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Egg Recall in Arizona: Salmonella Outbreak Linked to “Sunshine” & “Omega-3 Golden” Yolk

Egg Recall in Arizona: A widespread Salmonella-linked egg recall has hit Arizona. Consumers are urged to check for cartons labeled “Sunshine Yolks” or “Omega-3 Golden Yolks” (CA-7695, July–September 2025) typically sold in major grocery chains, and safely dispose of or return any affected eggs.

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Egg Recall in Arizona

Egg Recall in Arizona

Arizona consumers are being urged to check their refrigerators after a multistate Salmonella outbreak has been traced to eggs sold under various brands—including those found in Arizona.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have linked this outbreak to large brown cage-free eggs labeled as Sunshine Yolks or Omega-3 Golden Yolks, bearing Plant Code CA-7695 and sell-by dates from July 1 to September 18, 2025. These were sold under the brand names Nagatoshi Produce, Misuho, Nijiya Markets, and Country Eggs.


Impact So Far

  • 95 people across 14 states, including Arizona, have fallen ill; 18 hospitalizations have occurred. Thankfully, no deaths have been reported.

  • Cases span from January 7 through July 26, 2025, with production distributed between June 16 and July 9 in California and Nevada. The eggs reached grocery stores and food-service distributors, and may have spread beyond those states.


Likely Retailers in Arizona

The specific Arizona retailers have not been officially named in the recall, but the FDA confirms the eggs were delivered to grocery stores and food service distributors.

Given distribution patterns in Arizona, it’s highly likely these eggs were available at major grocery chains such as:

  • Safeway / Albertsons

  • Walmart Supercenters

  • Sprouts Farmers Market

  • Whole Foods Market

  • Trader Joe’s

These outlets commonly carry egg brands like Nagatoshi Produce, Misuho, or Nijiya Markets, and are abundant across the Phoenix-metro region and statewide. While these are likely sources, please confirm with your local store or county health department for the most accurate information.


What You Should Do

    • Sunshine Yolks or Omega-3 Golden Yolks

    • Plant Code: CA-7695

    • Sell-By: July 1 – September 18, 2025

    • Brands: Nagatoshi Produce, Misuho, Nijiya Markets, Country Eggs, or generic packaging.

      Check your refrigerator for eggs labeled:

  • Do not eat themdiscard or return for a refund. Clean and sanitize any surfaces or containers that may have come into contact with the eggs.

  • Seek medical advice if you experience symptoms like fever, diarrhea, vomiting, or dehydration. Children under 5, adults over 65, and immunocompromised individuals are at higher risk.


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Why eating cheap chocolate can feel embarrassing – even though no one else cares

Cheap Chocolates: The concept of “consumption stigma” describes how societal judgments influence individuals’ everyday consumption choices, leading to feelings of embarrassment and anxiety. People may alter their behaviors to avoid stigma, sometimes opting for more expensive products. Reclaiming the narrative around consumption can help reduce stigma, fostering a more accepting marketplace.

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Why eating cheap chocolate can feel embarrassing – even though no one else cares
How you feel about a treat can change based on the judgment of others. DeanDrobot/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Siti Nuraisyah Suwanda, West Virginia University; Emily Tanner, West Virginia University, and M. Paula Fitzgerald, West Virginia University

It’s February, and you grab a box of cheap Valentine’s chocolate from the grocery store on your lunch break. Later, you’re eating it at your office desk when you realize someone else is watching. Suddenly, you feel a flicker of embarrassment. You hide the box away, make a joke or quietly wish they hadn’t noticed – not because the chocolate tastes bad, but because you don’t want to be judged for choosing it.

If the scenario above feels familiar, you’re not alone. Many people experience subtle embarrassment or self-consciousness about everyday consumption choices, from eating cheap Valentine’s chocolate to accepting free lunch from a school food program or having visible tattoos.

We are social marketing researchers who study stigma in marketing. In our research, we coined the term “consumption stigma” to describe how people can be judged or looked down on by others, or by themselves, simply for using certain products – even when there’s nothing objectively wrong with them.

Living with consumption stigma

When people feel judged for what they consume, or choose not to consume, the effects can be mentally exhausting. Feeling stigmatized can quietly erode self-esteem, increase anxiety and change how people behave in everyday settings. What starts as a small moment of embarrassment can grow into a persistent concern about being seen the “wrong” way.

In reviewing 50 studies about stigma in marketing, we found that people respond to consumption stigma along a continuum. Some try to avoid stigma altogether by hiding their consumption or staying away from certain products. Others adjust their behavior to reduce the risk of being judged. At the far end of the spectrum, some people actively push back, helping to destigmatize certain forms of consumption for themselves and for others.

The research we reviewed found that to avoid stigma, people may deliberately consume more expensive or socially approved alternatives, even when those choices strain their finances. Imagine someone who switches to a premium chocolate brand at the office, not because she prefers the taste, but because she wants to avoid feeling embarrassed.

Over time, this kind of adjustment could pull people into spending patterns that are beyond their means, feeding a cycle of consumption driven more by social pressure than genuine need or enjoyment. We suggest that the ramifications can be even more stark in other contexts – for example, when a child skips a free school lunch to avoid being teased, or when a veteran turns down mental health support because they fear being judged by others.

