In Case You Missed It in 2006

For those getting nostalgic about the past year, here’s a sampling of some of the big stories, which include:

Russia: 15 years – almost to the day -- after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia and Vladimir Putin strong-armed Royal Dutch Shell into giving up control of that country’s single largest foreign investment, the Sakhalin-2 natural gas and oil project to the state natural gas monopoly Gazprom on December 22. Other partners in the project, Mitsui and Mitsubishi, acceded to halving their control in the project. Vice President Dick Cheney leveled the harshest criticism of the Kremlin by a world leader back in May when he accused it of using oil and gas as “tools of intimidation or blackmail.”

Food:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved milk and meat from cloned animals for consumption by consumers, although it did not approve labeling of such food, with which surveys show more than 60 percent of consumers are uncomfortable. Interestingly, a key opponent of such foods, which would take some years to get into the commercial food supply, is a coalition of powerful food companies, led by the International Dairy Foods Association, which represents such large, brand-sensitive companies as Kraft Foods, Dannon, General Mills and Nestlé USA, who are concerned that the public will reject Dolly-the-Lamb chops (the Washington Post's line, not mine).

Trans-Fat: New York City adopted the nation’s first major municipal ban on the use of artificial trans fats in restaurant cooking on December 5, which the New York Times calls "a move that would radically transform the way food is prepared in thousands of restaurants, from McDonald’s to fashionable bistros to Chinese take-outs." Such moves were seen elsewhere across the country as Darden Restaurants, for example, switched to trans-far-free frying oil at all of its Red Lobster and Olive Garden chain restaurants.

Advertising (AKA Food Part 2):

The Walt Disney company announced on October 17 that “it plans to change its policy and use its (film and television) characters to market foods to children only for products that meet certain nutritional guidelines,” i.e. foods in which fat does not exceed 30 percent of calories in main dishes, saturated fat doesn’t exceed 10 percent of calories, and added sugar doesn’t exceed 10 percent of calories for main and side dishes and 25 percent for snacks.” This covers 60 percent of Disney-licensed products, although it does not include “special-occasion sweets such as birthday cakes and seasonal candy.” “Disney is also changing children's meals at its theme parks by including water or low-fat, 100 percent fruit juice with side dishes such as applesauce or carrots in place of soft drinks and french fries. Parents who want soda or fries will have to request them.” Interestingly, “Disney test-marketed 20,000 of the more healthful meals and found that as many as 90 percent of parents stuck with the more nutritious option.” The new initiative evidently did not include radio or television advertising on its corporate sister company the ABC television cable networks.

The William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association announced a voluntary agreement to follow guidelines for snacks and side items sold in schools with five major junk food manufacturers, Campbell Soup Company, Dannon, Kraft Foods, Mars and PepsiCo, on October 9 that calls for promoting “nutrient-rich foods, fat-free and low-fat dairy products and place limits on calories, fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sugar and sodium,” with details not clearly spelled out.

From the Do It for the Kids File, The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company and the Attorneys General of 38 states agreed to a domestic ban on its line of flavored cigarettes, which entailed a stop to cigarette names that allude to candy, fruit, desserts or alcoholic beverages, and avoid using scented promotional material, including scratch-and-sniff samples.

Renewable Energy: New York University announced the largest purchase of wind power, 118,000,000 kilowatt-hours, by any U.S. college or university, according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership Program. It will also be the largest purchase of wind power by any institution in NYC and the 11th largest purchase nationally, according to The Villager newspaper.

HP Surveillance: See blog post on October 2, Paranoid: Spying, the Hot New Trend

BP's Long Fall: See blog post on September 11, When A "Good" Company Goes Bad