From eating like cavemen to redneck sketti, we're taking a look back at some of the biggest food happenings of 2012.
12. Singapore Serves Mashed Potatoes...From A Vending Machine?
The internet was abuzz when a photo of a mashed potato vending machine surfaced. Eventually, the viral picture was traced to a 7-Eleven in Singapore, where a rep confirms the Maggi-based machines are "quite popular." For just $1, you can get a healthy squirt of instant mashed potatoes and some questionable-looking chicken gravy.
We're all in.
11. Now Trending: Cavemen, Paleo Diet Popularized
The newest fad to hit the diet scene this year claims to combat modern illnesses like obesity, diabetes and heart disease by returning to a pre-civilization, hunter-gatherer style diet. That means more grass-fed pasture raised meats, fish, fruit and vegetables and no grains, legumes, dairy, refined sugar, refined salt or processed oils.
As the diet, first popularized in the 1970s, gained traction this year, so did the questions over its actual health benefits. In other caveman news, Year One is still a really shitty movie.
10. The Distinction of Twinkies...Maybe
Last month, Hostess Brands, the company behind such beloved treats as Twinkies, Ho Hos, and Wonder Bread, announced it was taking the initial steps to closing down operations for good.
First came the public outcry, then, the Twinkie hoarding. We even came up with a list of Twinkie alternatives for those that just couldn't get by without them.
But wait! Not so fast... News outlets are now reporting that major retailers like Wal-Mart and Kroger are interested in buying the company. This means Hostess treats could be resurrected just in time for Easter. On the third day, the Twinkie rose again...
9. Presidential Election Food Polls
This year's hottest news item was the Presidential election. But there was no need to watch the election results to see who won; you could just follow the Edible Polls. From red and blue cheeses at the Park Hyatt in D.C., to the 7-Eleven Coffee Cup Challenge, everybody was trying to predict the upcoming election. And it seems they were mostly right -- both challenges favored blue.
8. Jamie Oliver And The Pink Slime Social Media Firestorm (By the way, this my new band name.)
Pink slime is the lean finely textured beef and boneless lean beef trimmings that is used as a filler in ground beef products. In April 2011, Jamie Oliver criticized the use of pink slime in food supply and school lunches in an episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution.
In March of this year, ABC News brought it back into the limelight by running a series of controversial reports on the product's safety and health issues. As a result, there was a social media uproar, along with a couple of ongoing defamation lawsuits against ABC, Jamie Oliver, Diane Sawyer and more.
