Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1220124
Eating Away at Styrofoam Mealworms may make a dent in the excess toxic plastics poisoning the earth. Stanford University researchers have discovered that easy-to-cultivate mealworms can safely consume toxic additive-containing plastic, like styrofoam, and still be safely ingested as feedstock. The study showed that while the toxins land inside the mealworm's gut, they don't build up in its body. Anja Malawi Brandon, PhD candidate in civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University says, "This research offers hope for the foodservice industry that a potential alternative to just landfilling is on the horizon. We're continuing to work on how this solution could be best utilized both in a centralized treatment facility (like a recycling center) or distributed to wherever plastic waste is being generated." But Brandon warns, "Decreasing our dependence on single-use plastics and replacing necessary plastic packing material with biodegradable plastic is the most important next step for sustainability." Until then, mealworms could provide a much-needed solution. Bee-Friendly Ice Cream As almond farming expands, so too does the negative impact on honeybees. That's why Häagen- Dazs' decision to be the first food company to use the Bee Better Seal is so important. The seal, which will appear on its Vanilla Swiss Almond, Honey Salted Caramel, and Rocky Road flavors, as well as its Vanilla Milk Chocolate Almond Bars, alerts consumers that the ingredients were grown and harvested in a bee-friendly manner. "The essential needs of bees are in jeopardy due to habitat loss, pesticide use, and introduced diseases," states Eric Mader of the nonprofit Xerces Society, which launched the seal in 2017 and is working to build sustainable landscapes that better protect the bees and other pollinators. Häagen-Dazs was committed to the health of the honeybees even before it began using the seal. The ice cream giant installed a 6.5-mile flowering permanent hedgerow at its almond supplier's farm in 2016, creating a year- round habitat for pollinators and other types of wildlife. $100,000,000,000 the amount that food waste costs the hospitality industry annually, according to technology company Winnow. PHOTO STANFORD UNIVERSIT Y PHOTOS HÄAGEN DAZS SPECIALTY FOOD SPECIALTYFOOD.COM TRENDS & HAPPENINGS