food

Wednesday June 7, 2017

Illustration by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Hamilton’s Food Coat of Arms
Go Section, Wednesday June 7, 2017

Hamilton’s Food Coat of Arms

Anyone who meets me can tell I’m the sort of person who probably over indulges with food which may not necessarily be very the healthy. I love fried chicken and chips, smokey bbq’d pork, and grilled rib steak. My brain is wired to be stimulated regularly by taste bud receptors being in contact with cuisine flavours from around the world i.e.: coconut green curry, garam masala, chimichurri, pesto, Rending, Balsamic vinegar, tarragon and so on.

August 15, 2015

So when I was asked to illustrate a story on my hometown foods I was more than delighted to offer my service. Almost all of the foods follow in the tradition of being old favourites of this one time lunchbox city as chosen by Spectator readers. I’m certainly not one to stick my nose up at a maple dipped donut, roast beef on a bun or rotisserie chicken – admittedly, as a one time butcher, I’m not so fond of wiener meat found in hot dogs. Many of these classics go back decades in Hamilton and back in August of 2015, I illustrated another story which embraced the nostalgia of this city’s restaurant history.

Some people have pointed out that there’s no real healthy food on this current list. As if foods like kale and flax seed haven’t gotten enough coverage in recent years, we’re talking about favourite local foods in this story as voted by readers!

I think a glaring omission is the ever increasing availability of delicious ethic foods in Hamilton, particularly from Asia. Yes, there’s good representation from Italy with our love of pizza, and sausage, and wieners, and Kielbasa from Eastern Europe. But what about pho, vindaloo, tacos, and orange beef? Pardon this glaring endorsement, but I have eaten Indian food all over the world but nothing, and I mean nothing, comes close to the quality and yumminess served up at India Village in Dundas. You read about more of my local hits (and misses) through my TripAdvisor review account.

Perhaps this poll of favourite eats in Hamilton represents more of an older, nostalgic audience of locals. My bet is if a poll is taken a few years from now the sausages of this city will be in for a bigger challenge from the sushis.

Thursday March 9, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday March 9, 2017

DRESCHEL: Skelly places free city hall lunches on council’s plate

Free lunches are back on the political menu at city hall.

March 10, 2011

The hot button issue has been back-burnered since 2011 when The Spectator revealed the city spends about $33,000 a year on free sandwiches, pizza, cookies, and coffee and tea for councillors and senior staffers who meet over the lunch hour.

But this week Coun. Donna Skelly applied fresh grease to the question of whether the freebies are appropriate by asking if there’s a financial argument in favour of the practice.

Finance general manger Mike Zegarac responded that the free grub is provided to avoid interrupting committee meetings by breaking for lunch.

Skelly’s interest was triggered by a letter in The Spec which suggested that, given the city’s “budget crisis,” the lunch money should be directed to the Poverty Roundtable’s request for a $30,000 funding increase.

“I certainly wouldn’t want us to be accused to taking advantages of this when we’re talking about budget challenges,” Skelly said.

Coun. Brenda Johnson chimed in that councillors were previously told that free working lunches made sense because breaking for lunch leads to staff overtime costs.

“I’m all for let’s look at this again,” Johnson said, adding a review needs to include the impact on the tax levy if the freebies are stopped.

For his part, Mayor Fred Eisenberger says he’s willing to consider “reasonable alternatives” such as councillors offering to contribute money to offset the cost of the feed bags.

But Eisenberger says in the big picture it’s “really kind of nickel and diming.” People need sustenance to get through long, uninterrupted meetings, he says. (Continued: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Friday March 3, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator  – Friday March 3, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday March 3, 2017

Subway defends its chicken after CBC Marketplace report

Subway stands behind its chicken.

The sandwich chain is disputing the findings of a CBC Marketplace investigation into fast food chicken. While most of the samples were found to contain close to 100 per cent chicken DNA, Subway sandwiches contained substantially less than the other chains. Tests showed an average of 53.6 per cent chicken DNA for the oven-roasted chicken and 42.8 per cent for the chicken strips.

The story has garnered worldwide attention, and raised questions about how much chicken should be in a chicken sandwich.

Subway says the report was “absolutely false and misleading,” and demanded it be retracted. The Associated Press reported Tuesday that the chain says its sandwiches contain 100 per cent white meat with seasonings, although the ingredient list it provided to CBC News lists soy protein as a component of the company’s chicken.

