nutrition

Humans have been working to increase crop yields since agriculture began, and major advances were made during the “green revolution” that began in the 1940s. Genetic engineering has been portrayed as the latest step in this process.  The majority of approved engineered seeds are aimed at decreasing losses due to pests and weeds; a primary example is Bt corn, produces a bacteria that kills the European corn borer and other insects.

Over the past decade, funding for and participation in after-school programs has grown substantially. To ensure that their promise is effectively delivered, evaluating their relative benefits and required factors for success is critical.

In the food industry, the federal Pathogen Reduction Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Program regulates meat and poultry processing plants. Estimates of the compliance costs of this program range from as low as 0.04 cents per pound to as much as 20 cents per pound.  While these estimates include actual costs, they do not distinguish between the different components of the rule itself and other indirect factors that could also affect costs.

Efforts to create healthy workplaces generally focus on safety. Programs that support employees’ choosing healthier behaviors — being more physically active or adopting a better diet, for example — are less common.

For more than a decade marketers of prepared foods have used “front of package” labeling to promote the supposed health benefits of their products to consumers. Today supermarket shelves are lined with items labeled “low in calories” or “better for you” aimed at children and their parents. As concerns have grown about childhood obesity, however, the veracity of these claims has come into question.

Energy drinks, once aimed exclusively at athletes, have become a significant force in the worldwide beverage market. They come in a dizzying variety of colors, often feature exotic ingredients — guarana, ginseng, and ginkgo biloba, to name just a few — and aren’t shy when it comes to health claims. Marketers’ efforts to rebrand such drinks as “nutrition beverages” have continued to spur sales growth, though this comes at a time when the content of the drinks is coming under increased scrutiny.