The Food_Observer chooses 5 important stories for you to read as you finish your work week. We’ll call it “5 for 5”. In no particular order.

1. What the Bittman, et al op-ed missed Two weeks ago the Washington Post published an op-ed co-authored by Mark Bittman, Michael Pollan, Ricardo Salvador and Oliver de Schutter. The piece, accessible by clicking on the Washington Post link here, advocated for the creation of a national food policy. Now, David Festa, the Vice President of the Environmental Defense Fund, responds to this op-ed. He makes two points: Bring stakeholders to the table to help create solutions, and engage elected representatives.

2. Brazil enacts new food policy. In what could provide a policy road map for other nations, Brazil has published new dietary guidelines that explicitly challenge the consumption of processed foods by saying, “Always prefer natural or minimally processed foods and freshly made dishes and meals to ultra-processed products.”

3. A history of America through its food. A new book by historian and media executive Libby O’Connell traces American tastes from pemmican to Coca-Cola and beyond. The American Plate: A Culinary History in 100 Bites explores the food ways of America, and details the intersection of food, culture and history. The book explores history, but also considers contemporary influences.

4. Ag workers to be shielded from deportation. The Hill is reporting that up to 250,000 agricultural workers – 125,000 of them working in California – would be shielded from deportation in the Executive Order about immigration being announced by President Obama Thursday. The information was relayed by the White House to the leadership of the United Farm Workers (UFW) in advance of the announcement.

5. New study: cooking at home healthier Two professors from Johns Hopkins University are publishing the results of their research about home cooking and nutrition in the journal Public Health Nutrition. Dr. Julia A. Wolfson and co-author Dr. Sara N. Bleich found that people who frequently cook meals at home eat healthier and consume fewer calories than those who cook less. Science Daily reports.