Checkout Line

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• Buzzkill

  Heat makes honey toxic, and other myths of the hive 10

  Posted 1 month ago by Lou Bendrick

  Dear Lou, I heard a rumor that honey is toxic when placed in hot water. Is that true? Doesn't the whole world drink honey in hot tea? Also wondering about the harvesting of honey -- is it harmful to the bees and their sustainability? Lou Bendrick has the answers. Read More

• Triclosan or treat?

  Saying goodbye to a common—and toxic—antimicrobial chemical 9

  Posted 4 months, 1 week ago by Lou Bendrick

  Remember the '90s, when everyone and their mama became a germ freak and started buying anti-microbial everything? The trend has faded, but the personal-care and home-products industries keep clinging to an anti-microbial chemical called triclosan. A reader wants to know if triclosan should be avoided. Lou Bendrick has answers. Read More

• Going bananas

  Can we be ‘green’ and eat tropical products, too? 7

  Posted 5 months, 2 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

  It's hard to be a locavore when you're hooked on coffee, like bananas in your smoothies, and enjoy an afternoon cuppa for a quick pickup. Lou Bendrick weighs in on how to keep your green cred and consume tropical products, too. Read More

• Seedy business

  Beyond the compost heap: what to do with fruit and veggie seeds? 6

  Posted 6 months ago by Lou Bendrick

  As anyone who composts knows, when you cook a lot, you generate lots of seeds. What can be done with them? Food sleuth Lou Bendrick weighs in. Read More

• A mighty wind

  Of cow burps, beef, and methane 33

  Posted 6 months, 1 week ago by Lou Bendrick

  By now, a lot of people know that beef production generates lots of planet-warming greenhouse gas--much of it in the form of methane from bovine bodily functions. But what about free-roaming, grass-munching cows: are they burping and farting their way to climate disaster, too? A beef-loving reader wants to know. Food sleuth Lou Bendrick has answers. Read More

• Larder starter

  The non-survivalist’s guide to stocking up for hard times 7

  Posted 6 months, 4 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

  You don't have to find yourself on a street corner with an "end is nigh" sandwich board to worry about surviving disaster. Better safe than sorry, advises Grist food sleuth Lou Bendrick. Read More

• Not milk?

  Navigating the non-dairy ‘milk’ aisle 26

  Posted 7 months, 1 week ago by Lou Bendrick

  Grist's food sleuth helps make sense of the bewildering array of soy milks, rice milks, and hemp milks. Read More

• Sweetness and light

  The lowdown on agave nectar and other ‘natural’ sweeteners 4

  Posted 7 months, 3 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

  What's the skinny on "natural" sweetners like agave nectar and stevia? Lou Bendrick delivers the sweet and lowdown. Read More

• Jellyfish and chips?

  The case for—and against—eating those suddenly pervasive, stinging sea creatures 0

  Posted 8 months, 3 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

  Dear Checkout Line,

  I've heard that jellyfish are plentiful and that we should eat them, but I have to admit that this sounds gross and I worry they are poisonous.  Are there any other uses for jellyfish other than food?

  Curious in Colorado

   

    Read More

• Organic chemistry

  Why isn’t ‘organic pesticide’ an oxymoron? 8

  Posted 9 months, 1 week ago by Lou Bendrick

  Ms. Bendrick,

  I was listening to the Food Chain Radio podcast (MP3) and suffice it to say that this show's guest expert questioned whether the pesticides organic growers are allowed to use (!) are any better for us than the ones conventional farmers use. He said that Rotenone and others are just as toxic and noxious, and that in the supermarket where you can't ask the farmer, it's probably just as well to… Read More

• Dime bag

  Ten reader food quandaries solved! 3

  Posted 9 months, 3 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

  Dear Checkout Line readers,

  You know how those languishing items on your to-do list start to gnaw at you like -- I don't know, like something that gnaws? Well, my backlog of Checkout Line reader questions is really bugging me, especially as it becomes clearer that I won't be able to respond to each and every one of you (especially you) who was kind enough to write to me. I lay part of the blame on my assistant, who can't make coffee or type but instead eats rawhides… Read More

• Lean, green eating machine

  How to maintain a green, healthy diet on a budget 17

  Posted 10 months ago by Lou Bendrick

  Dear Lou,

  With the economic crunch, how is it going to be possible to afford healthy foods for my family, especially organics? It's not like I can go foraging in the medians of the major roadways.

  Karl from Southern California

    Read More

• Why conventional popcorn sucks, and what you can do about it 20

  Posted 10 months, 2 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

• Not all fermented dairy products are created equal 5

  Posted 11 months, 2 weeks ago by Lou Bendrick

• Test-tube flesh, coming soon to a hot dog near you 15

  Posted 12 months ago by Lou Bendrick

• The dirt on biodynamic and ‘authentic’ wines 7

  Posted 1 year ago by Lou Bendrick

• Smaller breasts are better, and other advice for holiday-bird quandaries 28

  Posted 1 year ago by Lou Bendrick

• The surprising benefits of seasonal eating 9

  Posted 1 year, 1 month ago by Lou Bendrick

• Is organic pet food worth the trouble? 12

  Posted 1 year, 1 month ago by Lou Bendrick

• Will chocolate replace coffee as the foodie’s bean of obsession? 1

  Posted 1 year, 2 months ago by Lou Bendrick

• What’s so eco about all those eco-meat labels? 15

  Posted 1 year, 2 months ago by Lou Bendrick

• Why freezer burn matters, and how to avoid it 5

  Posted 1 year, 3 months ago by Lou Bendrick

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