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Gidon Eshel.  Planetary Eating: The Hidden Links between Your Plate and Our Cosmic Neighborhood.  MIT Press, 2025.

I did a blurb for this book:

Planetary Eating gives us a geophysicist’s deep analysis of the environmental cost of beef production and the benefits of replacing meat with plants.  Salads, he argues, are a blueprint for rebellion against corporate-run agricultural systems.

This book is divided into two parts.

• The first is a deep dive into calculating the environmental cost of eating beef.
• The second is how climate affects agriculture.

Eshel has fun with this.  He notes that his comments on meat-eating typically get responses:

roughly evenly split between the blindingly enlightened, zero doubt vegan activists, and angry self-appointed beef and big ag defenders.  And when I publish papers that suggest that in some circumstances beef may have some productive roles to play (it does), the tenor of the comments remains unchanged, but the camps neatly reverse, like Prussian troops in formation.

His main argument: “you cannot understand food and agriculture without invoking basic physics, thermodynamics, biology, and other pertinent sciences.”

He’s not kidding.  There’s a lot of all of that in this book and math calculations and formulas as well.  But what he’s trying to say makes sense.

I loved his analysis of why dairy farms do better in Texas and Arizona, states that would seem to be

Inhospitable to moist- and cool-loving cattle.  To combat cattle’s exceptional heat burden due to their large size, high performance, and large metabolic health output, migrating to where sweat dries fast, thus dripping minimally, is essential.  This requires near-surface air characteristics that strongly favor rapid evaporation.  Because few processes promote these conditions more than subsidence, which outside of the tropics is maximized downstream of mountain ranges that vigorous prevailing winds pass over, modern dairy migrate to those areas…Far from perplexing, locating dairy operations just east of the Rockies or the Coast Range now makes perfect sense, because that is the location of maximum effect of planetary waves the interactions of the prevailing westerly winds with the mountains excite.  And in that most coherent downstream node, the main effect for our purposes is subsidence; more subsidence, more comfortable and productive dairy cows.

It’s taken me a couple of months to get to this but a reader in Montreal wanted to be sure I did not miss this article: Twinkies’ New Owner Courts a Novel Group of Snackers: Stoners

J.M. Smucker is sending a “Munchie Mobile” on a road trip leading up to the unofficial holiday of cannabis on April 20 to promote Hostess brands like Twinkies, Ding Dongs and Donettes…Smucker, which acquired Hostess for $4.6 billion in 2023, wants to revitalize sales of a storied yet dusty portfolio by connecting with a wider breadth of consumers…including 4/20 celebrations…The Munchie Mobile truck over the next few weeks will hand out free snacks outside cannabis dispensaries in New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland and New Jersey every day at 4:20 p.m.

Why 4/20?  PBS explains.

Snack sales are down lately (blame GLP-1 drugs), so Smucker has to work hard.

Hostess’s marketing division, meanwhile, is getting better at targeting snackers at the right place and the right time, Hollander said. The company is scheduling its digital ads to pop up around popular snack times, such as after lunch and dinner, as well as using geotargeting technology to serve mobile ads to consumers at times when they might be driving close to a grocery store, or walking near a convenience store, she said.

Note: this marketing is aimed at YOU.  Stoned or not, ask yourself: Do you need Twinkies?  Will eating lots more Twinkies be good for you?

I was struck by this announcement from the USDA: Secretary Rollins Takes Bold Action to Put American Farmers First, Cuts Millions in Woke DEI Funding

It’s the McCarthy-era rhetoric that gets to me:

Putting American Farmers First means cutting the millions of dollars that are being wasted on woke DEI propaganda. Under President Trump’s leadership, I am putting an end to the waste, fraud, and abuse that has diverted resources from American farmers and restoring sanity and fiscal stewardship to the U.S. Department of Agriculture,” said Secretary Rollins.

She then lists the programs being cut for underserved and disadvantaged farmers.

So sad, all this.

The question is how to protest.  If enough people do, it might make a difference.

