VIA: bmann's Flickr

I'm posting images of sausage counters the world over each weeknight (and occasionally weekend) witching hour (until I run out), so please use the comments section to post links to your Flickr or personal site faves, and perhaps you'll see 'em posted here late some evening.

Previously -- Midnight Sausage: Napa, CA

I'd like to wish our Canadian readers a very happy Thanksgiving! For those of you not in the know, our Canadian friends celebrate their bountiful harvest each year on the second Monday of October. Other than the date, they celebrate in much the same way that we do down here in the United States, with an abundant spread of food and the resultant post-dinner coma. Enjoy!

Photo link

This week, a new edition of the Canada Food Guide was released by the Health Canada. The small booklet has been produced since 1940, with new editions being released every few years. The last one was in 1992. The Food Guide gives recommendations on portion sizes and the average daily amount of physical activity a person should get. It is one of the most requested publications of the Canadian government, second only to income tax forms.

This year's edition includes, for the first time, a warning that advises people to limit their intake of "foods and beverages high in calories, fat, sugar or salt," as well as recommendations to increase vegetable consumption and to consider taking nutritional supplements. In fact, vegetables have replaced grains as the largest component of the food "rainbow." Some former critics are pleased with the change, but many are still very skeptical about the value of the guide. Critics say that it isn't doing enough and that, as one of the most referenced food and health resources in the country, it should include more detail on calories, whole grains and on ways to make good food choices.

With the exception of a few bad storms, this has been a fairly mild winter for most of the US and Canada. The warmer temperatures mean fewer snow days, lighter jackets and an early start to maple syrup season.

The season typically begins in early spring when it is still below freezing at night but slightly warmer (40F or higher) during the day. The reason for the time frame is that the sap levels are at the peak at that point in the year and the daytime temperatures allow it to flow more freely from the tapped trees. Mild winters produce the same effects, although the sugars in the sap are not as intensely concentrated as they will be later in the year. One of the primary reasons that a farmer might begin to harvest sap early, relying on a processes to concentrate the sugars in the sap, is to stay in business, although some traditionalists will turn up their noses at the practice.

'Some people say it isn't natural to make a hole in a tree during the winter, but it is also unnatural to tap trees during the spring,' said one Canadian farmer, noting that only a small portion of the sap is taken and that the trees heal rather quickly and that "only producers who've never tried making syrup in winter would criticize the practice."

Remember when Cadbury had to recall a large number of candy bars in the UK earlier due to the discovery of traces of salmonella in their factory? It looks like Hershey's is now having a similar problem. The company voluntarily recalled several brands of chocolate chips, chocolate bars and candies, including Oh Henry!, Reese Peanut Butter Cups and Glosettes, that were manufactured its Smiths Falls, Ontario, factory. All totaled, there are 25 items included in the recall and they can be easily identified "by checking the back of the package for date codes, starting with four digits ranging from 6417 to 6455." The recall did not include any Halloween or Christmas candy, and company spokespeople said that most of the potentially contaminated products were still in warehouses and had not been distributed. The factory was closed last week after "after a routine quality control check detected an 'externally sourced ingredient' which could potentially cause salmonella" and will not reopen until the company can guarantee the safety of its products to consumers.

Canada does not have a country-wide organic certification system - not yet, anyway. Organic farming and ranching is an almost $1 billion dollar industry in the country, but currently, the farmers cannot seek certification from a central source. Some are certified by the US Department of Agriculture, which would be required for export to the US anyway, and farms in Quebec and British Colombia are regulated by rules put in place by the individual provinces.

A new system would allow for a "Canada Organic" label, increasing awareness of the farmers nationally and internationally and the country has been working on developing a standard set of guidelines and regulations since 2004. Recently, the process was sped up to meet a deadline set by the EU that would prohibit uncertified organics from trade after December 31st. Such a ban could cost Canada millions of dollars, so after much deliberation, a draft of the new rules was published on September 2. It will be up for discussion and revision for 75 days, at which point it will become law.

Many news sources are reporting that Canadians are eating an unbalanced diet. All the news is based on a study that says approximately 25% of Canadians are getting more than 35% of their calories from fat and that some people are not eating the appropriate number of servings from different food groups. Of course, the alarm bells are sounding in the eyes of nutritionists and the headlines are calling Canada a "fast food nation."

The problem with the study? In its vagueness, only a few key facts are shared with the reader, leaving out information such as how much (the number of calories) people are actually eating. The way I read the information given, 75% of Canadians are getting less than 35% of their daily calories from fat. And that's a good thing! Not only that, but the study even states that the amount of calories from fat in the average diet has declined since the last time such a study was done, in the 1970s.

So, why blow this all out of proportion when people seem to be improving their diets? The cynic in me says that the study author is trying to build up interest in his work because he plans to release more detailed reports at the end of this year and next. And the cynic is probably right because if it was health, and not publicity, that Didier Garriguet was interested in, he would have released a full account of his findings to begin with.

Ed Atwell, an experienced baker and donut maker, has just patented the first donut in Canada. Now, it's not the recipe that is patented, but the technique used to make the two-tone pastry. The donut is exactly half chocolate and half vanilla, with the two batters touching but not blending together. When he baked up the prototype batches, Atwell remarked that "they were the most beautiful doughnuts [he]'d ever seen."

The donuts are sold under the name "Sunnymoon" and are unmistakably distinctive in their appearance. The inventor remains optimistic about sales because Canada is the most competitive donut market in the world, with the number one rate per capita of donut consumption. From all appearances, however, the Sunnymoons are off to a good start in terms of sales and, if they become family favorites, Atwell can be sure that his "beautiful doughnuts" will not be forgotten.

Some troops may have a craving for a taste of home, but others won't rest until they really bring their favorites out to the base. Canadian troops deployed to Afghanistan are asking the iconic Canadian coffee and donut chain, Tim Hortons, to set up shop in the massive Kandahar Air Base. The soldiers maintain that because the US troops currently at the base are enjoying Burger King and Subway franchises, that Tim Hortons should do the same, as it just "wouldn't be a Canadian base without a Tim Hortons."

In the past, the company has refused requests to set up a full store, stating that their strict quality controls could not be monitored in a location so far away. The company faithfully participates in programs which provide coffee and "goodie bags" for the soldiers, as well as having set up shop on military bases across Canada. A company spokesperson says that they will consider sending a smaller coffee cart or trailer to represent the brand on the base.

It's that time of year, the time to look back on the stories that made 2005 great. Our countdown began with God and TV, then touched on the weird and the wonderful. Finally, that most American of all themes: the lawsuit.

There are more than a few people out there who continue to give lawyers a bad name. Some of them are the lawyers who take on what many people deem to be frivolous lawsuits. Sometimes it is the lawyers who take it upon themselves to speak up for people and protest what they perceive is a legal violation or some sort. These may not be all the legal battles caused by food this year, but they certainly were noteworthy ones, whether they deserved to be or not.

1. Silver dragées. This lawsuit isn’t new to 2005, but it is ongoing nevertheless. A California lawyer had essentially managed, much to the chagrin of bakers in the state, to block the sale of little, silver cake decorating balls in the state in a suit against candy makers and bakers. He cites health risks despite the fact that there has never been a documented case of poisoning from silver dragée consumption.

2. Bottled Fly Trauma. In , a hairstylist and his wife were awarded more than $300,000 after finding a fly in a bottle of water. Neither the man nor his wife consumed any water and, in fact, the bottle was unopened. The couple mentioned that they were “plagued by nightmares [and lost] of their sense of humour” as a result of the incident.