Food

Step away from that tuna can.

Its "dolphin safe" label produces warm feelings, but don't mistake it for "turtle safe" or "ocean safe." And it's certainly not "tuna safe." Accidental entanglements of sharks, sea turtles, juvenile tuna and other marine creatures take their own ecological toll -- prompting the Monterey Bay Aquarium's well-regarded Seafood Watch consumer guide to take an unusual step: It recently began telling consumers to avoid all canned tuna, except for the minority labeled "troll caught" or "pole-and-line" caught. That describes precious few cans, typically from small brands selling for around $2.50 to $6.50.

Yes, the canned tuna in U.S. supermarkets is dolphin safe. So is the tuna of more than 90% of the world's tuna canners -- a big eco-marketing accomplishment. The marketing and labels are effective for selling tuna, but extremely misleading if you think the label means environmentally safe, as you'll see in the list farther below.

Whenever I dine out, I always strive to keep the bill under $20 per person, tip included. Of course, it all depends on the quality, décor and type of restaurant, but for most middle-of-the-road type establishments, getting out with a bill of under $40 for two is quite an accomplishment -- and thoroughly doable.

Almost all restaurants keep track of a server's PPA, which stands for Per Person Average. It's just what it sounds like. Servers get ranked according to how much they can squeeze out of each customer. Their tip depends on their PPA and a restaurant's overall sales depend on servers' PPAs. The servers at the bottom of this list get an earful as to why they're not selling more side salads, alcohol, desserts and the like.

Therefore, it's a battle between me and my server -- and to the victor goes the moolah. As much as my waiter tempts me to go for all the "add-ons," I in turn fight to keep the tab down. Below are some wise ways to keep that bill in check, and those bills in your wallet.

Missouri-based Morningland Dairy is recalling 68,957 pounds of raw milk cheese it has sold since Jan. 1 because it may be contaminated with Listeria and also potentially Staphylococcus, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The cheese is sold in vacuum-sealed plastic packages throughout the continental United States in retail stores, mail order, crop sharing associations and direct delivery. No illnesses have been reported as yet from eating the cheese, made from unpasteurized cow and goat milk, the FDA said.

Anyone trying to watch their calorie intake knows the difficulty of sizing up the movie popcorn, spring rolls or deep-fried Snickers they buy at locations other than restaurants. Now the Food and Drug Administration is taking major steps to help consumers know just how much damage those food choices are causing to their waistline.

As part of The Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act of 2010, the FDA is imposing new requirements for labeling on ready-to-eat foods, that cover more than just traditional restaurants. You will soon see calorie information listed on the menus at movie theaters, airlines, trains, grocery store food courts, convenience stores and even hot dog stands.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials today unveiled the final list of the contamination problems they found at the two egg producers at the heart of a 500-million plus egg recall, and the listing painted a pretty scary picture of the nation's food supply.

They found:

• Holes that allowed birds to and cats to enter
• Frogs
• Hens walking through leaking manure
• Flies and maggots
• Live mice and burrow holes for rodents

Although McDonald's retired the "super-sized" option from its menus in 2004, chain restaurants continue to redefine the size of a typical serving of food, often doubling or tripling official government serving sizes, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

While a typical burrito weighs about 5 ounces, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, (USDA), a Chicken Burrito at Chipotle (which was once owned by McDonald's) weighs in at 21 ounces -- more than four times as much -- and is packed with 970 calories.

How hot should hot chocolate be served? In an echo of the infamous coffee-in-the-lap lawsuit filed in 1994 against McDonald's, the chain is being sued by a Chicago-area woman who claims her daughter was badly burned by the company's hot chocolate.

Vicki LaRocco is suing McDonald's for more than $50,000, claiming the hot drink from the drive-up window spilled on her 10-year-old daughter's leg, caused her suffering and scarring, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. At the time of the famous Liebeck vs. McDonald's case, the company was serving coffee at 180-190 degrees. When a cup of coffee spilled in Stella Liebeck's lap, she suffered third degree burns on 6% of her body. After suing the company, she and McDonald's settled for less than $600,000, the exact amount was never disclosed.

Imagine the face on your child when he puts a buck into the snack machine, chooses what, by appearance, seems to be a Cheetos-like snack, and ends up with a bag of baby carrots. The carrot industry is betting $25 million that he'll be OK with the substitution. I have my doubts.

According to USA Today, a group of producers will unveil a sophisticated media campaign designed to drive a wedge between the munching public and our snack foods, a wedge in the shape of a carrot. This campaign will include repackaging carrots for school vending machines in bags that resemble Doritos (both orange, little-finger size, crunchy, so consumers probably won't even notice the difference, right?)

All right Money College readers, time to give you a little philosophical lecture on store brands. (Don't worry, this won't be on your final.) On paper, the ideal benefit in buying a store brand is to get a product that tastes just as good, if not better, than the store brand -- while costing you less. Now, things don't always work out that way: Sometimes the name brand is of such great quality it's worth the price.

I figured that would be the case with Heinz ketchup. Why Heinz? Personally, I don't care for ketchup, but even I know Heinz is one of the most iconic food brands in the country. In fact, the H.J. Heinz Co. has ranked first in overall customer satisfaction amongst food manufacturing companies each year for the past decade by the American Customer Satisfaction Index. People love this ketchup.

