Results tagged “hfcs”

Starting next month, Starbucks has announced that in addition to grinding beans to order for each brewed pot of coffee it'll also brew coffee more frequently: The magic will happen every 24 minutes, down from the previous 30. And in a bid for health-related transparency, the coffee chain will eliminate artificial colors, fats, and high fructose corn syrup from its menus entirely, along with some preservatives. This will change the taste of some Starbucks mixed drinks, and "will affect about 90 percent of the baked goods" (don't worry—Starbucks has new baked goods on the way!). Fruity drink chain Jamba Juice is also feeling the corn syrup squeeze: Besides pushing a new menu consisting largely of sandwiches, wraps, and baked goods, the chain is beginning to take the HFCS away from its locations. It's already happening in California, and the change will go into effect nationwide within the year, reports Nation's Restaurant News. High fructose corn syrup is thought to be the phantom menace of the modern diet, the proverbial second gunman on the grassy knoll of obesity and heart disease.

In his new book, Fruitless Fall: The Collapse of the Honeybee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis, author Rowan Jacobsen describes the effects of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) on beekeeping throughout the world. While the exact cause of CCD remains unknown, it clearly has the makings of a major agricultural crisis: Pollination is required in the life cycles for most every facet of our food supply. Among the nastier discoveries Jacobsen makes while telling the CCD story is that some industrial honeybees are forced to slurp down their share of high fructose corn syrup. Fall is also a DIY book; its appendices lay out resources for tyro beekeepers, including a breakdown of beneficial, bee-friendly “pollinator plants.”