What's Up With GMO Labeling On The State Level: A Primer

Categories: Controversy

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Flickr/MillionsAgainstMonsanto
We're all sad that San Francisco has lost Jesse Hirsch, former Examiner restaurant critic and SF Weekly writer, to upstate New York and his new gig as a Modern Farmer staff writer, but we are excited to see what he digs up out East. Such as his most recent article, a primer on GMO labeling efforts in 22 states. In it, he breaks down all the legislation currently in play that would require labeling or all or some food sold in the state. Bottom line: A lot has happened since Prop. 37 was defeated in California last fall.

See also: Monsanto Protection Act: What All The Fuss Is About
Washington State Could Be First in Country to Pass GMO Labeling
Despite Prop. 37's Defeat, the Fight for GMO Labeling Soldiers On

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Protesting Lanesplitter Pizza Employee Demands Run From Practical To Unusual

Categories: Controversy

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Yelp/Jayne M.
We told you last week that Lanesplitter employees had walked out in protest of working conditions at the Temescal pizzeria. Well, now the labor dispute is getting slightly bizarre.

The protesting workers sent a list of demands to Lanesplitter management that range from the practical to the unusual (see the full list below). Management refused to respond to questions about the demands, stating simply that they were "responding to workers internally" and that they are "open to dialogue with their employees."

See also: Lanesplitter Pizza Employees Protest Working Conditions With Walkout


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Why Does Coqueta Have Michelin and Zagat Stickers In Its Window?

Categories: Controversy

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Anna Roth
Coqeta's display of stickers has an easy and rational explanation.
I popped into Michael Chiarello's new Spanish tapas endeavor, Coqueta, the other night, seeking libations after a trippy lightshow at the new Exploratorium. The sherry cocktail I enjoyed in the tiny, buzzy bar was dry and well-crafted, but something was nagging at me: the cluster of Zagat and Michelin recommendation stickers on the restaurant's front door. The problem? Coqueta has only been open for a week.

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Lanesplitter Pizza Employees Protest Working Conditions With Walkout

Categories: Controversy

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Yelp/Jayne M.
On Monday evening, employees at Lanesplitter Pizza's Temescal location walked out in protest of working conditions at the popular East Bay pizzeria chain.

In a press release circulated on Reddit and Facebook, workers added that, in addition to labor conditions, they also walked out to raise awareness about "poor food quality of the company" -- and were met with a standing ovation from customers when they left the restaurant.

According to the exasperated workers, Lanesplitter hasn't treated its employees as well as it claims.


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Chipotle Writes Petition to Take Over Castro Spot, San Franciscans Create Counter-Petition

Categories: Controversy

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The now-defunct Home, proposed location of new Chipotle.
Over six months ago, Chipotle signed the lease to the former spot of Home on the corner of Church and Market. The old spot closed over a liquor license violation that did not permit booze service on the back patio. But that was over a year ago, and the space is still empty. Apparently, folks have been tapping the Eater tipline for more details about the Chipotle's opening, and have been busily signing petitions on both sides of the issue.

See also: Taste Testing Chipotle's New Hodo Soy Tofu Burrito
Cuco's: Under the Burrito of Damocles
San Francisco's Top 10 Burritos

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It's About Time: Proposed CA Bill Would Move Last Call to 4 a.m.

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Flickr/susanna bolle
A new law could keep bars in S.F. pouring drinks until 4 a.m.
Good news for night owls: A bill has been proposed into the California state legislation that would allow bars, clubs, restaurants, and other watering holes to serve alcohol until 4 a.m., instead of the current 2 a.m. State senator Mark Leno proposed the bill, which would require city and county officials to petition the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control for the extended service.

Cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego are expected to benefit the most financially, and perhaps psychologically too, since the bill would finally put California cities on footing with legendarily late-night towns like New York, Miami, and Las Vegas.

See also: Beer-Loving Man in Basement Tells Mayor Ed Lee to "Grow a Pair" Over Proposed 4 a.m. Bar Closing (Video)
Barrel-Aged Cocktails Sing in the City
Drink 2013: Barrel-Aged Cocktails Sing in the City


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Whole Foods Announces It Will Require GMO Labeling by 2018

Categories: Controversy

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Flickr/Millions Against Monsanto
Protests in support of GMO labeling have reached the White House
GMO transparency has become a hot-button issue in the country for the past few years, and even though California's Prop. 37 was defeated last November, a few other states are moving toward legislation requiring labels on any genetically modified foods sold in supermarkets. Today Whole Foods Market took a huge step forward today in announcing it will require GMO labeling on any products sold in its stores by 2018. It is the first national grocery chain to make such an announcement.

See also: GMO Labeling: Looking to the Future Post-Prop. 37
Washington State Could Be First in Country to Pass GMO Labeling
Three Things I Learned When I Started Researching Proposition 37
New Study Shows Voter Support for Genetically Modified Food Labeling in California


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Controversy Over Dodge Ram's "God Made a Farmer" Ad

Categories: Controversy, Video

During the Super Bowl you probably saw Dodge Ram's visually arresting "God Made a Farmer" ad, which set photos of American farmers in the heartland to a 1978 speech by Paul Harvey addressing the Future Farmers of America.

The ad has generated a huge amount of controversy on the Internet -- accusing it of being a ripoff of an earlier Farms.com YouTube video, a nostalgic and inaccurate reflection of current farming life, and most of all, an incredibly whitewashed look at current farming demographics ... because the vast majority of the people featured in the ad are white. And the farming industry is mostly not (around 70 percent of American farm workers were born in Mexico, according to a Department of Labor study).

See also: "Deliciousness Is My Primary Concern": Watch This 12-Minute Coffee Documentary

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Everyone Calm Down, There's No Major Chicken Wing Shortage

Categories: Controversy

Flickr/Clotee Pridgen Allochuku
News of an imminent chicken wing shortage swept the Internet this morning, sending many Americans into a panic because this is the week before the Super Bowl and what's the Super Bowl without chicken wings and omg is this a sign of the end of the world?!!

But don't worry; reports of a chicken wing shortage are greatly exaggerated. The rumor started thanks to a report put out by the National Chicken Council, which said that wing consumption is down 1 percent this Super Bowl, due in part to high prices for corn and feed thanks to last summer's drought. This means that Americans will only eat 1.23 billion chicken wing portions this Super Bowl Sunday, a number down about 12.3 million wings since last year, but nothing approaching a shortage by any means.

See also: How the Chicken Wing Became Synonymous With Football

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"Meat Without Drugs" Campaigners Descend Upon Nob Hill Trader Joe's

Categories: Controversy

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Joe the Pig wants to keep animals off drugs.
You'll get more than two-buck chuck and a few jars of artichoke hearts if you head to Trader Joe's on Nob Hill tomorrow morning around 10 a.m. Consumers Union, the policy and advocacy arm of Consumer Reports, has teamed up with local advocates and the anti-animal-antibiotic mascot Joe the Pig to hold a public press conference asking TJ's to stop selling meat and poultry raised on antibiotics. It's all part of the Consumers Union's "Meat Without Drugs" campaign, which was only fueled by the November Consumer Reports discovery that nearly 70 percent of pork samples they tested had dangerous bacteria resistent to antibiotics.

See also:
- The Crab Strike is Over
- KronnerBurger is Worth Checking Out

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