But just because some fancy-schmancy index says Heinz is tops in satisfaction doesn't mean it's hands down the best-value grocery store ketchup on the market. Store Brand Scorecard tried out three store brand ketchups that the ACSI doesn't rank to see if any of them bested Heinz in taste and price.

You say McDonald's, I say ...

Ever ask a friend to join you at Mickey D's for lunch? Unless your dining companion lives under a rock, we're pretty sure he knew you were referring to fast food giant McDonald's. It seems American consumers have a knack for creating their own "terms of endearment" for the companies they patronize and the products they purchase.

Of course, consumer-given monikers are not always complimentary (Taco Hell, anyone?), but whether positive, negative or neutral, an apt company or product nickname can take on a life of its own. Take for instance Trader Joe's best-selling Charles Shaw wine. More people know the wine by its nickname ("Two-Buck Chuck") than they do its actual brand name.

Pet names can even become part of our cultural fabric and foster an emotional connection. General Motors should have considered this before they made the unbelievable decision to try and snuff out the use of one of the world's best-known, longest-lived product nicknames: Chevy. The company quickly back-pedaled in response to the not-surprising public outcry.

Setting aside Two-Buck Chuck, Chevy and many other fun product nicknames (Can you say Crackberry?) for the time being, here is WalletPop's list of the 10 best company nicknames out there today:

A company that sells meat to BJ's Wholesale Club stores is recalling about 8,500 pounds of ground beef that may be contaminated with E. coli and has been linked to three consumers getting sick, says the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Cargill Meat Solutions Corp. is recalling 42-pound cases of "Ground Beef Fine 90/10" with a use-by-or-freeze-by date of July 1, 2010. The meat was shipped to distribution centers in Connecticut and Maryland, repackaged into consumer packages and sold under yet-to-be-named retail brands. The USDA says consumers bought the meat at some BJ's Wholesale Clubs in Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and Virginia. The retail giant was the only business listed.

There is something for everyone in this week's wild and wacky list of Friday Freebies. Want to lose weight? Take advantage of free yoga classes and a seven-day free gym membership. Got a student at home? There are many free and practically-free deals on back-to-school supplies for the upcoming school year. And don't forget about the free Cheetos and free shampoo and conditioner from Aveeno. At the end of this post is my video on end of summer deals. Enjoy your weekend!

At the top of my list of favorite pseudo-holidays (like National Pancake Day) is National Yoga Month. This September, there are free yoga classes, free week-long yoga studio passes, and other events to celebrate a type of exercise that relaxes the body and the mind. I'm a yogi -- can you tell? If you are new to yoga, National Yoga Month offers a low-cost way to try it out! You don't have to buy a mat to take advantage of these deals. Many yoga studios offer free mats to borrow during class or charge a nominal fee, like $1. Just make sure to wash your hands after class. A lot of other yogis have sweated on that mat. Everything you need to know about National Yoga Month is on YogaMonth.org (see above link). The site has a list of 1,500-plus studios that are giving away free week long yoga passes. A smaller number of studios have free days. The "holiday" is also a promotional vehicle for the "Titans of Yoga" DVD, which is $25. (Expect lower prices as part of the month-long celebration). If you miss the free yoga or do not have an event close to you, look for donation and community classes for reduced rates.

Salmonella has been found in the feed used at the farms linked to the massive outbreak and subsequent recall of eggs and was at least one of the causes, federal officials said today. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this is the largest outbreak of Salmonella enteritidis since records starting being kept in the 1970s.

The feed was made at Wright County Egg -- the main source of the 500 million-plus egg recall. That farm also supplied feed to Hillandale Farms, the other major egg producer involved in the recall. The CDC now puts the number of those sickened at 2,403 -- but that only includes cases that were documented by medical professionals and transmitted to the CDC. Food safety experts say the actual figure of people sickened is several times that.

If you're at your wits end on how to rid your yard of evasive underground pests, there's a cheap, easy-to-find way to keep them from uprooting even more grass: olive oil. Stuffing rags doused in the popular home cooking substance is sure to rid your yard of moles, who can't stand the smell, according to a list of alternative uses for olive oil posted at Mrs. Fixit.

Sure, olive oil is a key ingredient in most kitchens for sautéing, frying and baking, but there are many other ways to exploit its lubricating benefits in and around the home.

Its oily properties aren't only useful to keep salmon from sticking to your Caphalon, they'll also help smooth over dents in wood furniture, particularly when combined with a bit of citrus vinegar to add some cleaning oomph.

Others who dabbled in additional ways to use golden oil pressed from olives found it useful for lubing babies' bottoms, revitalizing aging leather shoes and baseball gloves and curing earaches.

If you've searched in vain for a way to stop snoring, champions of the Mediterranean diet staple suggest taking a swig of olive oil before turning in for the night. Pouring a bit of it over the cat's food can also help do away with hacking caused by hairballs, while also contributing to a healthy, shiny coat.

Neither the wizards at Hogwarts nor the folks at Universal Orlando have revealed the nutritional information. Uninformed and undaunted, tourists wait in long lines and fork over up to $11 a mug for the pleasure of consuming the concoction J.K. Rowling's characters love to drink. The thirst for knowledge about this drink at the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter area at the Islands of Adventure theme park has spawned dozens of copycat recipes and plenty of chatter about what exactly park goers are drinking.

WalletPop dispatched someone to the theme park to collect a sample of the popular drink and sent it to Kappa Laboratories in Miami, where it was analyzed so we could get down to the bottom of this nutritional conundrum.