By Jeffrey Kluger Thursday, Jul. 08, 2010

This year, like every year, has been a busy one for America's chickens. What the birds lack in smarts they make up for in work ethic, laying about 78 billion eggs annually (or 6.5 billion dozen), supplying a $7 billion industry. GM should be doing so well.

Like any other workers, hens turn out economy, premium and luxury products — known as factory, cage-free and organic eggs — and consumers pay accordingly. A recent survey conducted in one random city — Athens, Ga. — found factory eggs going for $1.69 per dozen, cage-free for $2.99 to $3.59, and organic for $3.99 to a whopping $5.38.

By Sean Gregory Friday, Jul. 02, 2010 
 
Millions of parents know the drill. Stevie wants to go to McDonald's for a Happy Meal, because along with his burger and fries comes the ultimate little kid payoff: a toy. It's a cheap little thing, and he'll get sick of it in three hours. Still, it's a toy. Go ahead — you just try denying little Stevie his wishes.

If one health advocacy group has its way, parents will never have to face this common dilemma again. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has sent a demand letter to McDonald's that threatens to sue the company unless it stops using toys to market Happy Meals to young children. "By advertising that Happy Meals include toys, McDonald's unfairly and deceptively markets directly to children," the CSPI writes in the letter. The Center claims that since marketing to children under 8 is "inherently deceptive," the company is violating consumer-protection laws in states like Massachusetts, Texas, California and New Jersey. "These children are not cognitively developed enough to know they're getting anything but a free toy," says Stephen Gardner, litigation director for CSPI.
(See the 10 worst fast-food meals.)

By SUZANNE DALEY
Published: June 27, 2010

MADRID — This was the deal that Gema Díaz, 34, thought she had made: When she took a job with this city as a purchasing agent 12 years ago, she knew her salary would be low.
But the income would be reliable. She could expect steady raises, manageable hours, six weeks of vacation, a good pension and the usual benefits — from free health care to subsidized housing.

May 18, 2010, 11:19 a.m.  

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- There's never been a better time to teach your children how to manage money. As lawmakers debate how to reform the nation's banking system and news stories detail the travails of Americans who took on too much debt, parents can point to the current economy as a way to talk to kids about the risks of credit.

"Looking at all the news stories that show people who have lost their homes from too much debt or are incurring substantial interest charges or who have bad credit and can't get an apartment or job, it's a wonderful way for parents to teach their kids about credit or debt," said Ric Edelman, author and financial adviser.

June 22, 2010LONDON, June 22 —Britain’s influential health cost watchdog called today for major changes in food production and marketing and said drastic cuts in fat and salt levels were needed to halt the scourge of heart disease.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) said trans fats, which do little more than prolong shelf life, should be banned from all food, saturated fat levels cut drastically and average salt intake more than halved by 2025.