Bulking Up Turbulent meat prices could push Americans to buy a year’s worth of beef at a time — a huge shift to how we think about meat.

With meat prices spiking and the future uncertain, more consumers are buying quarter and half cows and storing them in standalone freezers.

Will the trend grow? @eg-h.bsky.social takes a look: ambrook.com/offrange/liv...

Today, Friday, January 16, 2026, the Vox Media Union received news from management about more layoffs at the company: three in-unit workers from PopSugar, two from The Verge, and three from Eater — not including a number of out-of-unit employees — some of whom were on parental and other types of company-approved leave. Beyond this, the company announced that it will no longer have a centralized Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI+) team, redistributing that work across the People team and leadership, and keeping Employee Resource Groups as simply Slack spaces without formal lead roles or any standalone budgets. There is almost no further room to be shocked at these developments, as the company has laid off workers at an average of once per quarter in the last year, but we continue to be disgusted by the fact that leadership seems to have developed no real learning or commitment to workforce sustainability and retention. Those at the top remain safe in their positions while mercilessly cutting off those who work day in and day out (and then some) to make sure that essential, business-critical work is done. Our indispensable colleagues are now in extra vulnerable positions, having to navigate workplace bureaucracy alongside a volatile job market and relentless threats to the integrity of journalism as a whole. This union is proud to have rallied in multiple rounds of contract bargaining to ensure more equitable worker rights and protections in the face of management incompetence. As always, we, along with our Guild reps, will continue to demand that members are treated fairly in the aftermath of layoffs. Details on how you can support laid-off workers at Vox Media will be forthcoming. Please follow the Vox Media Union on Instagram (@voxmediaunion) and Bluesky (@voxunion.bsky.social). Solidarity forever. The Vox Media Union Committees Writers Guild of America East, AFL-CIO

Another year, another round of layoffs at Vox Media. In solidarity with our laid-off colleagues, here is our full statement:

Better wines among the pines: Agroforestry can climate-proof grapes, French researchers show MONTPELLIER, France — As the world warms due to climate change, winemakers are struggling to maintain the quality of their product. But in the home of wine, agroforestry researchers are showing that g...

France plans to spend $150 million to rip out grape vines due to wine industry woes from increasing heat, drought, etc

Yet planting rows of trees around vines can drought- & heat-proof them while keeping production up w/o irrigation

I reported about this #agroforestry solution in southern France:

Wendell Berry

“It is easy for me to imagine that the next great division of the world

will be between people who wish to live as creatures

& people who wish to live as machines.”

― Wendell Berry, "Life is a Miracle"

On Cape Cod, the Wampanoag Assert Their Legal Right to Harvest the Waters Not everyone respects that right. But the Wampanoag are determined to continue, saying their work is an essential expression of 12,000 years of heritage, sovereignty, and lifeways.

And finally, part I of my award-winning series for @civileats.com about the Wampanoag fishers who are asserting their right to fish in Cape Cod’s dying waterways, and what their tenacity means for their culture and the environment writ large civileats.com/2024/08/21/o...

The Not-So-Hidden Price of Being a "Blue-Collar Babe" Despite a skilled labor shortage, women are still routinely discouraged from working in blue-collar trades, even though more want to now than ever.

A deep-dive into Gen Z’s obsession with being a “blue-collar babe” despite the constant harassment that women in the trades experience online and on job sites. For @popsugar.com: www.popsugar.com/careers/blue...

The Snails at the End of the World - Offrange As ecological collapse forces New England’s fishers to diversify their catch, a sea snail once considered a nuisance might be able to stack up.

My latest for Offrange about the most abundant protein source right under our feet at low tide — the slipper snail — and the fishers, chefs, and advocates across New England who are working to get it onto our menus and into our fish markets ambrook.com/offrange/liv...

Suddenly Birding Is the Hot-Girl Hobby of the Year Birding — AKA watching, listening to, and sometimes tracking birds in the wild — was once an overlooked pastime. Now it's the hot-girl hobby of the year.

My favorite story for @popsugar.com was also the site’s top performing IG post for the month of September: a dispatch on how birding culture has taken over the internet, and what that means for conservation www.popsugar.com/hobbies/rise...

