Food loss at the retail and consumer levels in the United States includes 14.8 billion pounds of fruit and 23.4 billion pounds of vegetables, valued at $15.1 billion and $27.7 billion, respectively, in 2008 retail market prices. The total value of these losses is $42.8 billion per year, or roughly $141 per capita. To most efficiently reduce the annual food loss, it may be beneficial to focus efforts on the four fruits (fresh apples, grapes, peaches and strawberries) and four vegetables (fresh and canned tomatoes and fresh and frozen potatoes) that have the greatest amount of loss.
The aims of this study were, first, to examine the metabolic consequences for female rats of having unrestricted access to 10% sucrose solution and, second, to test for effects of this dietary intervention on their offspring. In Stage 1 females were mated following a 4-week period in which one group was given the sucrose in addition to their normal chow and a control group was given chow and water only. Sucrose was removed at parturition and the pups monitored until weaning. Despite the development of glucose intolerance in sucrose-fed mothers, no effects were detected on litter size or pup weights. In Stage 2 voluntary activity of offspring was assessed over postnatal days (PND) 51-60 and their glucose tolerance measured at PND89-94. Again no effect of maternal diet was detected. Only male offspring were used in Stage 3, which began when they were 13 weeks old. Four groups were given 10% sucrose solution for 48 days in a 2 x 2 design, in which one factor was maternal diet and the other was whether they were given 2-h access to an activity wheel on alternate days. Higher fasting glucose levels were found in offspring of sugar-fed mothers. Exercise increased insulin sensitivity in these rats but not in offspring of control mothers. Behavioural measures of memory in Stage 3 did not reveal any effects of maternal diet or exercise. Overall, this study suggested that, while providing 10% sucrose solution ad-libitum was sufficient to impair maternal metabolism, the impact of this dietary manipulation on offspring may be revealed only when the offspring’s diet is similarly manipulated.
Retail sales of fluid cow’s milk are decreasing while those of plant-based milk analogues are increasing. In this study, we model the relationship between households’ purchases of both types of products and perform simulations. Results show that growing consumer demand for plant-based products is causing cow’s milk sales to decline somewhat faster than otherwise. However, plant-based products are not a primary driver of sales trends for cow’s milk. The decline in cow’s milk sales is substantially greater than the rise in sales of plant-based analogues.
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