A few weeks ago, when I made zucchini blueberry bread with my friends' kids, it was revealed that one of them didn't care much for zucchini in its non-dessert incarnations, seeing as how it was a vegetable and all. So I challenged myself to invent some kid-friendly zucchini dishes to see if I could get him to enjoy it and include it in his list of things he might -- might -- consider eating. Do I have to? Photo: iStockphoto As part of my strategy, I contemplated the things about zucchini that kids might not like, and came to the …

The phrase "luncheon meat in pouches" strikes me as singularly unappetizing -- industrially grown meat, lashed with God-knows-what chemicals, and stuffed into plastic. Even as an industrial-food-scarfing child, the slippery wetness and sketchy pink color of such food always struck me as just wrong (not that it stopped me from digging in). Can't be easy on the landscape, either, given the undeniable depredations of industrial meat, and the lifecycle-spanning horrors of plastic. And yet, and yet ... "lunch meat in pouches" is taking the convenience-food world by storm. Reports a trade journal: US households spent about $3.75bn on luncheon meat …

Ortolan is a French delicacy: a tiny songbird, roasted whole and swallowed in one bite, bones and all. Ortolan hunting has been banned in France since 1998 to protect the species, but the birds have a high price on the black market, and as many as 30,000 a year are fattened up and sold by poachers to high-end chefs. Apparently freedom fries just aren't good enough for them.

A Scientificblogging post explains that it only takes three years for mercury emitted by coal-fired plants to travel up the food chain into fish that we eat: "Before this study, no one had directly linked atmospheric deposition (mercury emissions) and mercury in fish," says study co-author Vincent St. Louis of the University of Alberta. The experiment filled a major gap in scientists' understanding of how mercury moves from the atmosphere through forests, soils, lakes and into the fish that people eat. It's immediate value is that it provides undeniable proof of a direct link, said St. Louis, who specializes in …

Hi Umbra, I practically live on Lean Cuisine (that brand specifically -- they are frequently on sale for $2 each). In my community, the plastic tray is recyclable, as is the cardboard box. The only thing that goes in the trash is the film that covers the tray. Microwave time averages five minutes per entree. Total dirty dishes: one fork. I have a friend who swears I'm a hypocrite -- that cooking is "better" for the environment. I maintain that more packaging goes into the trash when cooking, and certainly the stove is burning for a lot longer than five …

Never mind the intro, take me to the recipes! If you are what you eat, then the developing years are surely the most important time to eat well. As a parent, you may not be able to give your baby or toddler fresh, homemade foods every day -- but there are real benefits when you do. Her face and your floor will enjoy homemade food too. Homemade food is more nutritious than commercially prepared baby foods: it retains more nutrients, especially vitamin A and B; it doesn't contain additives like food dyes and thickening agents like cornstarch, flour, chemically modified …

Talk about a double whammy. It's challenging enough to be green when you're solo, and then pregnancy comes along and gives you twice the eco-angst (not to mention more hormones than you know what to do with). Photo: iStockphoto The cause for alarm is real: pregnancy is the most critical time for establishing your baby's well being. It's also the time when you're vulnerable to the alphabet stew of harmful chemicals in the world, which are increasingly making their way into women's bodies, wombs, and breast milk. But there is good news: Simple measures like eating organic, nutrient-rich foods before …

A decrease in pesticide availability led to an associated decrease in suicide rates in Sri Lanka, researchers publishing in the International Journal of Epidemiology have concluded. In 1995 and 1998, restrictions were put into place on importation and sales of highly toxic pesticides in Sri Lanka; in 2005, the country's suicide rate was half what it had been in 1995. "Changes in the availability of a commonly used method of suicide may influence not only method-specific but also overall suicide rates," says researcher David Gunnell. "Pesticides are readily available in most rural households in low-income countries and are commonly used …

Mercury contamination of waterways and marine life doesn't have to be an ongoing problem -- all we have to do is limit industrial mercury emissions. Easy! After a seven-year experiment in a Canada lake, researchers publishing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that mercury concentrations in fish would decline relatively quickly if their ecosystem was no longer contaminated. So someday, if we all lobby hard enough against mercury-spewing (and otherwise evil) coal plants, you may be able to eat your sushi without fear of being poisoned. But we'd still watch out for the Kool-Aid.

This is a guest essay from Bruce Friedrich, vice president for campaigns at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). It was written in response to Alex Roth's essay "PETA's dogma is all bark and no bite." Friedrich has been an environmental activist for more than 20 years. In 1987, I read Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappé and -- primarily for human rights and environmental reasons -- went vegan. Two decades later, I still believe that -- even leaving aside all the animal welfare issues -- a vegan diet is the only reasonable diet for …