Food inflation rises

After February’s drop in food inflation, this month the price of fruit has nudged food inflation up to a 6 month high, reports the Grocer. Quite how the eruption of Eyjafjallajokullasoiasdgonyeos will impact on this is unclear, with some suggesting a food shortage is likely and others observing that a relatively small proportion of our grub comes via air freight. Either way, best to avoid them Kenyan beans and buy British when you can.

Loyalty cards come under scrutiny

We’ve all been there. Months – nay – years of accumulating these mythical, intangible points. Finally the day arrives when you think to yourself ‘you know what, I’m just going to fly by the seat of my pants and ruddy well use my Nectar card points today’. And then you’re told you have 79p on it. A YouGov poll found that half of shoppers thought them a waste of time. What do you think?

Latest health scare – well-done meat a cancer risk

Research in Texas has found that eating well-done meat more than doubles the risk of bladder cancer. Though mainly referring to red meat, the study also suggested that even eating fried chicken or fish ‘significantly raised the odds of cancer’. How do you like your meat cooked?

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Other food news this week:

* Christie’s auction house accused of selling ‘fake’ vintage wines, reports the Independent.

* BNP cause scandal at Unilever by using Marmite in an online political broadcast. Read more here.

* There’s been a rise in the use of ‘lazy’ foods such as ready-peeled carrots. Do you use them?

* Red Bull to blame, says Hull Asbo woman.

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Blog of the week: Cheese and Biscuit’s review of The Fat Duck was refreshingly lacking in any bombast or verbosity.

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Recipe of the week: A D-Lish looking midweek supper recipe of Old Bay seasoned crispy crumb chicken from A Glug of Oil.

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Videos of the week: Two stunning and emotionally charged covers of Lady Gaga’s ubiquitous ballad ‘Poker Face’.