Marketplace stands by its report and is releasing the Subway test results as well as additional detail about the methodology and investigation. (Continued: CBC News) 

 

Thursday December 8, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Thursday December 8, 2016 Families could pay up to $420 more for food in 2017, report finds The average Canadian family may need to dish out as much as $420 more for food next year Ñ and consumers could have president-elect Donald Trump to thank for part of the price bump, the lead author of a new report says. Canada's Food Price Report, published by researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax, was released Monday evening. The annual report, which looks ahead to 2017, cites weather disruptions caused by La Nina, energy-related costs Ñ including the potential effect of carbon pricing on the agricultural sector Ñ and a weak Canadian dollar as factors in the expected price hikes. Economists forecast the loonieÊcould fall as low as 70 cents US in 2017, and a weaker dollar would reduce the buying power of importers. "Everything we actually import from everywhere will increase in price," says Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the report. But Charlebois, who works with the faculties of management and agriculture at Dalhousie, suggests there's one more major factor that could contribute to the increase in food prices: the incoming U.S. President. "We are expecting Canadian shoppers to be Trumped at the grocery store," said Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the report. The annual report, which has come from the University of Guelph in years past, says the "proverbial sweet spot for food inflation" is between one and two per cent each year.ÊÊAt that rate, the increases are manageable for restaurateurs, grocery stores and consumers, the authors say. The latest report looks forward to 2017 and finds that food prices could increase between three per cent and five per cent Ñ with meat, vegetables, fish and other seafood projected to jump by as much as four to six per cent. Regionally, Ontario and British Columbia are expected to see most of the increases. (Source: CBC)Êhttp://www.cbc.ca/news/business/food

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday December 8, 2016

Families could pay up to $420 more for food in 2017, report finds

The average Canadian family may need to dish out as much as $420 more for food next year — and consumers could have president-elect Donald Trump to thank for part of the price bump, the lead author of a new report says.

Friday December 11, 2015 Payday loan industry comes under microscope The province is moving to protect vulnerable people from cash stores and collections agencies Ñ but a local councillor calls the efforts "half-hearted." If passed, new legislation by the Ontario government promises to increase protections under the Payday Loans Act, Consumer Protection Act and the Collection and Debt Settlement Services Act. The aim is to provide safeguards such as a cap on the rates charged by cheque-cashing services, a grace period for repayment for customers of rent-to-own services and reasonable costs for optional insurance on instalment loans. It would also offer longer repayment periods for repeat payday loan borrowers, and expanded rules against unfair collection practices from businesses that purchase and collect overdue debts. But Ward 3 Coun. Matthew Green says the legislation "doesn't go nearly far enough in terms of really tackling the core elements and the predatory nature of this industry." There are 813 licensed payday lenders in Ontario Ñ more than there are McDonalds restaurants. Roughly 35 of those are in Hamilton, according to the ministry's online database. For starters, Green wants to see the "ridiculous" interest rates on payday loans slashed. Green put forward a motion this summer to limit and regulate these stores at a municipal level, which would have made Hamilton the first city in the province to do so. Staff is now looking into the feasibility of that. In the meantime, he and a working group made up of local agencies, including credit unions, are actively researching a model for a market alternative low-cost loan service. Tom Cooper, director of Hamilton's Roundtable for Poverty Reduction (HRPR), says he'd like to see provincial legislation that enables municipalities to license lenders at the local level. He agrees there's more work to do on this. "At the end of the day É these services are predatory by nature and they'll continue to take a

December 11, 2015

Canada’s Food Price Report, published by researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax, was released Monday evening.

The annual report, which looks ahead to 2017, cites weather disruptions caused by La Nina, energy-related costs — including the potential effect of carbon pricing on the agricultural sector — and a weak Canadian dollar as factors in the expected price hikes.

Economists forecast the loonie could fall as low as 70 cents US in 2017, and a weaker dollar would reduce the buying power of importers.

Friday April 25, 2014“Everything we actually import from everywhere will increase in price,” says Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the report.

But Charlebois, who works with the faculties of management and agriculture at Dalhousie, suggests there’s one more major factor that could contribute to the increase in food prices: the incoming U.S. President.

“We are expecting Canadian shoppers to be Trumped at the grocery store,” said Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the report.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday April 6, 2016 Panama Papers: Document leak exposes global corruption, secrets of the rich The financial secrets of heads of state, athletes, billionaires and drug lords have been exposed in the latest Ñ and biggest ever Ñ leak of records from an offshore tax haven. The leak includes 11.5 million confidential documents shedding light on the assets and murky fiscal dealings of everyone from the prime ministers of Iceland and Pakistan to soccer player Leo Messi, movie star Jackie Chan and associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The records, dating as far back as 1977, come from a little-known but highly influential Panama-based law firm called Mossack Fonseca, which has 500 staff working in 40-plus countries. The firm is one of the world's top creators of shell companies Ñ corporate structures that can be used to hide ownership of assets. German newspaper SŸddeutsche Zeitung obtained the files from a source and shared them with global media partners, including CBC News and the Toronto Star, through the Washington-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. CBC News will be exploring more of what's in the documents, including Canadian connections, in a series of stories this week. "These findings show how deeply ingrained harmful practices and criminality are in the offshore world," said Gabriel Zucman, an economist at the University of California at Berkeley and author of The Hidden Wealth of Nations: The Scourge of Tax Havens. Zucman, who was briefed on the media partners' investigation, said the release of the leaked documents should prompt governments to seek "concrete sanctions" against jurisdictions and institutions that peddle offshore secrecy. While offshore accounts are not in themselves illegal, the leaked records show they are often used to shield illicit dealings. In a written response to questions from the media consortium, Mossack Fonseca said it "do

