U.S. Department of Agriculture

Minneapolis has one of the nicest tree canopies in the country, U.S. Forest Service study says

It's impossible to appreciate this time of year, but if you're sick of winter, here's a comforting thought -- in just a few months, we'll again be enjoying one of America's finest tree canopies!SEE ALSO: North Siders upset about city of Minneapolis's tree-planting tornado commemoration According to ... More >>

Allen Quist ignores facts, alleges food stamp program discriminates against married couples

SEE ALSO:-- Allen Quist flip-flops about his research in a Mankato "anonymous sodomy" adult bookstore-- Allen Quist under renewed fire for 'men are genetically predisposed to lead family' remarkWith his gaffe-fest primary against Mike Parry in the rear-view mirror, you might've expected Republican U ... More >>

10 percent of Minnesota households worry about putting food on the table

SEE ALSO:- Minnesota is the state of the future, Gallup says - Minnesota has put on a few pounds, per latest national fat survey Here's the good news: Minnesotans have more access to enough food than most Americans. The bad news: 1 in 10 households in the state still worry about putting fo ... More >>

Lake Delton's expensive dye job investigated by state of Wisconsin

See also:Wisconsin's Lake Delton gets a very expensive dye jobLast month, the Wisconsin village of Lake Delton decided to give their lake of the same name a very expensive dye job, using $29,108 in taxpayer dollars to change the lake's color from scuzzy green to shimmering blue.Now, the Wisconsin st ... More >>

Minnesota Cheese Festival founder says wheels are turning for June 3 event

Minnesota is known for lots of things. Lakes, casseroles, and an intentional lack of eye contact immediately come to mind. What Minnesota in not particularly known for is cheese. That's been the hallmark of our neighbors to the east since the borders were drawn. Whitney McChane is on a one ... More >>

FrozBroz ice cream venture begins fundraising

​How would you like a double scoop of vodka, blueberry, and basil ice cream? What about a small dish of luscious goat cheese ice cream spiked with black pepper grape syrup, studded with salty, crispy pita chips? The FrozBroz can hook you up. Erik Powers and Ben Solberg began their new enterprise a ... More >>

Mary Franson, MNGOP Rep., compares food stamp recipients to wild animals [VIDEO]

​In a video that was posted to the official YouTube channel for the MNGOP House caucus, Rep. Mary Franson, R-Alexandria, compares food stamp recipients to wild animals. She later tweeted an apology for her comments and had the video removed, but the clip, embedded below, is preserved in the fossil ... More >>

Cooperatives Working Together uses herd retirement to fix milk prices

A half-million cows were worth more dead than alive, and now we're all paying the price

Top 5 weird food stories of the week: Nov. 13-18

Psychobizket/Photobucket Not pictured: good senseBacon. The smoky, crispy siren/muse that inspires such devotion that inventors have created bacon-flavored mayonnaise, dental floss, breath mints, and even soda.  Is there anything it can't do? Well, turns out there's definitely s ... More >>

50 Cent Lil Wayne Beef: Fiddy rips Weezy for skateboarding, hot pants

​50 Cent attacks Lil Wayne on a new track, "Love, Hate, Love," which also takes a swipe at former G-Unit member Game.Fiddy has long been known for his takedown tracks -- he became famous with "How to Rob," which took on just about every rapper in the game, and famously feuded with Ja Rule.Sure, a ... More >>

Cargill recalls tainted turkey

Check your 'fridge and freezer for recalled Cargill ground turkey products. ​Salmonella is scary stuff. An antibiotic-resistant strain of salmonella? Even scarier. One of such dangerous bugs has has killed one person and sickened 77 others in the past several months and is believed to have co ... More >>

St. Paul corner market charged with $3 million in food stamp fraud

The site of the food stamp fraud.​The owner of a small St. Paul corner market has been charged by the federal government with $3 million in food stamp fraud, the Pioneer Press reports. Agents at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Inspector General became suspicious after noticing ... More >>

Top 5 most controversial food laws

Public Enemy No. 1​ This week a committee of the Minnesota House made national news when it passed the so-called cheeseburger bill, a proposed law that would prevent fat people from suing the fast-food industry over their health problems caused by scarfing too much fatty food and soda. The Pe ... More >>

Scientist trying to grow meat in a lab--to keep cows off spaceships?

