News & Issues
Stories from around the Kansas City Metro area on a variety of topics.
When Food Firms Cut The Salt, What Do They Put In Instead?
Too much salty goodness isn’t great for health. Food companies looking to cut the sodium while keeping the flavor have a promising candidate: potassium chloride. But it’s far from perfect.
One Year In | As VR Increases in Popularity, so Does Virtutecture
“One Year In” is a 5-part series that revisits entrepreneurs highlighted on Flatland within the past year. We check on the progress of once-fledgling startups, see how the local entrepreneurship environment is treating them, and get to better understand their long-term decision making. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Before a technology…
Overworked And Underfunded, Mo. Public Defender Office Assigns Case — To The Governor
Gov. Jay Nixon has denied funding increases and vetoed caseload caps for the state’s badly overloaded public defender system. So the director is calling him in to help out with the backlog.
One Year In | A Pivot, Then Full Speed Ahead at Custom Trailer Pros
“One Year In” is a five-part series that revisits entrepreneurs highlighted on Flatland within the past year. We check on the progress of once-fledgling startups, see how the local entrepreneurship environment is treating them, and get to better understand their long-term decision-making. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Food trucks, food trailers:…
One Year In | Crema Moves to Shorter Name and Larger Team
“One Year In” is a five-part series that revisits entrepreneurs highlighted on Flatland within the past year. We check on the progress of once-fledgling startups, see how the local entrepreneurship environment is treating them, and get to better understand their long-term decision-making. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Crema refers to the…
One Year In | For Rawxies, A Growing Team and Consumer Base
“One Year In” is a five-part series that revisits entrepreneurs highlighted on Flatland within the past year. We check on the progress of once-fledgling startups, see how the local entrepreneurship environment is treating them, and get to better understand their long-term decision-making. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Three years after moving…
How Monsanto And Scofflaw Farmers Hurt Soybeans In Arkansas
A new type of genetically engineered crop is tempting farmers to use a weedkiller illegally. The illicit chemical use has damaged nearby crops and provoked conflict among neighbors.
Take 5 For Your Health
Appeals Court Throws Out Challenge To Missouri’s Execution Protocol A legal challenge to Missouri’s execution protocol brought by four taxpayers has been rejected by the Missouri Court of Appeals. In a decision July 26, the appeals court upheld a lower court’s dismissal of the taxpayers’ claims just days after they filed their lawsuit. The lawsuit…
One Year In | Taking Beer Paws Full Time
“One Year In” is a five-part series that revisits entrepreneurs highlighted on Flatland within the past year. We check on the progress of once-fledgling startups, see how the local entrepreneurship environment is treating them, and get to better understand their long-term decision-making. All interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Two Blodgett commercial ovens,…









Commentary | Harry Potter and the Democrats
I’m a big fan of the Harry Potter series. Not the movies, the books. I miss the pomp and circumstance of lining up outside the bookstore, at midnight, with my friends, making a party of it as we waited for the next story in the ongoing saga. For some folks, it’s sports or concerts,…