• MSN
  • Hotmail
  • More
    • Autos
    • My MSN
    • Video
    • Careers & Jobs
    • Personals
    • Weather
    • Delish
    • Quotes
    • White Pages
    • Games
    • Real Estate
    • Wonderwall
    • Horoscopes
    • Shopping
    • Yellow Pages
    • Local Edition
    • Traffic
    • Feedback
    • Maps & Directions
    • Travel
    • Full MSN Index
  • Bing
  • NBCNews.com
  • TODAY
  • Nightly News
  • Rock Center
  • Meet the Press
  • Dateline
  • msnbc
  • Breaking News
  • Newsvine
  • Home
  • US
  • World
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Travel
  • Local
  • Weather
Advertise | AdChoices
  • Recommended: 'Standing Man' goes viral, inspires silent protests in Turkey
  • Recommended: Derelict Northern Ireland shops get facelift ahead of G8 summit
  • Recommended: The Week in Pictures: June 6 - 13
  • Recommended: Booming population, rising seas threaten future of island nation

Conversations sparked by photojournalism. Follow us on Twitter to keep up-to-date.

  • ↓ About this blog
  • ↓ Archives
    • Icons Email E-mail updates
    • Icons Twitter Follow on Twitter
    • Icons Feed Subscribe to RSS
  • 22
    May
    2013
    4:42pm, EDT

    Fast times at snail farm: four tons produced per month

    Jose Miguel Gomez / Reuters

    A worker prepares to put snails (Helix Aspersa) on their panels in a farm near Choachi. Colombia Husband and wife team Armando and Mariela Rey own Colombia's largest snail farm, exporting the bulk of their 200,000 snails - or four tons - monthly production to Canada. The gourmet snails are processed using a French cooking technique and some are sold locally to Colombian restaurants.

    Jose Miguel Gomez / Reuters

    A worker washes panels where snails (Helix Aspersa) are fed in the farm.

    Jose Miguel Gomez / Reuters

    Snails feed on their panels at the farm.

    Jose Miguel Gomez / Reuters

    Snail shells of the Helix Aspersa variety wait to be washed.

    Jose Miguel Gomez / Reuters

    Workers prepare the meat of snails, cooked and packed in their shells .

    Check out more farming pictures from around the world in PhotoBlog.

    A retired couple in Colombia has turned their plant eaters into a thriving business that exports four tons of snail meat a month to Europe. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.

    Comment

    Show more
    Explore related topics: colombia, farm, food, agriculture, snail
  • 6
    May
    2013
    10:37am, EDT

    Stilton Cheese Festival rolls through town

    Peter Macdiarmid / Getty Images

    A team dressed as characters from The Wizard of Oz roll wooden "cheese" during the Stilton Village Festival cheese rolling competition on May 6 in Stilton, England.

    Peter Macdiarmid / Getty Images

    A team called 'Fromage to the Silver Screen' parades before taking part in the Stilton Village Festival cheese rolling competition on May 6 in Stilton.

    Peter Macdiarmid / Getty Images

    A team wears inflatable dolphins during the Stilton Village Festival cheese rolling competition on May 6 in Stilton, England.

    Peter Macdiarmid / Getty Images

    The Pig Dyke Molly dancers take part in the Stilton Village Festival on May 6 in Stilton, England.

    For more than a decade, the Stilton Cheese Rolling Festival has been an annual event in Stilton, England when hundreds of villagers and visitors battle for the honor of becoming cheese rolling champions.

    Local people are currently involved in a campaign to bring Stilton cheese making back to the village. The cheese is currently only made in the counties of Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Derbyshire, Getty Images reported.

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

    Comment

    Show more
    Explore related topics: food, england, parade, world-news, cheese, stilton
  • 18
    Apr
    2013
    12:32pm, EDT

    Famed breed of Spanish horses may be destined for butcher's block

    Laura Leon / AP

    A mare, a ''Pura Raza Espanola," or Pure Spanish Breed, runs next to the stable at "La Yeguada de Cuatro Vientos" ranch in Almonte, in southern Spain's Andalusia region on April 8. Barring an unlikely reprieve, the purebreds at this ranch will be turned into horse meat for export in the coming months.

