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Complete Forecast for  Jul 06 2008

From Staff And Wire Reports

Tyler Farmer's Market opens its 25th season Saturday at the East Texas State Fairgrounds from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. The market will be open each Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday throughout the summer.

Early local homegrown offerings include: new potatoes, sweet onions, green beans, turnip greens, fresh yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, berries, peaches and green tomatoes.

For more information, call market president David Claiborne at 903-570-3808. Vendor booths still are available.

East Texas FRESH Farmer's Market, located in the parking lot of Bed, Bath and Beyond and the RoomStore at 4828 S. Broadway Ave., will offer an array of seasonal produce, plants and more all from local farmers. Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon, you can find free range eggs, turnip greens, collard greens, mustard greens, kale, carrots, radishes, chard, asparagus, onions, mixed lettuces, new potatoes, green beans, broccoli, squash, spinach, fennel, wheat grass, herbs, tomato plants, potted herbs, honey, fresh-cut flowers, handmade soaps and bath and body lotions. Coming Soon - tomatoes, berries and sweet corn.

For information, log on to www.easttexasfresh.com.

ATLANTA - Do you dream of Beef 'n Cheddars and Jamocha Shakes? Do thoughts of eating another greasy burger make you break out in a cold sweat? Then you just might have what it takes to be the next member of the Arby's Rescue Brigade and win a role in an upcoming Arby's commercial.

"We're searching high and low across the continental United States for that one special talent who can join forces with us to fight the good fight and prevent others from falling victim to ordinary fast food," said John Maddox, captain of the Arby's Rescue Brigade.

Submit your video entries at www.arbysrescuebrigade.com to become the next Arby's Rescue Brigade member. You could win a role in an upcoming commercial and free Arby's food for a year. The video contest runs now through June 30. For additional rules and regulations, visit www.arbysrescuebrigade.com.

If your morning java just isn't giving you enough jolt, now you can get a boost while channeling your inner child.

Tootsie Roll Industries Inc., the maker of Tootsie Rolls, has launched Maxxed Energy Pops, a cleverly packaged energy drink in the form of a lollipop.

The caffeine-laced pops, which come in packages that resemble energy drink cans, have 40 milligrams of caffeine (an 8-ounce coffee has about 95 milligrams).

The pops, which have a lime green color and flavor, contain various herbs and supplements, such as taurine, ginseng and guarana. And plenty of sugar (16 grams per pop).

The company says the intended audience isn't children, but rather the energy drink-hungry 18- to 24-year-old demographic.

Maxxed Energy Pops are available at convenience stores nationwide for $1.

Brown rice, a 100 percent whole grain food, joins the recognized ranks of healthful whole grains, according to an announcement last week from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that will allow brown rice food labels to bear the whole grain health claim. This will enable consumers to easily identify brown rice as a food to help them increase whole grain consumption and reduce their risk of heart disease and certain cancers.

Brown rice and other whole grain foods are widely recommended to consumers by the public health community including the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society and the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans for their protective effects against heart disease and certain cancers.

In fact, the Dietary Guidelines recommend "making half of all grain servings whole," or three daily whole grain servings in a standard 2,000-calorie reference diet.

Still, data from a recent consumer survey conducted by EatingWell magazine and the USA Rice Federation show that the majority of Americans (65 percent) are not meeting their whole grains quota.

Consumers can now be on the lookout for brown rice labeled with the FDA whole grain health claim: "Diets rich in whole grain foods and other plant foods and low in total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers."

At just 100 calories a piece, you can share snack time with your kids and satisfy your sweet tooth - without gaining guilt.

Each crunchy wafer bar is layered with peanut butter and covered in fudge. Nutty Bar Singles come individually wrapped, 12 to a carton for about $1.59 per box.

Editor's Note: They really taste no different than regular Nutty Bars, but are packaged in singles rather than doubles.