States in Mexico move to ban junk food sales to minors

After Mexican state Oaxaca banned giving out high-calorie snacks and sugary beverages to minors on Aug. 5, at least a dozen other states began pushing for similar legislation. 70,000 Mexicans have died from COVID-19 so far, and two-thirds of them had underlying medical conditions related to poor diets. Some critics of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's Morena party, however, say that the emphasis on pre-existing conditions is a distraction from the government's weak response to the virus outbreak. Read more at NPR…

Scientists develop velcro-like strip that can detect food pathogens

New MIT-developed technology takes dead aim at the dual problems of food waste and contamination. It uses a bunch of little pointed silkworm protein sensors that look like a Velcro strip and pierce the food to gather internal samples. The surface of the sensor contains a film of bioink that changes color when food is contaminated, spoiled or approaching spoilage. Read more at Modern Farmer…

Kraft-Heinz to sell part of cheese business for $3.2B

Kraft-Heinz is selling off a significant portion of its cheese business to France's Group Lactalis SA for $3.2 billion. The sale includes the Cracker Barrel brand in the U.S. and Breakstone's cottage cheese. Kraft-Heinz, like many Big Food companies, is trying to cut costs and put its savings into marketing brands that have been performing well during the pandemic. Read more at The Wall Street Journal…

Welcome to your bland new world of consumer capitalism

The irony of many emerging startups seeking to disrupt their respective categories is that the vast majority of them adopt the same business model, ambiance and tone of voice with regard to their marketing strategies. These "blands" are typically D2C, underdogs, humble, aspirational and value-based. Read more at Bloomberg…

California farmworkers say they didn’t get masks during wildfires

Although millions of N95 masks were ostensibly shipped out to farmworkers by the state of California, many have not received this necessary personal protective gear. But they aren't filing complaints out of a fear of employer retaliation. Experts believe the historic disconnect between growers and ag commissioners is to blame for the missing masks. Read more at The Counter…