food science

8 Stories

It's Not 'Lab Meat,' It's 'Clean Food'

Industry behind lab-grown foods is lauding their efficiency and sustainability

(Newser) - If meat grown by scientists using stem cells in a lab doesn't sound terribly appetizing, consider the perks: It's more sustainable, it doesn't involve killing any animals, and it uses less energy than growing real animals to butcher. So the industry behind so-called "in vitro" meat...

Why Chopping Onions Makes You Cry

Slicing into one is the equivalent of attacking it, and they want us to stop

(Newser) - Onions are notorious for making us weep, but why? Scientists say they now have a pretty good understanding of what's going on, reports NPR in an interview with chemist and author Eric Block. It turns out the vegetable has "evolved a chemical defense system" in an attempt to...

Science Explains Why Mozzarella Is Best for Pizza

It both bubbles and browns better than other cheese

(Newser) - In what sounds like the best middle school science project ever, mozzarella has been put to the test against several other cheeses on pizza and declared the best. But scientists in New Zealand got to work with more than just poster board; they used fancy cameras and software to study...

Fried Food Doesn't Cause Heart Attacks
 Fried Food Doesn't 
 Cause Heart Attacks 
New Study

Fried Food Doesn't Cause Heart Attacks

...Assuming it's fried in olive oil or sunflower oil

(Newser) - Good news grease lovers: Fry your food right, and you might not die of a heart attack after all. A new study in the British Medical Journal has upended conventional wisdom by finding no correlation between how often participants ate fried foods and how likely they were to develop heart...

'Fat Tax' Is Really a Poor Tax
 'Fat Tax' Is Really 
 a Poor Tax 
OPINION

'Fat Tax' Is Really a Poor Tax

(Newser) - With Congress contemplating a trillion dollar health care bill, the idea of the “fat tax” has come back into vogue as a way to slim down Americans. Supporters say junk food is every bit the addictive drug that cigarettes are, designed by food scientists to be “hyperpalatable,”...

NASA Cooks Up New Chow for Mars Mission

(Newser) - Of all the hurdles NASA must overcome in order to reach its goal of getting humans to Mars by 2030, keeping the astronauts fed may be one of the most challenging, the Los Angeles Times reports. The agency’s food scientist must devise meals that are light and nutritious and...

New Chocolate Has 90% Fewer Calories, Doesn't Melt

(Newser) - A mistake in the labs of the world's largest chocolate producer inadvertently led researchers to the ultimate in confectionery: a recipe that's not only heat-resistant, but that contains 90% fewer calories than normal chocolate. Food engineers fooling around at Barry Callebaut, which makes products for Nestlé and Cadbury, ended up...

Finally, a 'Leak-Proof' Tomato
 Finally, a 'Leak-Proof' Tomato  

Finally, a 'Leak-Proof' Tomato

(Newser) - Dutch scientists say they've built a better tomato, ABC News reports. The “Intense” variety is being heralded as “leak-proof” and an end to soggy sandwiches by Tesco, the British supermarket chain that will sell it. The tomato—the result of a Dutch seed-breeding program—leaks virtually none of...

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