Stop scrubbing those carrots: the greatest social contribution of the farmers’ market may be its role as a delivery vehicle for putting dirt back into the American diet and in the process, reacquainting our immune system with some “old friends”: (full story, New York Times)

In the good news column: a recent study showed that kids’ cereals are more nutritious on average than a few years ago. In the bad news column: those aren’t the ones being advertised, and ads for the least nutritious products are increasing: (full story, LA Times)

Bill Niman argues that if you’re not one to buy a tomato or strawberries in January, you shouldn’t be one to buy grass-fed beef when it’s not in season. (We’ve got his amazing seasonal beef in, pick up a cut for your 4th of July grill!) (full story, East Bay Express)

Food packaging may not be the sexiest part of what we put in our shopping baskets, but I’m a sucker for these fresh designs Ikea will use to introduce weird Swedish delicacies to the international market: (full story, Fast Company)

For you history buffs, a dive into why Americans eat so much meat, why we’ve led the world in the innovations that made meat affordable, and why rich Americans no longer eat more meat than poor Americans: (full story, NPR)