    Laura Leon / AP

    A Pure Spanish Breed horse rears up inside a stable at La Yeguada de la Nobleza ranch in Almonte, Andalusia, Spain.

    By Alan Clendenning, The Associated Press

    The southern Spanish region of Andalusia, famed for flamenco and Moorish castles, is also home to a legendary breed of horses that carried conquistadors into battle in the Americas, featured in Hollywood epics and more recently became trophy acquisitions for Spaniards during a giddy economic boom.

    On his grassy ranch in the territory's heartland, 73-year-old Francisco Mesa breeds these ''Pura Raza Espanola" - Pure Spanish Breed - horses with a passion that comes from years of pampering the elegant beasts known for their intelligence and affection for humans. He enters a muddy pen and is immediately surrounded by mares and foals who nuzzle him with tenderness, oblivious of their almost certain fate: the slaughterhouse. 

    Barring an unlikely reprieve, Mesa' purebreds will be turned into horse meat for export come July. They are victims of a wrenching economic downturn that has wiped out fortunes, turned housing developments into ghost towns and left more than a quarter of the population out of work. Read more here 

    Laura Leon / AP

    Butcher Manuel Delgado prepares a piece of a ''Pura Raza Espanola,'' Pure Spanish Breed horse meat, at a horse meat butcher in Camas, Spain.

    Laura Leon / AP

    Breeder Francisco Mesa places his hand on the back of one of his Pure Spanish Breed horses at "La Yeguada de la Nobleza" ranch on April 8.

    Laura Leon / AP

    Sculptures of horse heads decorate the main entrance of "La Yeguada de Cuatro Vientos" ranch, belonging to breeder Francisco Jose Rodriguez, in Almonte, Andalusia, Spain, on April 8.

    Laura Leon / AP

    Pure Spanish Breed mares, belonging to breeder Francisco Jose Rodriguez, walk in a field at "La Yeguada de Cuatro Vientos" ranch in Almonte, Andalusia, Spain, on April 2.

    Laura Leon / AP

    A Pure Spanish Breed horse belonging to breeder Francisco Mesa at "La Yeguada de la Nobleza" in Almonte, Andalusia, Spain, on April 8.

    Previously on PhotoBlog:

    • Riders jump horses over flames to honor patron saint of animals in Spain
    • Just keep swimming, Shoshoni: A horse gets his exercise in Scotland's largest loch
    • Leading a horse to water in Gaza

     

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

     

    45 comments

    Where are all the billionaires who could buy these horses as a 'minor' hobby to play with? Or the rock and movie stars who seem to have more money than they know what to do with?

    Show more
    Explore related topics: spain, europe, food, meat, horses, world-news, featured
  • 17
    Apr
    2013
    6:07pm, EDT

    Competitive dough-tossers showcase pizza skills

    Marco Vasini / AP

    Bradley Johnson, of United States, performs with his dough during the freestyle event, part of the Pizza World Championships, in Parma, northern Italy on Wednesday. The 22th edition of the championships run from April 15 to April 17.

    Marco Vasini / AP

    Juan Ramirez Hermosillo, of Mexico, performs with his dough during the acrobatic pizza event.

    Marco Vasini / AP

    Alessandro Colluccino, of Italy, performs with his dough during the acrobatic pizza event.

     

    Comment

    Show more
    Explore related topics: italy, food, pizza, world-news
  • 5
    Apr
    2013
    1:46pm, EDT

    Only in the Bronx: Fishmongers vie for the best catch in dead of night

    John Minchillo / AP

    A fishmonger tosses a halibut onto a table at the Fulton Fish Market, on March 29, 2013, in New York. The Fulton Fish Market, located in the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx, is the world's largest after Tokyo. In this football-field size refrigerated building, time and money are measured in thousand-dollar pieces of salmon whose price-for-quality is negotiated on the spot. The product goes to the buyer instantly and is trucked to restaurants or retail vendors.

    John Minchillo / AP

    Fishmongers ply their trade on the floor of the Fulton Fish Market, on March 29, 2013, in New York.

