Days after the largest meat recall in U.S. history, the head of the Agriculture Department said officials are reviewing why a California plant processed unfit cattle, and that it was too early to determine whether it was an incident specific to the facility. "We are reviewing our procedures, how we work with the plant, how our inspectors work, our staffing needs," Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer told reporters at the USDA's annual Outlook Forum. "And until we find out, we can't assess other plants, and we can't say ... this is an isolated incident or an ongoing practice." Reuters 2/22/08
Federal officials say that more than one-third of the 143 million pounds of California beef recalled last week went to school lunch programs. AP 2/20/08
Restaurant menus in California are marrying the broader commercial movement of "functional" foods — those stuffed with heavy doses of vitamins and antioxidants — and a national fixation on immunity boosting. Typical of the new trend, Crustacean, a modern Vietnamese restaurant, has attached an icon to the left side of several menu items letting diners know that those dishes supposedly boost immunity. International Herald Tribune 2/21/08
A federal judge has thrown out half of the charges against five Makah tribe members accused of harpooning and killing a gray whale last September. An attorney argued, among other things, that the charges were unconstitutional breach of equal protection rights because Alaska Native Americans can conduct whale hunts without restrictions by the MMPA. News 5 Seattle 2/19/08
Patricia Unterman calls the food at Hime “an uninhibited mix of Japanese ingredients and California invention” in a review in the Examiner. 2/20/08
Normalized relations with Cuba could means millions in export dollars for Arkansas rice growers and others, a possibility heightened by Fidel Castro's resignation Tuesday as the island nation's president. Though federal officials downplayed the possibility Tuesday of lifting the U.S. embargo on Cuba in place since the 1960s, members of Arkansas' congressional delegation routinely float bills that would expand trade with the communist nation. With Cuba now importing Asian rice, Arkansas' proximity to the island and plentiful rice harvest could be alluring for a nation with a cuisine that emphasizes the grain. CNN 2/19/08
Sponsored by the California Association of Winegrape Growers and co-authored bystate Sen. Patricia Wiggins, Assembly Bill (AB) 2090 creates a new special temporary on-sale wine license for wine grape commissions, regional wine grape grower associations and professional organizations in the field of enology and viticulture. The license allows these organizations to sell wine at wine-tasting events designed to promote a particular agricultural region or as part of a class, seminar or other educational event. Times Herald 2/21/08
The running saga over California health insurers canceling policies rolls on. Now, the Los Angeles City Attorney is suing an insurer called Health Net for allegedly rescinding coverage when members submit claims for costly treatments. WSJ 2/21/08
In the past five years, cotton acreage across California has shrunk by almost half, according to the federal Department of Agriculture. Farmers are turning to alfalfa hay, corn and wheat, commodities that require less irrigation and have been dipped in gold by the competing demands for biofuel and cattle feed. NY Times 2/19/08
Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger met privately with state lawmakers Thursday in an effort to jump-start stalled negotiations on a state water bond. There were no major breakthroughs and significant hurdles remain. But legislative leaders from both parties agreed to meet again in two weeks, the governor said. Sacramento Bee 2/22/08
Bipartisan Consensus Builds for California Water Bond Environmental News Service 2/21/08
Industries operating in California reduced toxic releases by 2.8 percent in 2006 compared to 2005, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This is the third year in a row for overall reductions in toxic releases, the EPA says. Central Valley Business Times 2/21/08
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