You’ll find an updated bio reflecting the awards I’ve won this year, a ✨new headshot✨, and a roundup of my favorite recent stories that capture the breadth of character-driven reporting on culture, climate, internet trends, and more that I specialize in. Threading some here, too:

Home Home

“Update website” has been on my to-do list for way too long, but now there’s finally a ✅ next to it. Check out my handiwork here: eg-h.com

Yeah

The Legacy of Black Oyster Farmers - Offrange Steeped in a rich history, Black oystermen and women across U.S. coastal regions have been disappearing for decades — a revival may be underway.

"There generally isn’t a lot of widespread coverage of Black oyster economies and farmers.”

That's why we had @iamtabari.bsky.social dig into the rich legacy of Black oystermen and women in the U.S., who helped build it into a multibillion-dollar industry today.
ambrook.com/offrange/fis...

Suddenly Birding Is the Hot-Girl Hobby of the Year Birding — AKA watching, listening to, and sometimes tracking birds in the wild — was once an overlooked pastime. Now it's the hot-girl hobby of the year.

Where the bird girls of bluesky at 👀 my latest on @popsugar.com is for you ❤️‍🔥🐦‍⬛❤️‍🔥 #birding www.popsugar.com/hobbies/rise...

“If you believe there are infinite stories to tell about restaurants — as immigration raids threaten the industry, as rising prices put the pinch on almost everyone, and as real estate woes push beloved restaurants to the brink — then you should be deeply sad about what’s happening to Eater.”

I'm officially out of a job--they eliminated mine, and I'm taking severance instead of a wildly different title they offered me that's not at all what I was hired to do. Solidarity forever 🌺, and while I take a breather someone come up with some good ideas of work I could do.

“You can smell the grasshoppers eating your vegetables. No one feels good about that,” Laura Snell @ucanr.bsky.social told ⁦Emma Glassman-Hughes @eg-h.bsky.social of Offrange

Grasshoppers Wreaking Havoc - Offrange California producers are reporting up to 70% crop loss from grasshoppers. Where is the federal management agency that’s designed to assist with this very problem?

Some northern California producers are reporting up to 70% crop loss from grasshoppers. Where is the federal management agency that’s designed to assist with this very problem? My latest for Offrange:

Thank you!! Emotional week 🥴

On Cape Cod, the Wampanoag Assert Their Legal Right to Harvest the Waters Not everyone respects that right. But the Wampanoag are determined to continue, saying their work is an essential expression of 12,000 years of heritage, sovereignty, and lifeways.

The first part of that 2-part story, which also won 2nd place in the food feature category from @wearesfj.bsky.social, is here

While I was busy negotiating a fair contract for @voxmediaunion.bsky.social last week, I was honored to learn my @civileats.com story about fishing rights won two Indigenous Media awards, including in the best feature category! Thanks to the Indigenous Journalists Association for this recognition 🥲

Extremely proud to have been along for the ride as a member of this bargaining committee. This past week has been the highlight of my short tenure at Vox Media, and an invaluable education in what it looks like to show up for your people and your industry when it matters most. Union strong 🌺

WE HAVE A TENTATIVE CONTRACT PROUD TO BE @voxmediaunion.bsky.social

📣📣📣📣📣 STRIKE AUTHORIZED, LET'S GOOOO 📣📣📣📣📣📣

Thanks for wanting to help! Should we go on strike, the most important thing is not to cross the picket line: don't click on, read, listen to, or watch any Vox Media products for the duration of the strike.

Should we go on strike, we'll have more specific ways to help out, so stay tuned! Thank you!

Members of the Vox Media Union bargaining committee gathered around a conference table.

25.5 hours left and still waiting on a fair contract

betting this auspicious Solidarity Moon will help 😌

we’re ready to strike if we don’t get a good contract

This is an incredible crew of folks fighting to enshrine crucial protections in their union contract. That contract will be looked to by many other unions and companies as they navigate this world that is so deeply hostile to the journalism and the truth. Give them your support!

Hand made picket sign reads "Hey Vox, feel good about our strike? -PS"

Various handmade picket signs against an office window.

Vox Media workers creating handmade signs.

Picket sign reads "Vox Media Union ON STRIKE! CONTRACT NOW!"

😤

2 days left in the Vox Media Union contract so we had a pizza and sign making party about it

thank you for the solidarity @kevincortez.huffpost.com 🤝 lets get this fair contract!