"Michelle Obama" news and stories

First Lady Michelle Obama will soon begin planting the third season of her organic garden on the South Lawn of the White House (yes, spring is coming). But this year, in between tending the kale, carrots, and tomatoes, she'll have to make time for writing. The First Lady has landed a publishing deal to write a book about the garden and her "Let's Move!" campaign to improve children's health with exercise and fresh foods. The garden has taken on a life of itself since she first broke ground -- last year it yielded more than 2,000 pounds of fresh produce.

"We wanted to share the story with the rest of the nation and perhaps with the rest of the world," Mrs. Obama told the Associated Press. "We get so many questions about the garden: How did we do it? Why did we do it? How do I do this in my own home or community?" The book will also contain recipes, she says.

British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver called Sarah Palin a "Froot Loop" during a panel at Food Network's South Beach Wine and Food Festival this weekend for criticizing the Obama administration's healthy eating initiatives, and said getting healthy foods to kids is a civil rights issue.

Continue reading: Jamie Oliver: Sarah Palin a 'Fruit Loop' for Criticizing Michelle Obama on HuffPost Food.

On Presidents Day this year, we fully expect a little bit of imbibing to take place at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Every U.S. president has had his vice -- James Buchanan would reportedly trek to a distillery each Sunday to purchase a gallon-sized jug of whiskey. It's also been reported that JFK did not serve lemonade, water, or even beer, aboard the presidential yacht -- instead, he turned to daiquiris.

And Barack Obama is no exception. On the heels of his "beer summit" in July 2009 where he chugged mugs of beer with two others on the Rose Garden patio, and following White House tradition, he and Michelle ensure that flutes of Domaine Chandon's sparkling wine (Blanc de Noirs, $22) are poured at all state dinners and other White House receptions.

Last week the updated USDA food map was released, detailing our country's food environment by county -- who has better local food, more farmer's markets, better availability to grocery stores? What are people eating most per capita in each county? How much food assistance are we getting? And who goes out to restaurants more? It's all right here.

The updated tool is part of First Lady Michelle Obama's initiative to end childhood obesity, reports the Washington Post. And it's a treasure chest of information. According to the map, Oakland County, Michigan, had 983 fast food restaurants in 2009, and 1,042 in 2010. In 2009, Minnesota's Hennepin county had 15 farmers markets -- and by 2010, they had 39. Impressive. That's more than San Diego, which lost 7 percent of its farmers markets over the same time. Washington Post contributor Jennifer LaRue Huget spent an hour on the site and found some interesting facts about Montgomery County, Maryland, where she was born. Among other statistics, she discovered that in 2006, residents there consumed 230 pounds of produce per capita at home and 320 in prepared foods.

You can search by state or see the entire country lit up in color-coded categories. And the data is seemingly endless -- you can investigate anything from how far households are from the nearest grocery store to how many stores accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Lose a very investigative hour of your own at USDA.gov.

Heeding First Lady Michelle Obama's call to improve our country's access to better food and reduce childhood obesity, Wal-Mart today announced a five-year plan to reduce the price of fresh produce sold in its stores and to lower the salt, fat and sugar content in its Great Value house-brand food products, reports the New York Times.

Wal-Mart will also be urging its highest-selling suppliers, like Kraft, to follow suit. Similar initiatives have been made by the city of New York and major food corporation ConAgra, which set a goal to "reduce sodium content in its foods by 20 percent by 2015," notes the Times.