    By VERENA DOBNIK , The Associated Press

    Think Wall Street trading is brutal? Head up to the grittiest part of the South Bronx, where cutthroat deals are made in the dead of night on a massive concrete floor that reeks of fish guts.

    The New Fulton Fish Market is the nation's largest seafood market, and second in the world to Tokyo's. Here, in a refrigerated building the size of six football fields, fishmongers are frenetically filleting, selling and packaging seafood — 200 million pounds a year worth close to $1 billion by some estimates. It is headed for restaurant tables, stores and mouths across America.

    Glistening under the fluorescent lights is just about every sea creature. Most come in by truck, but about half are flown in from the ends of the Earth: Arctic char from Iceland; mahi-mahi from Ecuador; hamachi from Japan; branzino from Greece; salmon from Scotland; cockles from New Zealand.

    Experienced buyers negotiate prices in seconds, judging quality on a look, a touch, a smell and often a raw taste.

    Continue reading.

    Editor's note: Photos taken on March 29 and made available to NBC News today.

    John Minchillo / AP

    A fishmonger peels the spine from a tuna at the Fulton Fish Market, on March 29, 2013, in New York.

    John Minchillo / AP

    Roberto Nunez, a buyer for multiple high-end New York establishments, including Eataly Gourmet Food Market, places an order at the Fulton Fish Market, on March 29, 2013, in New York.

    John Minchillo / AP

    Fresh fish rest in ice while awaiting purchase at the Fulton Fish Market, on March 29, 2013, in New York.

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

     

    Comment

    Show more
    Explore related topics: food, fish, new-york-city, us-news, bronx
  • 27
    Mar
    2013
    1:08pm, EDT

    Private food markets gradually see the light of day in Cuba

    Desmond Boylan / Reuters

    Men unload vegetables from a truck for wholesale at a market before dawn in Havana on Feb. 14. Communist-run Cuba is gradually dismantling its monopoly on the purchase and sale of food in favor of private vendors, as part of efforts to reform the Soviet-style economy. With the country importing around 60 percent of its food and private farmers outperforming state farms on a fraction of the land, the government is systematically deregulating the sector, leasing fallow land to would-be farmers and encouraging private transportation and sales.

    Desmond Boylan / Reuters

    A man sits in a car loaded with carrots at a wholesale market on the outskirts of Havana on March 26.

    Desmond Boylan / Reuters

    A man arranges vegetables for sale on a tricycle in the village of Sagua La Grande in central Cuba, around 149 miles east of Havana on March 10.

    Desmond Boylan / Reuters

    A woman holds money to pay a farmer in the village of Sagua La Grande in central Cuba, around 149 miles east of Havana on March 2.

    By Marc Frank, Reuters

    Cubans are building private food distribution networks from the farm through to retail outlets as communist authorities gradually dismantle the state's monopoly on the purchase and sale of agricultural products.

    The country's first wholesale produce market is up and running on the outskirts of Havana and across the island farmers report they are selling more of their goods directly to customers, ranging from hotels to individual vendors.

    Those involved say the change is speeding the flow of food to market, helping end longstanding inefficiencies that often left crops to rot in fields and putting more money in the pockets of producers. Continue reading.

    Enrique De La Osa / Reuters

    Tomatoes are displayed for sale at a private wholesale market in Havana on March 26.

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures
    Previously on PhotoBlog:
    • Cuba's fishing industry sustainable in private sector
    • Cuba evolves from its socialist past as private enterprise takes root
    • 'Peanut man' takes advantage of Cuban economic reforms


    11 comments

    cuba is shrinking away from socialist government and restricted freedoms for it's citizens. obama wants to fill the void by taking the US down that road.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: cuba, food
  • 22
    Feb
    2013
    6:37pm, EST

    Guinea pig meat improves food security in war-torn Congo

    Reuters

    Reuters

    Action Against Hunger International (ACF) workers get local residents' fingerprints before distributing guinea pigs as part of a food security program in Congo.

