Anaïs Beddard grew up at Lady Moon Farms playing in farm fields, working in the old oak grove packing shed, and cultivating genuine friendships with farm employees and their families. Each employee is part of the family at Lady Moon Farms. With a team of nearly 300 workers, the Beddard family can’t fit them all… Read more »
The Ecologist by Pavlos Georgiadis Monsanto was accused of ‘crimes against humanity and the environment’ at COP21 in Paris this week, writes Pavlos Georgiadis. And now the evidence against it is being gathered for presentation at a ‘Monsanto Tribunal’ taking place next October in The Hague. Civil society groups are putting Monsanto on trial for… Read more »
In honor of National Co-op Month, we’re shining a light on Equal Exchange, a worker-owned business that has been building long-term, economically just partnerships with small-scale organic farmer cooperatives around the world for the past four decades. The organization was founded to create an alternative trade model that puts power back in the hands of farmers… Read more »
Shedding Light on the Philosophical Heart of Organic Agriculture “A fertile soil transmits forces. Originally, it was the only material on Earth that could hold water. It therefore became the theater where water, earth, and air could interact, where the earth could express itself in the endless variety of organic life.” — William Bryant Logan,… Read more »
Motherboard by Becky Ferreira Bee Pollinating Almond FlowersCredit: Tiago J. G. Fernandes Bees are more integral to a successful harvest than fertilizer, according to a new PloS ONE study. Researchers, led by Alexandra-Maria Klein of the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, discovered that disrupting insect pollination affected almond tree yields far more than restricting nutrients and water. Klein, along with her colleagues at the University of… Read more »
Cornucopia’s Take: After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba’s food systems by necessity became local and sustainable. Growing practices were pioneered for the specific circumstances of environment and economics, and grassroots organizations and co-ops proved critical to the new path. Although circumstances in the U.S. prevent exact duplication of Cuba’s efforts, much can be… Read more »
By Melody Morrell, Operations Director [THIS ARTICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED IN THE WINTER ISSUE OF THE CULTIVATOR, CORNUCOPIA’S QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER.] As a grandmother, I pay careful attention to what my family eats. I grow nutrient-dense produce in my garden, and I seek out authentic, certified organic food from local farmers whenever possible. I do this, in part,… Read more »
Cornucopia’s Take: While Cornucopia is as happy as anyone that this large tract of land will be spared the spraying harmful pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, we do have to wonder how mono-cropping on this scale is truly organic. Biodiversity in the field prevents the spread of disease and the proliferation of pests. Monocropping creates an environment… Read more »
Cornucopia’s Take: Scientists have determined that some plants attract ants with nectar, but only to the outskirts of the flowers. Ants are thought to deter herbivores. Meanwhile, the flowers do not seem to attract ants, but remain prime territory for pollinators. Whatever the plants’ plans, recognizing the complicated relationships of plants and insects is an… Read more »
The Washington Post by Debbie Barker and Michael Pollan Cover crops in small grain stubble Source: NRCS, South Dakota Debbie Barker is the international programs director at the Center for Food Safety. Michael Pollan is the John S. and James L. Knight professor of journalism at the University of California at Berkeley. When Will Allen is asked… Read more »