We prefer grass-fed...​At the Medical University of South Carolina, Vladimir Mironov, an M.D. and Ph.D, is trying hard to grow meat. Yes, you read that right--he's bioengineering the stuff--or at this point, animal skeletal muscle tissue--in a small lab in Charleston at the school. According to an ... More >>

Raw milk: Sens. Nienow, Dahms, and Robling want easier access

kthread on FlickrRaw Milk: some lawmakers want more of it​State senators Sean Nienow, Gary Dahms, and Claire Robling are pushing legislation to make raw milk more widely available in Minnesota, even though the state health department says drinking it poses a serious health risk. The bill would al ... More >>

Kindred Kitchen gets food entrepreneurs cooking in North Minneapolis

Andy LienOn the boulevard of burgeoning dreams​On West Broadway a new business venture is fostering foodie dreams and hope for a revitalized neighborhood.  On November 11 the Kindred Kitchen officially opened as a community resource for people hoping to begin or grow their own food businesses ... More >>

Michele Bachmann: Black farmers are frauds

Bachmann says black farmers are conspiring for a free handout.​Michele Bachmann, whose family has willingly accepted federal farm payments, wants to make sure that some black farmers don't get theirs, because they don't deserve it. In a settlement known as Pigford II, blacks denied federal lo ... More >>

USDA report says nearly 15% of U.S. homes worry about food

Global X / FlickrMinnesota's food insecurity is better than average but getting worse​Nearly 15% of American households are "food insecure"--meaning they had to worry about having enough food to eat last year, used government or community food programs, or sometimes went hungry, according to a ... More >>

Tim Pawlenty loves federal spending (on flood relief)

Suddenly loving federal cash.​Yesterday, Gov. Tim Pawlenty was loving federal spending. Not the kind to help all Minnesotans with their health care costs, however. Just the kind to help southern Minnesota recover from floods. The former isn't a priority, he says. He won't even allow state a ... More >>

Canning tips from a U of M food science educator

U of M ExtensionCanning is not cooking: It's more serious business.​With the season for fresh fruits and vegetables on its way out, Hot Dish wanted to find out more about produce preservation and touched base with Suzanne Driessen, a Food Science Extension Educator with the University of Minne ... More >>

Al Franken declares Minnesota sweet corn the best in the world

Senator Franken sans ear of corn​Minnesota Senator Al Franken may spend most of his time in D.C., but his mind is often on the state's food: getting it to needy children, pumping up farmers markets, and even bragging about the sweetness of our corn.

Wikipedia says Ramsey mayor rapes pigs and eats them

photo: US Dept. of Agriculture​You can learn a lot from Wikipedia. Take the site's page on Ramsey, Minnesota: did you know that the city has an area of 29.7 square miles and a population of more than 27,000 people? No?Well maybe you were aware of this?The current mayor of Ramsey rapes pigs, ea ... More >>

Peter Dziuk charged after McVeigh-like bomb threat

Photo: banspy​The anniversary of Timothy McVeigh's terrorist attack in Oklahoma City has come and gone without incident, but Peter Dziuk is being held in the Hennepin County jail this morning after being charged with making terroristic threats bearing an erie similarity to McVeigh's plot. The ... More >>

Keith Ellison introduces bill to ban Atrazine

​It's Earth Day, and Rep. Keith Ellison is taking note by announcing that he's introducing a House bill to ban a herbicide that's long been the target of environmentalists: Atrazine. The news comes ahead of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Scientific Advisory Panel meeting next week tha ... More >>

The Humane Society and big agriculture slug it out over animal rights

Il Gatto replaces Figlio in Uptown

It's a slick operation, but too many dishes disappoint

Crop subsidy data suggests Michele Bachmann is a welfare queen

As Michele Bachmann rails against government handouts, some of her critics point out she's feeding at the government trough.

Get Crpyhy's Jimmy 2 Times and Plain Ole' Bill get iPod 'jacked

It's time to get hacked, boys.

Target, high school streakers, and swine offend everybody

Minnesota corporation mistakenly sells "Illegal Alien" costume

Wisconsin dairy farmers feeling downturn in milk prices

Wisconsin, with the most dairy farms in the United States, is feeling some hurt from the global decline in demand for milk.

Long Cheng livestock market slays your meal in front of you

St. Paul slaughterhouse lets you watch as your dinner is butchered

NYC Hebrew school sparking debates similar to Minn. Arabic school

Tuesday's five most fascinating stories printed on wood pulp.

Reporter's Notebook: Salmonella Saintpaul

The best way to help animals may be to eat them

Why compassionate carnivorism just might work better than going vegetarian

Letters to the Editor

Readers respond to Best of the Twin Cities

Govt stifles growth of local food

Sucked Dry

In the rush to cash in on ethanol, the Midwest might be giving away its greatest natural resource

Meat Is Murder

Minnesota beef industries falls on lean times

Land of the Turd Brown Waters

Pawlenty talks green, but will he pay the tab?

117 Is The Magic Number

St. Paul cheesecake baker Muddy Paws aims for world supremacy, one flavor at a time

A Rice by Any Other Name

The University of Minnesota's genetic research on wild rice goes against the grain

Seeds of Dissent

Is the debate over genetically modified crops being nipped in the bud at the state capitol?

Give the People Bread

Back to the Root

Let Them Eat Sludge Cake

A new plan for disposing of metro-area sewage has critics crying foul

Animal Attraction

Suddenly Saddam

It should be remembered that the first plant Saddam used to make chemical weapons was built by the American multinational Bechtel with money supplied by the U.S. Agriculture Department.

Hemp and Hype

Will anti-drug hysteria give way to the lust of profit?

The Risky Business of Living

Strawberry Fields Forever

Clinton's Love Affair with a Deadly Gas