Steuben Courier (Bath, NY) By Angela Sutfin, Evening Tribune Alfred, NY — “It smells country, it smells fresh, it smells organic!” Eunice Lewin, trustee of the State University of New York spoke with excitement at the groundbreaking ceremony at the College Farm of Alfred State College on Tuesday. The college hosted its groundbreaking ceremony for… Read more »
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… Read 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… Read more »
John’s Island Organic Farm Keeps to its Roots (South Carolina)
Live 5 News By Aisha Tyler JOHNS ISLAND, SC (WCSC) – Instead of playing with friends or video games, 8-year-old CJ has spent most of his summer working on the family farm. “I have been working on the farm for three years,” CJ said. For three generations, Joseph Fields Farm on Johns Island has been… Read more »
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… Read more »
Inside Polyface Farm, Mecca of Sustainable Agriculture
The Atlantic By Andrea Gabor Two weeks ago, I joined about 1,700 farmers, foodies, and families from across the U.S. for a pilgrimage to Joel Salatin’s Polyface Farm, home of his iconic model of local, sustainable agriculture. Salatin, the high priest of “grass-farming,” as he defines his work, hosts a field day every three years… Read more »
‘Local’ Grows on Wal-Mart
The Wall Street Journal (link no longer available) By Miguel Bustillo and David Kesmodel Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which scours the globe seeking the lowest-cost suppliers, is finding it can save money by buying more fruits and vegetables grown closer to its stores. Other food retailers, including Supervalu Inc. and Safeway Inc., also are racing to expand… Read more »
Wafting Poison Makes Fertile Ground for Suit in Stearns County
Star Tribune (Minneapolis) by: JOSEPHINE MARCOTTY Court rules pesticide drifting onto organic farm constitutes trespass. Oluf Johnson’s 1,500-acre farm in Stearns County is an organic island in a sea of chemically treated corn and soybeans. Improperly applied pesticides repeatedly drift over from neighboring farms, often with dire consequences for Johnson. But now, thanks to a… Read more »
Long-time Organic Farmer and Researcher Kevin Brussell Tragically Killed
Kevin Brussell, 56, a long time organic activist, researcher and working organic farmer, was tragically killed on Saturday, June 11. Kevin’s wife, Juli, has established a scholarship fund in memory of her husband. The scholarship fund will support beginning farmers. Kevin was the superintendent of Organic Dairy Research at the University of New Hampshire, overseeing… Read more »
Resistant Weeds Leave Farmers Desperate
As effectiveness of herbicides wanes, some try mixtures of older, more toxic chemicals, others pay itinerant workers to weed by hand. St. Louis Dispatch BY GEORGINA GUSTIN Farmers in the state’s south are resorting to some old-fashioned tactics. Weeds in cotton fields have gotten so tenacious — some with stems 4-inches around — that farmers… Read more »