From a business perspective, when consumers avoid or abandon products to escape stigma, companies may see declining demand that has little to do with quality or value. We suggest that if consumption stigma spreads at scale, the cumulative effect can translate into lost revenue and weakened brand value.

Understanding consumption stigma, then, isn’t just about consumer well-being; it’s also critical for businesses trying to understand why people buy, hide or walk away from certain products.

smiling woman in grocery aisle reaches for a candy
Openly choosing the one you like best can help break down stigmas. PixelsEffect/E+ via Getty Images

Take back the narrative

Stigma often feels powerful because it masquerades as reality. But at its core, consumption stigma is a social judgment, a shared story people tell about what certain choices supposedly say about someone. When that story goes unchallenged, stigma sticks. When it’s questioned, its power starts to fade.

One way people reduce stigma is by reclaiming the narrative around their consumption. Instead of hiding, explaining or compensating, they openly own their choices. This shift from avoidance to acceptance can strip stigma of its force.

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Imagine a shopper who embraces buying cheaper store brands at the grocery store, seeing it not as a compromise but as a sign of being savvy to pay less for the same thing. When people wear their choices like armor, whether it’s cheap chocolate, secondhand clothing or specialized physical or mental health services, those choices lose their sting. When a behavior is no longer treated as something shameful, it becomes harder for others to use it as a basis for judging or looking down on people.

Of course, stigma doesn’t disappear overnight. But research shows that when enough people stop treating a behavior as something to hide, the social meaning around it begins to change. What feels embarrassing in one moment can become normalized in the next. For example, research on fashion consumption has shown how wearing a veil, once widely stigmatized in urban and secular settings, gradually became seen as ordinary and even fashionable as more women openly adopted it.

Enjoying cheap chocolate shouldn’t require justification. Cold water tastes just as good out of an unbranded travel mug as it does from a Stanley tumbler. A generic sweatshirt keeps you just as cozy as Aritzia. And yet, many people feel the need to explain, deflect or upgrade their choices to avoid being judged. Understanding consumption stigma helps explain why and underscores that these feelings aren’t personal failures, but social constructions.

Sometimes, the most effective response isn’t to consume differently, but to think differently. When people stop treating everyday choices as moral signals, they make room for a more humane – and hopefully honest – marketplace.

Siti Nuraisyah Suwanda, Doctoral Student and Graduate Researcher in Marketing, West Virginia University; Emily Tanner, Associate Professor of Marketing, West Virginia University, and M. Paula Fitzgerald, Professor of Business Administration, West Virginia University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Food and Beverage

Chiquita Completes “Yelloway” Banana Pan-Genome, Aiming to Speed Up Disease-Resistant, Climate-Ready Bananas

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Chiquita says it has reached a major scientific milestone in banana innovation: the completion of the Yelloway banana pan-genome—an advanced genetic “map” designed to help researchers and breeders develop banana varieties that can better withstand disease and adapt to climate pressures.

Chiquita says it has completed the Yelloway banana pan-genome, a high-resolution genetic map designed to accelerate breeding of disease-resistant, climate-resilient bananas as TR4 and Black Sigatoka pressures rise.
Photo by Jeffry Surianto on Pexels.com

Announced Feb. 10, 2026, the breakthrough is positioned as a foundational tool for the global banana industry at a moment when two major threats—Fusarium wilt Tropical Race 4 (TR4) and Black Sigatoka—continue to strain growers and supply chains worldwide.

What the “banana pan-genome” actually means

In simple terms, a pan-genome goes beyond a single reference genome. Instead of looking at one “standard” genetic blueprint, it captures a broader range of naturally occurring genetic variation across bananas. Chiquita says this wider view allows for more precise research, supports biodiversity preservation, and strengthens long-term breeding programs.

The pan-genome focuses on Musa acuminata, the species behind widely known banana varieties such as Gros Michel and Cavendish—names that matter because they represent the kinds of bananas consumers recognize and buy every day.

Yelloway: the partnership behind the research

The pan-genome was developed through Yelloway B.V., an innovation joint venture between Chiquita and agricultural technology company KeyGene. According to the announcement, Yelloway was created to unlock banana genetic diversity and advance classical breeding using advanced genomic tools.

Chiquita said the pan-genome was developed using Oxford Nanopore sequencing technology, and that the effort included collaboration across the banana value chain. One notable partner: Innocent Drinks, which provided match funding through its Farmer Innovation Fund.

Why this matters now: TR4 and Black Sigatoka

The timing is not accidental. TR4—often described as one of the most serious disease threats to bananas—continues to spread globally. Meanwhile, Black Sigatoka is driving more than $100 million in annual protective costs, according to the release.

Chiquita’s message is clear: if breeders can identify resilient genetic traits faster and with more accuracy, the industry can move from broad genetic exploration to targeted breeding decisions—potentially accelerating the development of bananas that are more disease-resistant, more climate-resilient, and still aligned with what consumers expect from the fruit aisle.

