Laura Reiley
Washington Post
Washington, DC, United States
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Past articles by Laura:
States and CDC to track cronobacter cases like other infectious diseases
Bacteria was at the heart of the formula crisis last year in which two babies died and a nationwide shortage took hold. → Read More
New scrutiny for aspartame, one of the world’s most common sweeteners
The World Health Organization is assessing aspartame’s health risks even as the FDA reasserts that it's been proven safe. → Read More
Cell-cultured chicken gets the final green light from USDA
The USDA will allow three companies — Upside Foods, Good Meat and Joinn Biologics — to begin producing and selling lab-grown chicken. It will debut in restaurants. → Read More
USDA aims to tighten ‘humane,' antibiotic-free meat labels
Customers often pay a premium for meat with these labels but the current standards are lax, critics say. → Read More
Milk shake-up: High school student sues school district over dairy flap
A 17-year-old high school student claims her L.A. school violated her rights by telling her to praise cow’s milk, which many of her generation dislike. → Read More
Bacteria linked to tainted infant formula may soon be reportable pathogen
Cronobacter sakazakii, which sickened babies and led to a national formula shortage, would be tracked by the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. → Read More
Biden administration tests vaccines to fight avian flu
Persistence of a virulent strain that has devastated poultry farms and driven up egg prices has sparked alarm → Read More
Moooove over: How single-celled yeasts are doing the work of 1,500-pound cows
Labs have created exact molecular copies of cow dairy. Some are already on shelves and being hailed as a way to reduce harm to cows and reduce dairy’s huge contribution to climate change. → Read More
Valentine’s Day chocolates: ‘Slack-fill’ is the new shrinkflation
Consumer advocates say Valentine’s Day candies may have fallen victim of the deceptive practice of “slack-filling,” where companies deliberately over-package products. → Read More
USDA announces rigorous new school nutrition standards
New rules aimed at reducing sugars, fat and salt and increasing whole grains in school meals are drawing backlash, even as childhood obesity increases. → Read More
USDA moves to crack down on ‘organic’ fraud
Tom Chapman of the Organic Trade Association said the updates are “the single largest revision to the organic standards since they were published in 1990.” → Read More
Schools are swamped by unpaid lunch debt, nutrition group says
School nutrition directors say the end of pandemic-era benefits have deepened financial woes. → Read More
Spending bill funds kids’ summer meals by cutting emergency food stamps
Lawmakers have until the end of Friday to approve the roughly $1.7 trillion omnibus package, which includes more money for summer school meals but cuts pandemic food stamps benefits. → Read More
Scathing report urges major changes at FDA, including possibly breaking up agency
A new report reveals poor leadership and ineptitude among FDA's food safety leadership. → Read More
Vermont’s dairy farms recede, giving way to shrimp, saffron and new ideas
Changing climate and other factors make Vermont staples like milk and maple syrup harder to produce, so a raft of new crops and farm businesses are popping up. → Read More
Alt-meat fever has cooled. Here’s why.
High price, nebulous health benefits and other challenges have hindered the success of plant-based meats. → Read More
It’s not a trick: Your Halloween treats are getting smaller
Halloween candy is getting smaller due to shrinkflation, but also candy companies watching calorie counts. → Read More
The FDA announces a new definition of what’s ‘healthy’
As part of a national strategy released ahead of its Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, the White House wants the FDA to update the nutrition criteria for “healthy” claims on food packages. → Read More
Hurricane Fiona ravages Puerto Rican farms near peak harvest, farmers say
Small farms dot much of the landscape of Puerto Rico. Many have been seriously damaged by Hurricane Fiona. → Read More
The robots are here. And they are making you fries.
Facing a labor shortage, fast-food restaurants are increasingly turning to robots to man the fryer and do other unpopular tasks. → Read More