    Action Against Hunger International (ACF) workers distribute guinea pigs to community members as part of a food security program in Karete, Congo, Feb. 19, 2013. Over 500 guinea pigs were distributed to the locals by the non-profit organization that focuses their programs and activities in the field mainly on nutrition and prevention of malnutrition.

    Reuters

    Workers prepare guinea pigs before distribution of the animals to the community of Karet.

     

    6 comments

    Too0o0o0o0o0o0 Many of We Humans in the world. When MomNature Steps in to protect her Innocent Children aka The Animals of Planet Earth and who have been doing an EXCELLENT job as Earth's Caretakers, We are gonna" Pay with a brutal culling of Our Species which ONLY MomNature Knows how to do.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: food, congo, world-news, guinea-pig
  • 7
    Feb
    2013
    11:15am, EST

    From dumpster to table: German foodsharers salvage vegetables

    Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

    Benjamin Schmittand Helena Jachmann, supporters of the foodsharing movement sort through food found in a dumpster behind a supermarket in Berlin, February 4. Foodsharing is a German internet based platform where individuals, retailers or producers have the possibility of offering surplus food to consumers for free.

    Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

    Helena Jachmann, supporter of the foodsharing movement holds a pepper found in a dumpster behind a supermarket in Berlin, Feb. 4. Foodsharing is a German internet based platform where individuals, retailers or producers have the possibility of offering surplus food to consumers for free.

    Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

    Benjamin Schmitt and Helena Jachmann, supporters of the foodsharing movement sort food found in a dumpster behind a supermarket in Berlin, Feb. 4.

    Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

    Raphael Fellmer, a supporter of the foodsharing movement shows Christmas biscuits collected from waste bins of supermarket at his home in Berlin, on Jan. 31.

    Fabrizio Bensch / Reuters

    Raphael Fellmer, a supporter of the foodsharing movement has lunch with his partner Nieves Palmer Muntaner, with food cooked from vegetables from waste of an organic supermarket in Berlin, on Jan. 24.

     

    By Stephen Brown, Reuters

    Published at 11:15a.m. ET: BERLIN  - Just past midnight behind a Berlin supermarket, two youngsters with torches strapped to their woollen hats sift through rubbish bins for food that is still edible, load their bikes with bread, vegetables and chocolate Santas and cycle off into the darkness.

    It is not poverty that inspires a growing number of young Germans like 21-year-old student Benjamin Schmitt to forage for food in the garbage, but anger at loss and waste which the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates at one-third of all food produced worldwide, every year, valued at about $1 trillion. Continue Reading.

     

    Follow @msnbc_pictures

    •Sign up for the msnbc.com Photos Newsletter

    1 comment

    "It is not poverty that inspires ...." Yeah, right. Less mindless spewing on of popular propaganda. Thank you.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: germany, food, health, society, dumpster
  • 6
    Feb
    2013
    11:21am, EST

    Romeo Ranoco / Reuters

    Newly-recruited Filipino marines perform delicate lunchtime balancing act

    Newly-recruited female marines take their lunch with fellow Filipino soldiers after undergoing drills inside the marine headquarters in the town of Ternate, south of Manila on Tuesday.

    There are an estimated 350 women combatants in the 10,000-member Philippine marines who go through the same rigid physical and mental training as their male counterparts.

    Since 2006, female marine officers of the Marine Corps have been performing in the field of assault armor, field artillery, airborne and other combat duties, a marine officer said. -- Reuters

    Related:

    How the US military can become 'a band of brothers and sisters'

    2 comments

    or are they happy to see me?

    Show more
    Explore related topics: food, philippines, asia, military, world-news
  • 6
    Feb
    2013
    10:20am, EST

    Desperate Greeks scuffle at free food handout

    Louisa Gouliamaki / AFP - Getty Images

    People reach out for a bag of oranges during a free distribution of fruit and vegetables by Greek farmers outside the Agriculture Ministry in Athens, part of a farmers' protest against high production costs on Feb. 6, 2013.

    John Kolesidis / Reuters

    Athens residents reach out to take fruit and vegetables distributed for free by farmers.

