Food

Update: The Red Cross is expected to make an announcement on the future of its "Good Neighbor" food program today.  Stay with Eyewitness News and kwch.com for any updates. (WICHITA, Kan.) One thousand meals a day. Five days a week. It takes a lot of money to fund the Red Cross' Good Neighbor program. Organizers must now find ways to keep it going. "I'd say it was very important, very important to them," said John Jones as he stood in the kitchen of a Wichita Senior Center.

If you want to go away to college and plan on living on campus, you may be paying a little more to do so. All six Kansas universities asked the Board of Regents to increase the fees for food and housing. The universities say the bump is needed because of the rising maintenance costs. At Wichita State University, depending on which meal plan and dorm room the student chooses, the increase can range from fifty and a hundred fifty dollars a year. The Board of Regents will make its decision next month.

Genesis Health Club tells Wichita police that someone took $4,000 worth of food from the company. It happened at its Rock road location sometime between 6 p.m. Sunday and 9:30 a.m. Monday. Police say someone broke a lock to a freezer located behind the business, then took the food.

Two people may be able to do a job faster, but sometimes you can’t find that second person to help out in the kitchen.  That’s where the Baggy Rack comes in. The makers of the Baggy Rack say it can be that extra set of hands and turn a messy job into a simple one. We asked high school senior Josh Hudson to do a two-person job…ladling food into a storage bag. Josh has a hard time, and try as he might, he still gets food all over...

by Joe Ballard (EL DORADO, Kan.) Friday, hundreds of volunteers went to El Dorado to help Numana, INC. package food to send to Haiti. We first told you about their efforts in December as they prepared food for children in Haiti. They're doing the same thing again. All the food being packaged today will be sent to Haiti by early next week. Numana President Rick McNary says the response has been overwhelming. He says: "People are concerned, they know that what they're doing is going to actually impact Haiti within three or four days.

If you want out of the kitchen----and want to get out of all that chopping ---it's a product that claims to be just what you're looking for. It's the $20 Vidalia Chop Wizard, which claims it will cut large pieces of fruits and vegetables in one push.  Our "pushers" are Wichita Chefs Colette Baptista and Dan Hypse, who agree to help us test it. But the directions say you can't get rid of your knife altogether. "You still have to have a knife to cut off the ends," remarks Dan. To use it, just put the food on the blades, and close the lid---pushing the food (this time an onion)

Chef Artaynia Westfall knows how important a good knife is.  And she knows how bad a dull blade can be. “It’s frustrating!” What about a knife made out of ceramic?  The Yoshi Blade claims it won’t rust, is sharp and will stay that way longer than your stainless steel knives. That is the “Good” list. The “Do Not” list it comes with is a lot longer. “Do not use on frozen food. Do not use on hard cheeses. Do not bend or twist,” Artaynia reads.

The way we treat our pets has changed in the last few years, in part because of the food recalls of 2007. Many pet owners are looking for natural products for their pets, including toys and dishes that are BPA free.  Are you among those who worry about what's in your pet's food and don't worry about the cost? Read more here , and let me know what you think.

(WICHITA, Kan.) Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. It is about an 1/8 the size of Kansas, with a population of 8 million. Many Kansans have donated to people there in the past.  They are reaching out to them again. Last month, thousands of people filled the El Dorado Civic Center to pack meals for Haitian school children. In all, Numana, Inc and the thousands of volunteers packed more than 285,000 pounds of food. But that food now has a new purpose -- it is now for everyone.

Cities and states have talked about doing it, putting an extra tax on food that's not good for you.  Now, one country has taken the step. In, Denmark it is now more expensive to eat fattening foods. There's a tax that kicks in when the saturated fat content of a food is more than 2.3 percent. The goal isn't necessarily weight loss, but to help people live longer. Read more about it through the reporting of the Los Angeles Times.