April 6, 2016

The annual report, which has come from the University of Guelph in years past, says the “proverbial sweet spot for food inflation” is between one and two per cent each year.  At that rate, the increases are manageable for restaurateurs, grocery stores and consumers, the authors say.

The latest report looks forward to 2017 and finds that food prices could increase between three per cent and five per cent — with meat, vegetables, fish and other seafood projected to jump by as much as four to six per cent. Regionally, Ontario and British Columbia are expected to see most of the increases. (Source: CBC)

 

Friday March 18, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Friday March 18, 2016 Loblaws' French's ketchup snub sparks patriotic backlash Loblaws' fleeting decision to stop selling French's ketchup Ñ made from Ontario tomatoes Ñ brought out the patriotic side of Canadian consumers and forced the grocery giant to give the underdog brand a second chance. "In many ways, Loblaws dropping the French's ketchup line has been a huge boost to the brand awareness that French's even makes ketchup," said Tandy Thomas, a Queen's University business professor who specializes in how consumers connect socially with marketing. "Suddenly French's has become the Canadian brand of ketchup in everyone's minds and that's elevated them to a level of awareness that they never had before." Within 24 hours of announcing it would pull the condiment from shelves, public outcry prompted Loblaws to reverse course. Canadians took to social media in droves to pledge loyalty to the ketchup made from tomatoes farmed in Leamington, Ont., a town once known for its Heinz factory before that company pulled up stakes two years ago. In justifying its initial decision to pull the product, Loblaws cited weak sales for French's, which has struggled to penetrate a ketchup market long dominated by Heinz. "When people really think of ketchup, they think of Heinz. Because there is this iconic image behind it, it makes it very difficult for somebody else to come in and be viewed as something that is an equal competitor," Thomas said. "Someone might come in as a lower-priced competitor and people might choose it based on the price, but they still view it as being inferior to Heinz, which is the gold standard for ketchup." But that could change as Canadians claim sides in the ketchup wars. French's has been held up as a saviour in Leamington since announcing in January that it would make all its ketchup from tomatoes farmed in the community, which was plunged into economic turmoil after Heinz shu

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday March 18, 2016

Loblaws’ French’s ketchup snub sparks patriotic backlash

Loblaws’ fleeting decision to stop selling French’s ketchup — made from Ontario tomatoes — brought out the patriotic side of Canadian consumers and forced the grocery giant to give the underdog brand a second chance.

“In many ways, Loblaws dropping the French’s ketchup line has been a huge boost to the brand awareness that French’s even makes ketchup,” said Tandy Thomas, a Queen’s University business professor who specializes in how consumers connect socially with marketing.

“Suddenly French’s has become the Canadian brand of ketchup in everyone’s minds and that’s elevated them to a level of awareness that they never had before.”

Within 24 hours of announcing it would pull the condiment from shelves, public outcry prompted Loblaws to reverse course.

Canadians took to social media in droves to pledge loyalty to the ketchup made from tomatoes farmed in Leamington, Ont., a town once known for its Heinz factory before that company pulled up stakes two years ago.

In justifying its initial decision to pull the product, Loblaws cited weak sales for French’s, which has struggled to penetrate a ketchup market long dominated by Heinz.

March 2003

“When people really think of ketchup, they think of Heinz. Because there is this iconic image behind it, it makes it very difficult for somebody else to come in and be viewed as something that is an equal competitor,” Thomas said.

“Someone might come in as a lower-priced competitor and people might choose it based on the price, but they still view it as being inferior to Heinz, which is the gold standard for ketchup.”

But that could change as Canadians claim sides in the ketchup wars.

French’s has been held up as a saviour in Leamington since announcing in January that it would make all its ketchup from tomatoes farmed in the community, which was plunged into economic turmoil after Heinz shuttered its 106-year-old factory in 2014.

“It’s a national pride kind of thing,” Brian Fernandez, of Orillia, Ont., told CBC News.

His Facebook post singing the praises of the then-little-known product went viral earlier this year, helping to put the brand on the map.

“Canadians are known as passive,” he said. “But I think that’s changing.” (Source: CBC News)