Can GMOs Help End World Hunger?
Huffington Post by John Robbins Can genetically engineered foods help feed the hungry? Are anti-GMO activists and over-zealous environmentalists standing in the way of the hungry being fed? The hope that GMO foods might bring solutions to malnutrition and world hunger was never more dramatically illustrated than when Time magazine ran a cover story titled […]
As Farmers’ Markets Go Mainstream, Some Fear a Glut
The New York Times by Matthew Cavanaugh FLORENCE, Mass. — John Spineti started selling plump tomatoes and shiny squash at farmers’ markets in the early 1970s and saw his profits boom as markets became more popular. But just as farmers’ markets have become mainstream, Mr. Spineti said business has gone bust. Farmers in pockets of […]
Doctors Take Aim At Antibiotic Resistance From Factory Farming
Huffington Post by Lynne Peeples “Here’s the big secret that no one wants to talk about: We’re not very good at keeping what’s inside a cow’s intestines out of the meat.” The roomful of young doctors at Oakland Children’s Hospital chuckled as retired cardiologist Jeff Ritterman whispered audibly, his hand hiding his mouth. He went […]
Pesticide Drift May Give Rise to Claims of Trespass, Nuisance and Negligence Per Se When Organic Crops Are Contaminated
Larkin Hoffman Attorneys by Jennifer Singleton Minnesota’s organic farmers may now have greater protection against neighboring farmers’ pesticide use. The Minnesota Court of Appeals recently held that when chemical pesticides drift from one farm to another, the resulting damage may provide a basis for claims of trespass, nuisance and negligence. The decision reverses the lower […]
US Farming Groups Hit Back at Activists
As they say, you can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear …. But they have a big budget and they’re going to try anyway. They contacted Mark Kastel (Cornucopia), Kathy Ozer (National Family Farm Coalition) and Joel Salatin (Polyface Farms) for “balance” but I don’t think their publicity campaign is doing them […]
Facing Budget Pressure, Colleges Cut Farm Programs
The Bulletin – Bend, OR By Carla Rivera / Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — The cattle, sheep and horse herds are smaller these days on the 700-acre farm operated by Cal Poly Pomona in the rolling foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Buildings and equipment need updating, and the farm and ranch depend more […]
Organic Farms Harbor Less Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria
The Baltimore Sun Picture of Health, Column by Meredith Cohn and Andrea K. Walker Poultry farms that use organic methods that don’t involve antibiotics have significantly lower levels of drug-resistant bacteria that can potentially spread to human, according to a new study lead by the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria have […]
A tale of two droughts
The US agriculture system is prepared to help farmers through the current severe drought, avoiding mass rural migration. But a famine in Somalia has caused over 135,000 to flee while many are dying each day from hunger. Oxfam America Jim French is a farmer from Partridge, KS who also works on agriculture policy for Oxfam […]
USDA and Corporate Agribusiness Continue to Push Animal ID Scheme
Consumers and Independent Producers Lose if Big Ag Wins on Animal Tracking For more information, contact: Judith McGeary, Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, 512-484-8821 Bill Bullard, R-CALF USA, 406-252-2516 Patty Lovera, Food & Water Watch, 202-683-2465 Gilles Stockton, Western Organization of Resource Councils, 406-366-4463 Mark Kastel, The Cornucopia Institute, 608-625-2000 WASHINGTON, […]
International Organic Scandal: Major Canadian Grain Exporter’s Certification Suspended
Organic Industry Watchdog Says “System Working as Designed, Albeit Too Slowly” CORNUCOPIA, WI – After two years of speculation by U.S. and Canadian organic farmers, facing below-cost competition eroding sustainable pricing, and even forcing some out of business, an announcement last week, by the Canadian government authority overseeing organics, has finally offered an explanation. Jirah […]
Cops Raid Rawesome Foods; Owner James Stewart Arrested
LA Weekly By Elina Shatkin [Update, 2:36 p.m.: The official word from the DA’s office is that Stewart, Palmer & Bloch were arrested on criminal conspiracy charges stemming from the alleged illegal production and sale of unpasteurized goat milk, goat cheese, yogurt and kefir. The arrests are the result of a year-long sting. The 13-count […]
Classic Crop Breeding Outperforms Genetic Engineering
Press of Atlantic City By Margaret Mellon and Doug Gurian-Sherman By 2050, the world will have to feed 9 billion people, adapt to climate change, reduce agricultural pollution and protect fresh water supplies – all at the same time. Given that formidable challenge, what are the quickest, most cost-effective ways to develop more productive, drought-, […]
