5@5: Instacart workers threaten boycott of company | Kansas 'Ag-Gag' law challenged

Instacart workers are threatening to boycott the company over a payment policy change that they say has cut their wages

Instacart’s new payment structure for its workers—called “shoppers”—is causing outrage for cutting workers’ earnings in order to compete with Amazon’s prices. While Instacart insists that shoppers’ average earnings have largely stayed the same post-structure change, hundreds of shoppers are calling for a boycott of the company online.  Read more at Business Insider ...

Lawsuit: Kansas ‘Ag-Gag’ law violates free speech rights

A lawsuit filed on Tuesday by a coalition of animal rights and consumer protection groups has stated that a Kansas law “banning secret filming at slaughterhouses and other livestock facilities unconstitutionally criminalizes free speech on matters of considerable public concern.” The law was enacted in 1990 and is similar to laws struck down in Utah and Idaho within the past two years for being unconstitutional violations of the First Amendment. Read more at AP News  …

Trump Jr. invested in a hydroponic lettuce company whose chair was seeking Trump Administration funds

Ethics experts have criticized the handful of business investments and ventures pursued by Trump Jr. since his father’s election into the White House. The most recent of these investments is a startup that “grows organic lettuce in a hydroponic greenhouse,” and has led many to assert that Trump Jr.’s longstanding personal relationship with the co-chairman was the primary reasoning behind the investment, rather than the business’ merits. Read more at ProPublica …

Uber and Amazon want to change the way you buy groceries: Is an online grocery auction the answer?

Uber has made several recent moves toward becoming a major player in groceries, making it one of many nontraditional companies that are bound to disrupt the future of grocery retailing. These companies will soon be offering services such as direct delivery to customers during their work lunches, and shared grocery “pooling.” Read more at Forbes …

Denver’s new sales tax is the first in the nation to benefit kids’ health

Denver’s Ordinance 302 has established a small sales tax (less than a penny on any $10 purchase) to fund healthy food access and education programs for youth in Denver over a 10-year period. The ordinance takes a different approach from the likes of soda and sugar taxes by collectively solving a problem, rather than “imposing a tax and penalizing individuals for making the ‘wrong’ choice.” Read more at Civil Eats …