• A long, wet summer in Korea has raised prices of Chinese cabbage from $2 to $10, skyrocketing the price of kimchi. [FT]
• Asia de Cuba made an appearance on The Simpsons this week. [Eater N.Y.]
• The UK Health Secretary has apologized to Jamie Oliver for dismissing his healthy-eating activism as “rubbish.” [Guardian]
• Over 100 inmates in Iowa jails are receiving food stamps, even though by virtue of being in prison they don’t qualify for the assistance. [Chicago Tribune]
• A tech startup in Austin, TX has raised over $2 million to launch TabbedOut, a smartphone app that lets bar and restaurant patrons open and close tabs without having to interact with the bartender or server. [Austin Statesman]
• Accused of arson after starting last year’s “Lady Bug Fire” in Southern California, Babatusin Olukunle’s defense attorneys claim he was mentally incompetent and just trying to cook rice. [Whittier Daily News]
• Upstart food businesses like Auntie’s Fry Bread Tacos and Chill Baby were funded through donations on Kickstarter. [L.A. Times]
• Cookbook author Grace Young claims “stir-fry is a dying art form.” [Zester Daily]
• L.A. farmers markets are becoming a part of student social life at UCLA. [Daily Bruin]
• A Federal Appeals Court has overturned the state of Ohio’s ban on identifying RBGH-free milk as such; the case seems likely to go to the Supreme Court. [The Atlantic]
• It turns out the most effective way to clean produce is with a vinegar rinse followed by tap water. [NYT]