Appetizers

It turns out that the 21st century is just as much a party to hunger issues than its predecessor.

That much is the gist of the documentary "A Place at the Table," which screens May 29 & 30 and June 1 at the Crest Theatre. The Sacramento Hunger Coalition is presenting a showing of the film tonight at 6, followed by a panel discussion as part of Hunger Action Week.

In the film co-directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush cast the lens at three individuals living in the U.S. Each are struggling to put food on the table.

The Crest is at 1013 K St., Sacramento

Two Raley's produce managers will be honored in May in San Diego by the United Fresh Produce Association as 2013 Retail Produce Manager Award Winners.

Ryan Acosta of Raley's in Sacramento and Corey Watkins of Raley's in Elk Grove were among the 25 winners selected from hundreds of nominations submitted by retailers and produce suppliers across the industry.

According to a United Fresh press release, the awards recognize "those on the front-line in supermarkets working everyday to increase sales and consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables."

Winners will be honored at a dinner and share their produce merchandising strategies during a produce trade show in mid-May in San Diego.

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Arrived in the Bee's Feature Department mail in the past few days: no fewer than 10 diet or exercise books. (OK, some of those volumes were duplicates, but still, the trend was obvious.)

Every year, losing weight and getting more exercise rank at the top of New Year's resolutions -- right up there with stopping smoking and saving more money.

Of course, experts warn that resolutions should be specific and doable if they are to have a prayer of a chance of success. They suggest goals like "to lose 5 pounds by Valentine's Day," or "to walk 30 minutes a day for the next two weeks." You can always build on success.

Three of the titles that weighed down the mail bin this past week suggest the authors had specifics of their own in mind:

* "The New You (and improved!) Diet: 8 Rules to Lose Weight and Change Your Life Forever" by Keri Glassman, from Rodale.

* "The 8-hour Diet" by David Zinczenko also from Rodale.

* "The Dash Diet Weight Loss Solution: 2 Weeks to Drop Pounds, Boost Metabolism and Get Healthy" by Marla Heller from Grand Central Publishing.

They each offer a book's worth of specifics in case you've resolved to lose weight.

-- Janet Vitt