Setting the Table is a podcast that explores the stories and histories of African American cuisine and foodways.

📚Book: "Harold McGee's 'On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen' is a comprehensive guide that delves into the history, science, and techniques behind cooking and culinary traditions."

📓Journal: Chemistry of Deep-Fat Frying Oils Deep-fat frying produces desirable or undesirable flavor compounds and changes the flavor stability and quality of the oil by hydrolysis, oxidation, and polymerization.

📰Article: Beanless coffee company gets boost from Suntory Holdings Ltd.

🎥Video: Why All the Best Cocktail Bars in NYC Buy Their Ice From Richard Boccato