ADDITION

Here’s what Civil Eats has to say about this,

Politico reports: White House invites 46 farm, food groups to discuss MAHA report

The MAHA report, as I’ve written, could have enormous implications for food system businesses.  The problems it describes with the health of America’s children call for policies that could reduce profits for companies that, for example, produce seed oils, food products with color additives, and ultra-processed foods in general.

The secretaries of HHS and USDA have promised to soon issue dietary guidelines to reduce intake of such foods.

Food companies making products targeted by such views are unlikely to be happy with the report.  If past history is any indication, they will lobby for exceptions, exemptions, and delays, and will insist that the proposed measures have no scientific basis (which some indeed do not), violate the First Amendment, and will cost jobs—the playbook that worked for such a long time for the tobacco industry.

The Politico report is behind a paywall, but Helena Bottemiller Evich obtained a list of who has been invited and writes the details in FoodFix: White House holds flurry of industry meetings in wake of MAHA drama. 

Her list shows separate meetings for fruit and vegetable producers and trade groups, and those for meat and dairy, restaurants, grocers, beverage companies (Big Soda), commodity groups, and Big Ag.

Oh to be a fly on those walls.

It’s hard for me to believe that this administration will do anything to reduce business interests, and early indications are that RFK Jr is merely calling for companies to take voluntary actions, and individuals to take personal responsibility—neither of which is likely to have any chance of Making America Healthy Again.

I look forward to seeing what they do with the dietary guidelines and the next MAHA Commission report on policy—both expected by the end of the summer, apparently.  Stay tuned.

I haven’t done one of these in a while.  This one is especially timely with all the fuss going on about the supposed toxicity of seed oils, soy among them.  To be clear: I do not see convincing evidence for this contention.

Still, it makes soy producers want to demonstrate that eating soy poses no health problems.  Hence, this study.

Effect of Soy Isoflavones on Measures of Estrogenicity: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.  Gabrielle Viscardi, Songhee Back, Amna Ahmed, Shuting Yang, Sonia Blanco Mejia, Andreea Zurbau, Tauseef A Khan, Amanda Selk, Mark Messina, Cyril WC Kendall, David JA Jenkins, John L Sievenpiper, Laura Chiavaroli.  Advances in Nutrition, Volume 16, Issue 1, 2025, 100327, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2024.100327.

The abstract begins:

Despite recommendations to increase plant food consumption for public and planetary health and the role that soy foods can play in plant-predominant diets, controversies around the effects of soy foods, especially soy isoflavones, are a barrier to their intake. Given their cardioprotective effects and ability to alleviate menopausal symptoms, addressing these concerns is particularly relevant to women…This systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials aimed to determine the effect of soy isoflavones on measures of estrogenicity in postmenopausal women.

Conclusion: “Current evidence suggests that soy isoflavones do not exhibit estrogenic effects compared with non-isoflavone controls on 4 measures of estrogenicity in postmenopausal women.”

Funding: “This work was supported by the United Soybean Board (the United States Department of Agriculture soy check-off program)….”

Conflicts of interest:  Oh dear.  It’s hard to know where to begin, as the lists go on and on and on.  One of the authors “is the Director of Nutrition Science and Research at the Soy Nutrition Institute Global, an organization that receives partial funding from the principal funder, the United Soybean Board (USB).”  Others report financial ties to Soy Foods Association of North America, the Soy Nutrition Institute, and the United Soybean Board.

Comment.  Some of the authors on this review appear highly conflicted.  What is especially troubling is their apparent mocking of the concept of conflicted interests and conflating of personal views (which all researchers have, but these vary) with financial ties (which are discretionary and almost invariably produce results favorable to the sponsor’s interests).   Authors on this paper report as conflicts such things as awards, funding from professional societies, unpaid work for professional societies, vegan dietary preferences, and activities of their spouses and children—none of which are in the same category as financial ties to industries with direct interests in research outcome.  I don’t think this kind of conflicted research helps the soybean cause.

Photo: Prof. Albert Wu

It was an enormous, overwhelming honor to be invited to give the convocation address to graduates of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

I spent a long time thinking about what I would say to graduates entering the public health workforce at a time like this.

