Save Our Bacon

Everyone seems to agree that Mitt Romney needs to turn his campaign around. Here's my idea, Mr. Romney: pledge to form a special taskforce on day one of your presidency to tackle the imminent worldwide bacon shortage.



Right after you repeal Obamacare, of course.

The amusingly named British Pig Association was warned that droughts and higher feed prices have made a global pork/bacon shortage and resulting price increase "unavoidable." The paucity of pork will be more noticeable in Europe. The USDA has predicted that pork production will be down 1.3 percent next year.

If the bacon shortage proves to be unavoidable, here are some survival tweets.

Brown Bag Rebels

"Exciting changes" have come to school cafeterias. Just ask the First Lady. In a back-to-school video message, Mrs. Obama tells students, “Starting this year, the talented people who cook the food at your school will be offering all kinds of healthy, delicious new choices.  Foods that are good for you and that taste good, too.”

“These healthy foods are good for your body, they’ll give you energy and make you stronger and they’re also good for your mind,” she says.

But in spite of all the First Lady has done for them, some high school students in Pittsburgh have unleashed a Twitter protest (I know, that doesn't sound like a very fierce protest) to complain about paying more money for less food which doesn't taste good and doesn't give them the energy they need. "If you're working with 650 calories for a meal, and 140 comes from a milk and 70 comes from fruit because fruit is now mandated ... you've only got a small amount left for the protein, the bread and the vegetable," the district's food service director Maryann Lazzaro is quoted as saying.

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) has jumped on the issue by introducing legislation to repeal the new cafeteria calorie cap. "For the first time in history, the USDA has set a calorie limit on school lunches," King said last week. "The goal of the school lunch program was — and is — to insure students receive enough nutrition to be healthy and to learn.

"The misguided nanny state, as advanced by Michelle Obama's 'Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act,' was interpreted by Secretary [Tom] Vilsack to be a directive that, because some kids are overweight, he would put every child on a diet." Rep. King explains the mentality of the First Lady and the food police very well. In her all-encompassing fat-fighting zeal, Mrs. Obama either fails or refuses to recognize that athletes, soldiers, and active teens can healthily handle more calories than the rest of us.

Romney vs. Obama on Food Policy

Romney says government shouldn't dictate what Americans eat. Obama says it should do more.

This blog has posted a lot words about what life for food producers and consumers has been like under the Obama Administration. Would a Romney Administration be much different? The two campaigns' responses to a Food policy questionnaire from the United Fresh Produce Association give us a few revealing answers.

Both Obama and Romney acknowledged the importance of food safety and the need to make American farmers more competitive globally. Both also said it's important to keep regulatory burdens to a minimum but Obama does not have a lot of credibility in that department, considering the impact of regulation on fisheries, ranchers and farmers.

"Food safety aside," writes Food Safety News, "these campaigns had wildly different responses to United Fresh's question on whether or not their administration would build upon the current efforts to boost fruit and vegetable consumption or support a change in 'nutrition strategy' for the country."

Romney's three-sentence response includes the statement: "The federal government should not dictate what every American eats." After nearly four years of reign of Michelle the Food Queen, how refreshing is that?

The President's response says: "I am proud of Michelle's 'Let's Move Salad Bars to Schools' initiative, the USDA's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable (Snack) program for schools, the USDA's My Plate campaign, and other programs that are improving the nutrition of our nation."

"But there is still more that can be done," the response continues. "In partnership with the private sector, we need to continue encouraging schools to promote healthy eating and ensuring students are offered food and vegetables every day of the week, educating Americans about the benefits of fruits and vegetables, supporting regional food hubs and the establishment of grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods, and researching effective ways to promote healthier food choices."

Note that Obama's answer is three paragraphs versus Romney's three sentences. Even on paper, Obama is long-winded and loves the word "I" (obviously he didn't write the response himself). Also note the inclusion of "the establishment of grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods," i.e. the debunked food desert theory. Even the liberal media has acknowledged the evidence that so-called 'underserved areas' have plenty of places to buy produce.

So now we have a taste for Gov. Romney's food policy views, but what does he personally like to eat? He has a reputation as a healthy-lifestyle guy, which explains some of his quirky eating habits. Romney likes to eat KFC, but without the skin. This might be a Romney version of a scandal: Clinton tried pot but didn't inhale; Romney ate KFC but not the skin. Clinton's successor in Arkansas Mike Huckabee mocked this chicken habit and even thought it would win him more votes in the South during the 2008 election. On the other hand, if Romney gets elected, his KFC love could help him find some common ground with Nancy Pelosi.

Romney reportedly also likes to eat pizza with the cheese, which seems weird and even a little wrong, but this hasn't strained his relationship with Papa John's. Politico also reported that Romney's typical dinner consists of "turkey breast, rice, and broccoli, chased by water or maybe a Diet Coke."

 

Donut lovers may be disturbed to hear that Mitt once failed to correctly identify donuts when asking his staff to buy some as a road snack. Yes, I find this a little strange, but not a deal-breaker. Romney may not be able to always recognize donuts but at least it sounds like he wouldn't try to outlaw them.

(Hat tip to foodsafetynews.com and supermarketnews.com)

'Campaign Trail Mix'

President Obama's conspicuous efforts to eat and drink like an average American guy are clashing with his wife's mission to overhaul the nation's school cafeterias, mess halls, and restaurants.



Obama is trying hard to come across as a regular guy on the campaign trail, but regular-guy food isn't the healthiest. As Republican fitness buff/veep candidate Paul Ryan has noted, "They don’t make asparagus donuts."

(Cartoon by Jerry Holbert)

Barack's Brew

In this election year, with the country facing a bad economy, natural disasters, high unemployment, and the threat of Iran going nuclear, President Obama is making headlines by releasing by an important document ...
... the White House beer recipe.

Beer recipe: yes. Student records: no.

So is Obama aiming for the small-but-critical microbrewer vote? Is this just a publicity stunt? I think the Obama campaign is giving the press a lighthearted story that subtly helps the President's image.

In the last presidential election, Newsweek compared the choice to beer and arugula, with beer representing McCain/Palin and Obama representing arugula. The President has struggled to come across as a "regular guy," even when his political star was on the rise. He has even seemed foreign to many people (the Birtherism movement being the extreme manifestation of this view). Obama sees his chance to be seen as the "beer candidate" this time around.

The Republican nominee, Mitt Romney, is an observant Mormon who does not drink alcohol. He won't be releasing a beer recipe if he becomes President. Obama knows that few people will actually try to make the White House beer, but publicizing the recipe makes him seem to voters like a guy they could sit and have a beer with, and what sounds more all-American than that?

9/4 Update: Obama gave a free case of White House ale to firefighters in Norfolk. Maybe he can be a beer pitchman if this reelection thing doesn't work out.