Researchers compare it to upgrading from highways to GPS

Professor Gert Kema, a Yelloway board member and emeritus professor of phytopathology at Wageningen University, described the pan-genome as a high-resolution guide to banana genetics.

He compared earlier genetic tools to driving “mainly on highways,” enough to reach major destinations—but not enough to navigate the full landscape. The pan-genome, he said, provides the “GPS coordinates” needed to explore the entire genomic terrain in detail.

Fernando Garcia-Bastidas, Head of the Yelloway Banana Breeding Program, emphasized the practical impact: the pan-genome helps researchers analyze, select, and deploy the most relevant genetic material—speeding up the development of improved banana varieties resistant to major threats like TR4 and Black Sigatoka.

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Chiquita Sustainability Director Peter Stedman added that the work is meant to extend beyond one company, pointing to collaboration across the supply chain as a key driver of progress.

Spotlight at Fruit Logistica in Berlin

Chiquita also shared insights from the project at Fruit Logistica in Berlin, where Stedman participated in the event’s Sustainability Panel. The company highlighted science-based innovation and cross-industry collaboration as essential for building a more resilient banana supply chain.

Opening access to researchers

In a move aimed at broader industry impact, Yelloway plans to provide academic researchers access to the banana pan-genome through a dedicated web portal—supporting continued collaboration and advancement in banana research and breeding.

What to Watch For

  • Research access: When Yelloway’s web portal goes live and how widely academic teams use the pan-genome.
  • Breeding timeline: Early signals on how quickly the tool translates into new varieties with stronger resistance to TR4 and Black Sigatoka.
  • Field performance: Whether future banana candidates hold up in real-world growing conditions while maintaining taste, texture, and shelf-life.
  • Supply chain collaboration: More cross-industry funding and partnerships (like Innocent Drinks’ Farmer Innovation Fund support) that speed adoption.
  • Cost impact: Any reduction over time in the high annual protective costs tied to Black Sigatoka management.

About Chiquita

Chiquita is a global produce company operating across nearly 70 countries and has produced bananas for more than 150 years. The company says its sustainability work is guided by its “Behind the Blue Sticker” initiative, and it recently received recognition including being named one of America’s Most Loved Brands by Newsweek and a 2025 Good Housekeeping Snack Award winner.

For the banana industry—and for consumers who rely on the Cavendish as a grocery-store staple—the completion of the Yelloway banana pan-genome signals a push toward a more resilient future, where science and collaboration could help keep bananas on shelves despite escalating disease and climate challenges.

Source: Chiquita Brands International, Inc. (PRNewswire), Feb. 10, 2026

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What Are Comfort Foods—and Why Do We Crave Them?

Comfort foods go beyond taste—they offer emotional reassurance, cultural identity, and nostalgia. Learn why we crave them and how they connect us.

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Comfort foods go beyond taste—they offer emotional reassurance, cultural identity, and nostalgia. Learn why we crave them and how they connect us.

What Are Comfort Foods—and Why Do We Crave Them?

Food & Beverage | The Knowledge Comfort foods are more than just meals—they are emotional touchstones. From a bowl of chicken noodle soup to a plate of mac and cheese, comfort foods provide familiarity, warmth, and reassurance during moments of stress, illness, or nostalgia. While comfort foods vary by culture and personal experience, their purpose is universal: they make us feel grounded, safe, and connected.

What Defines Comfort Food?

Although comfort foods differ from person to person, they often share common characteristics:
  • Familiar and nostalgic – Foods tied to childhood or family traditions
  • Warm and filling – Soups, casseroles, stews, and baked dishes
  • Emotionally satisfying – Comforting beyond physical hunger
  • Rich in carbohydrates or fats – Which can influence mood-regulating chemicals in the brain
These foods are rarely chosen for convenience alone—they’re chosen because they feel like home.

The Science Behind Comfort Foods

There is real science behind why comfort foods make us feel better. Carbohydrate-rich foods can increase the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood and promote a sense of calm. Warm foods also play a role. Studies suggest that warmth can enhance feelings of safety and emotional comfort, which may explain why soups, stews, and hot meals are commonly craved during stressful times or colder seasons. In short, comfort foods don’t just satisfy hunger—they support emotional well-being.

Comfort Foods Are Cultural

Every culture has its own version of comfort food, shaped by tradition, availability, and shared history:
  • United States: Mac and cheese, meatloaf, mashed potatoes
  • Mexico: Tamales, pozole
  • Italy: Pasta, lasagna
  • Japan: Ramen, curry rice
  • India: Dal with rice
What makes these foods comforting isn’t the recipe—it’s the memory and meaning attached to them.

Why We Turn to Comfort Foods

People often crave comfort foods during moments of emotional or physical vulnerability, including:
  • Stress or anxiety
  • Illness or fatigue
  • Homesickness
  • Major life changes
  • Celebrations and family gatherings
In uncertain moments, familiar flavors help restore a sense of normalcy and emotional balance.

More Than a Meal

Comfort food isn’t about indulgence or nutrition alone—it’s about connection. These dishes link us to people, places, and moments that shaped us. That’s why comfort foods endure across generations, cultures, and changing trends. Comfort food doesn’t just feed the body. It feeds the moment.

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