The ceremonies took place outdoors in the university’s stadium on cold, rainy May 21.

Lots of friends and colleagues have asked me if there is a video of the speech.  There is, and it has just been sent to me.

If you are at all interested, you can take a look at:

• The Press release
• A 2-minute summary of the entire event (my excerpt begins at 1:01)
• The complete, nearly 3-hour, ceremony (my convocation address begins at 39:40)
• Text of my speech prepared for the teleprompter

It was also my great honor to receive the Dean’s Medal for Public Health Leadership.  That part begins at 15:20.

Every now and then I like to collect items on what’s going on in the plant-based food world.

These products have their ups and downs, with much inconsistency.

Here are some recent items demonstrating some of those inconsistencies.

• Almost all plant-based meat and dairy categories are down in 2025, Spins reports: Steep dollar and volume declines ripple across the plant-based meat market, while soy- and coconut-milk and shredded non-dairy cheese offer glimmers of hope amid slumping alt dairy sales… Read more
• Plant-based meat manufacturer freezes prices for year in tariff response:  Plant-based meat’s march to price parity hits a tariff wrinkle, as private label provides a growth opportunity for the slumping category… Read more
• What do consumers look for in plant-based proteins?  ‘People are really pivoting towards plant-centered foods and not trying to hide it as something else,’ according to the founder of Nourish, who also reports shoppers want complete proteins that are easy to digest… Watch now
• How can plant-based brands bridge the gap between innovation and adoption? As inflation continues to strain household budgets, consumers are zeroing in on grocery staples that offer clear nutritional and economic value, which often exclude plant-based foods… Read more
• Plant-based foods gain ground as consumer perceptions shift again: Perceptions of plant-based foods improve as brands invest in taste, texture and nutrition… Read more
• How plant-based dairy brands can address the quality and perception gap:  Improving consumer perception of plant-based dairy may start with better biosolutions… Read more
• Beyond Meat doubles down on plant-based chicken with Beyond Chicken Pieces:  Beyond Meat’s Chicken Pieces launched earlier this week in 1,900 Kroger stores nationwide… Read more
• Alt meat meltdown: Beyond Meat’s debt causes concern, Meati set for sale:   In a one-two punch to the plant-based meat market this week, Beyond Meat reports another bad quarter amid rising financial concerns, and Meati readies itself for sale… Read more
• Beyond the noise: Ethan Brown on plant-based meat’s next chapter”  With consumer skepticism around ingredient transparency, faltering retail momentum and backlash from the meat industry, the company finds itself at a crossroads – one it is determined to navigate with what CEO Ethan Brown calls “radical transparency.”… Read more

This post from food safety lawyer Bill Marler got my attention: 20,400,000 Salmonella tainted Cage Free, Organic Eggs recalled after 79 Sickened: According to the FDA, California-based August Egg Company of Hilmar is recalling 1,700,000 dozen brown cage-free and brown certified organic eggs due to potential contamination. A total of 79 people infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella have been reported from seven states. Illnesses started on dates ranging from February 24, 2025, to May 17, 2025. Twenty-seven… Continue Reading

The FDA’s report of its investigations is here.

The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating illnesses in a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections linked to brown cage free eggs and brown certified organic eggs supplied by August Egg Company, Hilmar, CA.

The CDC’s account of this investigation  is here.

The CDC notes:

The true number of sick people in this outbreak is also likely much higher than the number reported. This is because many people recover without medical care and are not tested for Salmonella.

Comment

To endlessly repeat: Salmonella in eggs is preventable, but nobody is making egg producers do what they need to do to prevent hens from getting infected.  If 79 cases and 21 hospitalizations doesn’t get you upset, ask yourself why you are inured to such information.  One more time: these are preventable illnesses and hospitalizations.  And no, organic and cage free conditions do not prevent hens from carrying Salmonella .  And how could they?  I’ve been to industrial organic egg production faciltities and have seen thousands of hens on top of each other in crowded barns.  We have the laws.  They need to be enforced.

Bill Marler keeps insisting that we put him out of business.  Let’s do that.