Farmers Weekly By Robyn Vinter Some US farmers are considering returning to conventional seed after increased pest resistance and crop failures meant GM crops saw smaller yields globally than their non-GM counterparts. Farmers in the USA pay about an extra $100 per acre for GM seed, and many are questioning whether they will continue to… Read more »
Bayer Slams ‘Draconian’ EU Plan to Ban Neonicotinoids
Farmers Weekly By Philip Case The European Commission has called for a two-year ban on all uses of neonicotinoid products in crops considered dangerous to honey bee health. Commission spokesman Frederic Vincent said the EU’s executive arm was proposing a suspension on the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in oilseed rape, maize, sunflowers and cotton. Mr… Read more »
Direct Link Between Exposure to Pesticides in Food, Air and Water and Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes
News Medical A study led by the University of Granada reveals that there is a direct relationship between the presence of Persistent Organic Pollutants in the body and the development of type 2 diabetes, regardless of the patient’s age, gender or body mass index. A study conducted at the University of Granada has revealed that… Read more »
In Standing Up for Big Ag, Are Universities Undercutting Their Own Researchers?
The Chronicle of Higher Education By Goldie Blumenstyk In a case before the U.S. Supreme Court this month, advocates for academic researchers are urging the justices to reverse a patent-infringement decision that has given the Monsanto Company broad authority to restrict scientists’ study of genetically modified seeds. The decision, the advocates say, not only hurts… Read more »
Glyphosate-Resistant Weed Problem Extends to More Species, More Farms
The area of U.S. cropland infested with glyphosate-resistant weeds has expanded to 61.2 million acres in 2012, according to a survey conducted by Stratus Agri-Marketing. Nearly half of all U.S. farmers interviewed reported that glyphosate-resistant weeds were present on their farm in 2012, up from 34% of farmers in 2011. The survey also indicates that… Read more »
An Idea Rooted in Organics
The Tampa Tribune By George Wilkens TOWN ‘N COUNTRY — In 1978, when Rick Martinez became an organic farmer, there was no indication the then-unusual practice of growing pesticide-free vegetables would mushroom in coming decades.It wasn’t easy being green then, nor much better 15 years later when Martinez launched Sweetwater Organic Community Farm. “Organic farmer…… Read more »
Officials Back Deep Cuts in Atlantic Cod Harvest to Save Industry
New York Times By Katharine Q. Seelye and Jess Bidgood PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Fishery management officials meeting here on Wednesday voted to impose drastic new cuts to the commercial harvest of cod along the Atlantic coast, arguing that the only way to save the centuries-old cod fishing industry was to sharply limit it. In the… Read more »
With Straight Face, MN Prosecutor Argues Any Unregulated Food a “Controlled Substance”; Settlement of Maine Food Sovereignty Case?
The Complete Patient By David Gumpert An unlicensed organization like a food club is not only distributing “contraband,” but a “controlled substance,” in the view of a Minnesota prosecutor fighting to prevent dismissal of three misdemeanor food allegations against farmer Alvin Schlangen. In other words, if licenses aren’t purchased and regulators involved, food is no… Read more »
In the Central Valley, Organic Farming is Slowly Taking Hold
HealthyCal By Alexia Underwood Organic. Could a more polarizing word exist in agriculture today? For some, organic means safer, more nutritious food and environmentally-friendly farming practices. For others, the word ‘organic’ brings to mind extensive, unnecessary regulations, or wealthy consumers willing to shell out top dollar at their local farmer’s market. Organic products are generally… Read more »
Rice of Ages
China Daily By Jin Zhu An heirloom species of this staple grain thrives only in a tiny pocket of East China, but scientists say its potential could be huge, Jin Zhu reports in Wannian, Jiangxi province. Twenty hectares of arable land, tucked away in a mountain valley in Jiangxi province, may have a role to… Read more »