    Reuters reports — Hundreds of Greeks scuffled for free vegetables handed out by farmers on Wednesday, leaving one man trampled and injured, and prompting an outcry over the growing desperation created by economic crisis.

    Startling images of Greeks struggling to seize bags of tomatoes and leeks thrown from a truck dominated Greek television, triggering a bout of soul-searching over the new depths of poverty in the debt-laden country.

    "These images make me angry. Angry for a proud people who have no food to eat, who can't afford to keep warm, who can't make ends meet," said Kostas Barkas, a lawmaker from the leftist Syriza party. Read the full story.

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

     

    25 comments

    Hey america has this too . it is called 48 million and growing on food stamps. but believe the media when they tell you everything is great.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: economy, europe, food, protest, poverty, greece, agriculture, athens, world-news
  • 2
    Jan
    2013
    8:46am, EST

    Backlash forces shark fin traders onto Hong Kong rooftops

    Antony Dickson / AFP - Getty Images

    Shark fins drying in the sun cover the roof of a factory building in Hong Kong on Jan. 2, 2013.

    Paul Hilton / EPA

    Approximately 18 thousand shark fins are left out to dry on top of an industrial building in Hong Kong's Kennedy Town district on Jan. 2, 2013.

    Bobby Yip / Reuters

    Shark fins, which cost between HK$2,880 ($369) and HK$3,580 ($459) per Chinese catty (1 pound), are seen on display inside a dried seafood store in Hong Kong on Jan. 2, 2013.

    Shark fin traders in Hong Kong have taken to drying freshly sliced fins on rooftops since a public outcry over them drying the fins on public sidewalks forced them to move the trade out of sight. 

    Activists have raised concerns that the over-harvesting of fins is causing an environmental calamity. Although sales have fallen in recent years Hong Kong remains one of the world's biggest markets for shark fins, which are used to make soup that is an expensive staple at Chinese banquets.  

    -- European Pressphoto Agency, Agence France-Presse, Reuters

    Bobby Yip / Reuters

    Thousands of pieces of shark fin are dried on the rooftop of a factory building in Hong Kong on Jan. 2, 2013. The fins were shipped from an unknown location and unloaded at a nearby pier to be dried on the rooftop.

    Bobby Yip / Reuters

    Workers lay out pieces of shark fin to dry on a rooftop of a factory building in Hong Kong on Jan. 2, 2013. Local sales of the luxurious gourmet food have fallen in recent years due to its controversial nature, but activists demand a total shark fin ban in the city, labelled by some as the shark fin capital of the world.

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

    •Sign up for the NBCNews.com Photos Newsletter

    26 comments

    When we've finally killed all of the sharks in the ocean and forever upset the balance of the world's waters - only then will we see the stupidity of our ways. We don't deserve this wonderous Earth that we inhabit.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: food, hong-kong, asia, shark, world-news, shark-fin
  • 18
    Dec
    2012
    8:09am, EST

    Pig free to roam in Spanish village — but not for long

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    An Iberian pig rests near villagers in La Alberca on December 14, 2012 near Salamanca, Spain.

    A pig has been given the freedom to roam in a Spanish village — but the clock is ticking. The pig is due to be sacrificed on January 21 in a village raffle in La Alberca with the proceeds going to a local charity, Getty Images reports.

    Dry-cured Iberian ham or Jamon Iberico de bellota is a favorite amongst Spaniards and producers are hoping for improved sales over the busy Christmas period.

    The jamon legs are dry-cured for up to three years after the pigs have been fed on a diet of acorns in the last three months of their lives.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    Children walk with an Iberian pig in the village of La Alberca on December 14, 2012.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    Basilio Hoyos, manager of the Sociedad Chacinera Albercana Cooperative is photographed beside legs of dry-cured Jamon Iberico de bellota in La Alberca on December 14, 2012.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    Manuel Revilla checks by smelling a sample of a leg of dry-cured Jamon Iberico de bellota (acorns) at his small family business in the town of Guijuelo on December 14, 2012.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    Two legs of dry-cured Jamon Iberico de Bellota hang from a wall in the shop of Alberto Lopez Araque on December 14, 2012 in Madrid.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    An Iberian piglet looks out from its pen at the Fermin Jamones farm in the village of La Alberca on December 14, 2012. Fermin Jamones was the first Spanish company to be given an export licence for the lucrative United States market.

