Articles by Tom Philpott
Tom Philpott was previously Grist's food writer. He now writes for Mother Jones.
All Articles
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Obama's riding the (cellulosic) ethanol pony — here's why he should buck the trend
Like countless politicians before him, Obama is striving to shore up his political support in the Midwest by dangling goodies for the ethanol industry. This time, though, it's cellulosic ethanol -- which, I argue, isn't nearly as ecologically benign as advertised.
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Acknowledging women's role in the sustainable food movement
Women dominate the staffs of critical food- and farming-focused NGOs. They run farms, important blogs, and local-food restaurants. So why is Alice Waters the only one we ever hear about?
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School salad bars, and the limits of relying on charity for what government should do
Whole Foods has raised $1.4 million from its customers to invest in salad bars for public schools. The catch: those schools must be within 50 miles of a Whole Foods. For me, the real problem here is the lack of public commitment to provide healthy school lunches.
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Why Monsanto is paying farmers to spray its rivals' herbicides
Monsanto's ongoing humiliation proceeds apace -- and no, we're not referring to the seed and chemical giant's triumph in our recent "Villains of Food" poll.