New York City has been waging a war on salt for a while, offering up statistics showing that we're mostly depraved saltaholics. Reiterating this point for the United Nations, Department of Health Commissioner Thomas Farley says, "Having a high-salt diet really does substantially increase your risk of heart disease and stroke," noting that 1,000 New Yorkers die every year from a high-salt diet. However, 500 of those deaths could be prevented if people just ate more fruits and vegetables. more ›

A Florida family is "fuming" over a $300 fine they received after they got caught bringing an apple, a tomato, and three cucumbers from Israel through Newark Liberty Airport on Thursday. CBS 2 reports that Suri and Peter Steinberger are "livid" over the incident, which they chalk up to an honest mistake. When preparing for the long flight home from Israel, Mrs. Steinberger put the produce into her son's backpack as a snack, reasoning, "Let them eat it on the plane instead of eating garbage." But she didn't tell her husband about it, and for some mysterious reason the boys never ate those raw cucumbers or the fruit! more ›

Kraft has started sneaking powdered vegetables into their classic macaroni and cheese in an attempt to get kids to eat healthier, company reps announced, a move that has some health advocates riled up. more ›

For years, the Bloomberg administration has tried to increase access to fresh produce in low-income neighborhoods across NYC. In 2007, the city promised 1,500 new permits to vendors who commit to selling fresh fruits and vegetables from carts in low-income neighborhoods, but results were somewhat disappointing. To make matters worse, community farmers markets—not to be confused with larger operations like the Union Square Market, which are run by the non-profit Greenmarket—face a tangle of red tape that has kept fresh produce out of under-served neighborhoods. With supermarkets steadily disappearing in low-income areas, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer wants the city to make it easier for farmers markets to thrive. more ›

Airplane tantrums aren't just for disgruntled employees and Ivana Trump: a cranky vegetarian on a Newark-bound Continental Airlines flight yesterday became agitated when she was served the wrong in-flight food. So she decided to handle it the mature way, and write a complaint to the airline company threw her food tray at a flight attendant in the midst of a self-absorbed tempter tantrum. more ›

The Truck Farm got some stready press during the summer months, and the Bed-Stuy blog just spotted it, still spurting out produce even though the days are getting shorter, darker and colder. They report back: "Looks like they had a hearty crop of tomatoes and peppers, along with a couple of other veg I could not immediately identify. I was tempted to pick, but I didn’t!" If one did want to pick at it, however, the Truck Farm is also a CSA of sorts—for just 20 bucks you can get your own little piece of the patch in the Dodge Ram. There's a video intro to the project after the jump, and more info at Wicked Delicate, who created the movable farm. more ›

With rooftop farms all the rage right now, it's nice to see the eco-trend has even made it over to the South Bronx. We're told "a new state of the art affordable housing complex planned for the South Bronx will feature a 10,000 square feet (930 sq meters) fully integrated rooftop farm. The greenhouse will use left-over heat from the residential portion of the building and water harvested from the greenhouse roof. The farm will be used to provide fresh, perishable vegetables to a local non-profit food cooperative." All in all, the farm will supply enough produce to meet the annual veggie needs of up to 450 people! A great thing in any neighborhood, but particularly the South Bronx, which we're told "suffers from food deserts, where residents lack access to fresh vegetables at affordable prices." Learn more about the urban farm here; that's one step closer to becoming the urban farming capital of the world! more ›

Vendors at the Hunts Point wholesale produce market, located on 125 acres of city-owned land in the South Bronx, have said they will consider leaving the site for points “north or west” because the city is not cooperating with their expansion needs. According to the AP, the market supplies 3.3 billion pounds of fruits and vegetables a year, mostly to restaurants and small grocers. more ›

An effort to get more fresh fruit and vegetables into the hands of poorer and allegedly under-served communities is being fought today by bodega and supermarket owners, who feel that a proposed 1,500 new street vendor licenses will cut into their business. Backers of the new licenses include City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Mayor Bloomberg, who cooperated in introducing the "Green Cart" plan, which will issue licenses to vendors who commit to serving fresh fruit and vegetables in poorer communities. more ›

Moving can take a real toll on the environment. Think of all the cardboard boxes, the truck(s), the frequent opening of doors to climate-controlled rooms and the products and solutions you use to clean the whole place down for the next tenants because you're an awesome person bucking for canonization. Step one on reducing your impact -- the easiest step -- is recycling. And it's not too hard to find earth-friendly cleaning products. But... more ›