News on Food Trends from Northern America

A consortium hoping to make plastics from Maine potatoes has received more than $650,000 to further develop the proposal.

The potentially damaging effects of trans fats may also be passed from a mother to her child during breast feeding, suggests a new study that heaps more misery on the enfant terrible of the food industry.   The offspring of lactating rats fed a diet co...

McDonald's USA announced today that Dr. Cynthia M. Goody has joined the company as director of nutrition, effective June 1, 2008. In her new role, Goody will oversee all aspects of menu nutrition for McDonald's 13,800 restaurants in the U.S.

Yum! Brands, Inc. today announced the appointment of Roger Eaton, 47, as President of KFC USA. He replaces Gregg Dedrick, 49, who has made a personal decision to leave by year’s end after 20 years with the Company so that he may pursue several outside ...

With sky-high commodity costs, an increase in minimum wage and consumers trading down to lower-price items, McDonald's owner/operators are starting to push back on the dollar menu credited with much of the chain's turnaround.   Several New York stores...

Los Angeles County has implemented a voluntary program in which restaurants can be certified as "trans fat free"and receive a decal to display that fact to customers.Both the city and county of Los Angeles considering banning the use of trans...

Obesity researchers have discovered we burn the same calories on physical activities as we have done over the last 20 years. They found that there has been no reduction in the energy we expend on day to day activities, suggesting increased food intake...

To honor the man responsible for bringing the frozen French fry to the masses - McDonald's locations in Ada and Canyon Counties will give people a special free treat today. From 11 a.m. until 1 p.m., customers can get a free order of fries in honor of...

Since May 5 when New York City mandated restaurants to print the calorie count of the meals on menus 81 dining establishments have been served notice by the city Health Department for violation of the law. Among those found guilty were Dunkin' Donuts...

Over de wereldwijde voedselcrisis heeft iedereen de voorbije weken zijn zegje gedaan, van de Groene Kring tot voormalig Sovjetleider Michail Gorbatsjov.Maar wat moeten we tot hiertoe onthouden van alle reacties en intentieverklaringen? Wat moet er vera...

At one time, there were proposed bids for Wendy’s International from four groups other than Triac Cos which agreed in April to buy the Dublin burger chain for $2.3 billion. A regulatory filing today offers a first-time look at the sale process for Wen...

De Wereldbank stelt dit jaar zes miljard euro ter beschikking voor de financiering van landbouwprojecten. De Amerikaanse voorzitter Robert Zoellick gaat volgende week naar de FAO-voedseltop met een arsenaal aan schenkingen, leningen en verzekeringen. &...

Newschannel Five has learned eight Florida lawsuits filed against McDonald's have been resolved.  The lawsuits all alleged McDonald's French Fries made the individuals sick and complicated pre-existing medical problems or diseases.  The cases all revol...

The Federal Trade Commission has given the OK to Triarc Companies Inc.'s planned $2.34 billion acquisition Wendy's International Inc. The regulator this week granted an early termination to a waiting period mandated by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust ...

Frito Lay launched lower-sodium versions of some of their popular salty snacks. Lay's and Ruffles potato chips, Tostitos tortilla chips and Fritos corn chips now have 30%-50% less sodium. Regular Lay's classic chips have 180 milligrams of sodium per ou...

Linda Alvarado talks about the restaurant business. She is one of Yum Brands largest franchisees. A highlight of this multipage interview: At Palo Alto, what are you saying back in your offices about food costs and how you can address that? We are loo...

Burger King Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BKC) announced today that it has made several changes to its board of directors. The private equity funds controlled by TPG Capital, Bain Capital Partners and the Goldman Sachs Funds, which purchased the company in Dece...

Between 1995 and 2005 processed potato output rose from five million tonnes to over 10 and the value of these transactions doubled from 2,000 million dollars to almost 4,000. Fresh potato was worth less than 2,500 million dollars for an output of just...