    Denis Doyle / Getty Images

    An employee of the Alberto Lopez Araque shop in Madrid cuts a slice of dry-cured Jamon Iberico de Bellota on December 14, 2012 in Madrid.

    Previously on PhotoBlog:

    • The pig whisperer at work
    • This little piggy is going to China
    • Trained pig helps to keep seniors on their toes

    Follow @NBCNewsPictures

    •Sign up for the NBCNews.com Photos Newsletter

    2 comments

    The best and most expensive ham in the world, no water added.

    Show more
    Explore related topics: spain, europe, food, pig, world-news, jamon
Older posts

Browse

  • world-news,
  • us-news,
  • featured,
  • weather,
  • sports,
  • protest,
  • politics,
  • asia,
  • india,
  • china,
  • europe,
  • space,
  • religion,
  • afghanistan,
  • middle-east,
  • environment,
  • germany,
  • travel,
  • london,
  • military,
  • animal-tracks,
  • tech-science,
  • jwoods,
  • fire,
  • japan,
  • south-asia,
  • conflict,
  • new-york,
  • israel,
  • russia,
  • pakistan,
  • cosmic-log,
  • snow,
  • egypt,
  • animals,
  • images,
  • spain,
  • business,
  • entertainment,
  • africa,
  • england,
  • earthquake,
  • flood,
  • economy,
  • libya,
  • syria,
  • winter
Also
Advertise | AdChoices

Archives

  • 2013
    • June (82)
    • May (142)
    • April (172)
    • March (186)
    • February (195)
    • January (251)
  • 2012
    • December (262)
    • November (281)
    • October (371)
    • September (319)
    • August (406)
    • July (387)
    • June (386)
    • May (422)
    • April (425)
    • March (458)
    • February (451)
    • January (502)
  • 2011
    • December (452)
    • November (464)
    • October (441)
    • September (409)
    • August (507)
    • July (439)
    • June (456)
    • May (443)
    • April (403)
    • March (421)
    • February (508)
    • January (651)
  • 2010
    • December (634)
    • November (360)
    • October (188)
    • September (159)
    • August (110)
    • July (89)
    • June (146)
    • May (89)
    • April (71)
    • March (46)
    • February (43)
    • January (54)
  • 2009
    • December (54)
    • November (46)
    • October (36)
    • September (40)
    • August (31)
    • July (39)
    • June (32)
    • May (57)
    • April (41)
    • March (38)
    • February (44)
    • January (45)
  • 2008
    • December (72)
    • November (38)
    • October (40)
    • September (40)
    • August (75)
    • July (36)
    • June (37)
    • May (44)
    • April (34)
    • March (52)
    • February (45)
    • January (26)
  • 2007
    • December (36)
    • November (32)
    • October (72)
    • September (60)
    • August (40)
    • July (23)
    • June (25)
    • May (31)
    • April (43)
    • March (38)
    • February (35)
    • January (47)
  • 2006
    • December (64)
    • November (77)
  • 2000
    • October (1)

Most Commented

  • Photographer documents subway construction nine stories below Manhattan (97)
  • Boys learn combat skills at Hamas-run summer camp (168)
  • 'Standing Man' goes viral, inspires silent protests in Turkey (77)
  • Derelict Northern Ireland shops get facelift ahead of G8 summit (53)
  • Protesters embrace to protect each other from tear gas as Brazil bus fare demo turns ugly (21)
  • Booming population, rising seas threaten future of island nation (18)
  • Chilly body language on display as Presidents Obama and Putin meet at the G-8 (6)

Other blogs

  • Cosmic Log
  • Red Tape Chronicles
  • US News
  • Open Channel

NBCNews.com top stories

3147,10
© 2013 NBCNews.com
  • News photos on NBCNews.com
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Help
  • Site map
  • Careers
  • Closed captioning
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Advertise