Dying to Eat

For all Monsanto’s bluster about “feeding the world,” the truth is this: Globally, 3.9 billion people are either hungry or malnuourished, according to ETC Group.

Now, a new global study (billed as the most comprehensive of its kind) says poor diet, which often leads to obesity, kills one in five people.

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, which coordinated the study, said:

One of the most alarming risks in the GBD is excess body weight. The rate of illness related to people being too heavy is rising quickly, and the disease burden can be found in all sociodemographic levels. High body mass index (BMI) is the fourth largest contributor to the loss of healthy life, after high blood pressure, smoking, and high blood sugar.

Who’s to blame for the foods that are killing us? Big Food, mostly.

The New York Times recently reported on the rise of obesity in Ghana, which not coincidentally corresponded to the rising presence in U.S. companies like Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC):

But KFC’s expansion here comes as obesity and related health have been surging. Public health officials see fried chicken, French fries and pizza as spurring and intensifying a global obesity epidemic that has hit hard in Ghana – one of 73 countries where obesity has at least doubled since 1980. Obesity rates have surged more than 650% since 1980 from less than 2% of population to 13.6 percent.

According to the Times, KFC, owned by Louisville, Ky.-owned YUM!, has about 850 outlets throughout sub-Saharan Africa: to Angola, Tanzania, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Ghana and beyond.

Read ‘Poor Diet Kills One in Five of Us

Read ‘The Global Burden of Disease’

h/t: Organic Consumers Association

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KFC plans to use antibiotic-free chicken by 2018

In another victorious move for the public, KFC has announced that it will stop using chickens that were given antibiotics in the U.S. by the end of 2018. [1]

The fried chicken fast-food establishment, which boasts 4,200 restaurants across the country, says it will nix antibiotics from both its boneless and on-the-bone chicken. KFC joins a growing list of fast-food companies that have made food supply changes in response to consumer concerns about health.

KFC said in a statement:

“By the end of 2018, all chicken purchased by KFC in the U.S. will be raised without antibiotics important to human medicine. This includes our chicken tenders and popcorn chicken; but we’re especially proud to be the first major chicken chain to extend this commitment to our bone-in chicken.” [2]

Matt Wellington, a spokesperson for the activist agency Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), says:

“This commitment is a major step forward for public health and could drastically shift the U.S. chicken industry away from overusing our life-saving medicines.” [3]

In 2016, a report by Chain Reaction II, a group of six nonprofit and activist organizations, gave KFC an “F” grade for its antibiotics policies and practices.

Antibiotics are given to farm animals for a variety of reasons, including treating sick livestock. However, farm animals are routinely given drugs to prevent illness and promote growth in filthy, stressful, and cramped conditions. The practice has given rise to antibiotic-resistant superbugs that could potentially send modern medicine back to the Dark Ages.

Despite the threat posed by antibiotic resistance, U.S. sales of medically important antibiotics approved for use in livestock increased by 23% between 2009 and 2014.

In recent years, numerous fast-food chains have either ditched antibiotics or pledged to cease using them in the future, including Wendy’s, Subway, Taco Bell, Chick-fil-A, and McDonald’s.

Sources:

[1] USA Today

[2] Los Angeles Times

[3] CNN Money

Via Natural Society

Featured Image: Mike Mozart/Flickr

Victory: KFC Pledges to Use Antibiotic-Free Chicken by 2018

In another victorious move for the public, KFC has announced that it will stop using chickens that were given antibiotics in the U.S. by the end of 2018. [1]

The fried chicken fast-food establishment, which boasts 4,200 restaurants across the country, says it will nix antibiotics from both its boneless and on-the-bone chicken. KFC joins a growing list of fast-food companies that have made food supply changes in response to consumer concerns about health.

KFC said in a statement:

“By the end of 2018, all chicken purchased by KFC in the U.S. will be raised without antibiotics important to human medicine. This includes our chicken tenders and popcorn chicken; but we’re especially proud to be the first major chicken chain to extend this commitment to our bone-in chicken.” [2]

Matt Wellington, a spokesperson for the activist agency Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), says:

“This commitment is a major step forward for public health and could drastically shift the U.S. chicken industry away from overusing our life-saving medicines.” [3]

In 2016, a report by Chain Reaction II, a group of six nonprofit and activist organizations, gave KFC an “F” grade for its antibiotics policies and practices.

Antibiotics are given to farm animals for a variety of reasons, including treating sick livestock. However, farm animals are routinely given drugs to prevent illness and promote growth in filthy, stressful, and cramped conditions. The practice has given rise to antibiotic-resistant superbugs that could potentially send modern medicine back to the Dark Ages.

Source: CNBC

Despite the threat posed by antibiotic resistance, U.S. sales of medically important antibiotics approved for use in livestock increased by 23% between 2009 and 2014.

In recent years, numerous fast-food chains have either ditched antibiotics or pledged to cease using them in the future, including Wendy’s, Subway, Taco Bell, Chick-fil-A, and McDonald’s.

Sources:

[1] USA Today

[2] Los Angeles Times

[3] CNN Money

CNBC

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About Julie Fidler:
	Julie Fidler is a freelance writer, legal blogger, and the author of Adventures in Holy Matrimony: For Better or the Absolute Worst. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and two ridiculously spoiled cats. She occasionally pontificates on her blog.