Tasty Tidbits

• Is anyone surprised? Two thirds of workers bemoan the difficulty in maintaining health eating habits at work. A new survey by Peapod Business Delivery (owned by grocery chain Ahold) had only 7% of respondents eating healthier at work than at home, with 50% saying temptation in the office was their biggest obstacle to a healthy work diet. The #1 option sought by workers is fresh produce, while on 36% of those surveyed said their workplaces offered that option.

• The Wall Street Journal has reported that Nestlé “refused to give [FDA] inspectors access to pest-control records, environmental-testing programs and other information.” The company is currently under investigation because of e. Coli showing up in its Toll House cookie dough. Industry insiders insist companies are not required by law to give inspectors this information, and therefore Nestlé practice isn’t out-of-line with the food industry.

• While the survey size was small (less than 150), a study by Givaudan and the National Institute for Health shows a small difference in the perception of “sweet” depending on one’s race. It is difficult to know, however, whether the differences are genetic or cultural. Cognac makers, for example, have long sweetened their products exported to Hong Kong, where the custom was to mix the alcoholic aperitif with orange soda.

• A new trend in QSRs is selling wine or other alcoholic beverages.

• A roster of well-known and obscure fast casual restaurants got the highest ratings from Parents magazine: Cosi was first, followed by Jason’s Deli, Noodles & Company, Fazoli’s, Panera Bread, ZPizza, Atlanta Bread Co., Corner Bakery Café, Taco Del Mar, and McAlister’s Deli.

• Scientists from Texas have completed the mapping of the melon genome, opening up possibilities for sweeter or more nutritious fruits. European scientists, from France and Spain, had previously succeeded in mapping two unconnected sections of the melon DNA sequence.

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