ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
Meat prices up by 10 percent compared to 2019. Summer is in full swing, but before you throw steaks on the grill, listen up. Some steaks and roasts on store shelves have been mechanically tenderized. It is a process experts say can make the meat tastier, but until recently there were no rules in place to let consumers know if what they were buying had been tenderized. Teri Gault, founder and CEO of TheGroceryGame.com, is a grocery savings expert. She stocks up on beef whenever it’s on sale. “Because we eat it about once or twice a week,” she said. While Teri knows all about how to save, one thing she didn’t know until recently is that some of the steaks and roasts on store shelves have been mechanically tenderized during processing. “I had no idea. I don’t mind meat being tenderized but I need to know about it because it does bear on how I’m going to cook it,” said Gault. And experts say Teri has the right idea. When beef is mechanically tenderized, needles or blades are used to break down the connective tissue in the meat, allowing for a more tender product but that could cause a potential issue. “Basically the process is such that if there are pathogens present it will drive them into the inner muscle, and you just can’t tell by looking at products whether they’re mechanically tenderized or not,” said USDA Deputy Undersecretary for Food Safety, Alfred Almanza. “Consumers need to know that this product is mechanically tenderized so they know they have to cook it differently. A mechanically tenderized steak needs to be cooked more thoroughly for sure,” said Chris Waldrop with the Food Policy Institute, Consumer Federation of America. Starting next year, the USDA will require labels similar to these on all beef that has been mechanically tenderized. “It’ll have two, two things on the label: number one it will have the cooking instructions, along with the rest time and it will also have the process in which it had been mechanically tenderized,” said Almanza. Cooking instructions like minimum internal temperature and the time the beef should sit before you cut into it will be included on the labels along with terms like: mechanically tenderized, blade tenderized, or needle tenderized. “Mechanically tenderized is the broad scope of the process. Blade tenderized is a more narrow focused where you’re just using a blade. Needle tenderized is generally associated with a marinated product,” explained Barry Carpenter of the North American Meat Institute. Carpenter says tenderization enhances the quality of the meat for consumers and he points out the industry has taken steps on its own to reduce the risk that tenderization will transfer pathogens to the interior of the meat. “The industry has done a number of things to improve the safety: more interventions to reduce the microbial load on product before it goes into the either blade tenderizing or the, the needle tenderizing process,” he said. Consumer advocate Chris Waldrop believes the new labels are important but he says if you see one, it doesn’t mean you should put the package down and buy something else. “I don’t think consumers need to avoid this product. I think they just need to cook it properly and the labeling and the instructions is going to help them do that,” said Waldrop. That’s what Gault plans to do, and she is going to be on the lookout for labels. “I’m glad it’s coming soon. I’m not one to normally like a lot of labeling because it usually ups the price of the food but I think this is important enough,” She said. USDA Deputy Undersecretary Alfred Almanza says he expects the new labels to result in approximately 500 fewer illnesses per year. The rule goes into effect may of 2016, so in the meantime Almanza recommends cooking all steaks and roasts to the recommended 145 degree internal temperature with a three minute wait time before cutting into them. If you think you have seen labels like this already, you are right. Costco has actually been voluntarily labeling the mechanically tenderized meat it sells for about two years.