On the last Friday of every month, a small group of people interested in learning more about food gathers in the Community Room of the Fall River Public Library from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. In their most recent meeting on June 27, 2008, the group shared what they learned about the science of food additives in Steve Ettlinger's surprisingly informative book, Twinkie, Deconstructed: My journey to discover how the ingredients found in processed foods are grown, mined (yes, mined), and manipulated into what America eats. Since starting with an organizational meeting on Leap Day (Feb. 29th), the group has already tackled Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food, and Ian Cheney's and Curt Ellis's DVD King Corn, in addition to Twinkie, Deconstructed. The group plans to spend the next two sessions (July 25th & August 29th, 2008) on Gary Taubes’ Good Calories / Bad Calories. The rules of the group are simple -- we just to talk about food; no talk about recipes or diets. Conversation have ranged from about what’s happening to the world's food supply to the best places to buy the freshest vegetables around Fall River. Under consideration for upcoming meetings are: Michael Pollan’s Omnivore's Dilemma, Marion Nestle’s Taking Sides and What to Eat, Frederick Haufman’s A Short History of the American Stomach, Brian Wansink’s Mindless Eating, and Eric Shlosser’s Fast Food Nation. For more information or to sign up for the group, contact Healthy City Fall River coordinator Dave Weed at 508-324-2411 or UMass Extension Nutrition Program coordinator Pat Bebo at 508-675-7315, or just show up!
 

(Top row) Southcoast Hospital dietitian Amanda Szot watches as Jane Darcey of the International Institute of Culinary Arts prepares a treat that she created to introduce school children to healthier foods by wrapping some fruit roll-ups around it and adding gummy bears. (Middle row) Amanda summarizes some of the fascinating information in Twinkie, reconstructed, such as the chemical origins and manufacturing process for B vitamins (Niacin, Thiamine, Riboflavin and Folic Acid) that are added to the flour with which Twinkies and most other baked goods are made. (Bottom row) Just for fun, Healthy City coordinator Dave Weed samples one of the Twinkie roll-ups, something he has not eaten in at least 20 years, and, despite it being weeks old, the Twinkie was still fresh!