Food Fights

A tasty history of other cuisine battles before trans fats.

By Mike Thelin

Rest easy, restaurants—for the moment.

The local food police have backed off the prowl to ruin dinner, holding off on putting trans fats—also known as hydrogenated oils—on the chopping block ("No Fries for You," WW, Oct. 25, 2006).

After state agencies told Multnomah County that it lacks authority to ban trans fats from restaurants in its jurisdiction, the county Board of Commissioners last week unanimously approved a watered-down resolution. The resolution merely directs the county's Health Department to prepare a plan to educate the public about the health hazards associated with artificial trans fats.

Still, Commissioner Lisa Naito, who wanted an outright trans-fat ban in county restaurants by next year, vows to press on.

A look at a history of other food items that many wanted to make into ingredients-non-grata shows Multnomah County isn't the first to learn it's not that easy to yank stuff from people's plates.

WWeek 2015

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