• The FDA approves two new types of diet sweetener: One for Pepsi, one for Coke. [New York Times]
• Tough economic times like these can breed strange success stories. Witness, the booming business in used restaurant equipment [Dallas Morning News]
• After an Iowa Kosher meat producer ran into legal troubles this past year, Kosher products are becoming scarcer and more expensive in the Chicago area as Hanukkah approaches. [Chicago Tribune]
• Protesters in Beijing call on citizens of that province to stop eating cats. [AP/Yahoo]
• Michigan state lawmakers are having a hard time reaching an agreement on a restaurant smoking ban, likely leaving eateries hazy until at least the next session. [AP/Michigan Live]