Cornucopia policy staff members attended the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) pre-meeting webinars on April 17 and 18, where the NOSB heard comments from the public. Our notes from this meeting are below. Wednesday, April 17 Fourteen NOSB members present: Source: Alan Clark, Flickr Harriet Behar (January 2016 – January 2020) – NOSB Chair Steve… Read more »
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New Report Echoes Concerns of Deceptive Marketing in Snack Bar Industry
Separating Misleading Nutrition Claims from Nutrient Dense Brands Last December, The Cornucopia Institute, a nonprofit food and farm policy group, released a comprehensive report and accompanying scorecard that exposed the misleading marketing practices by food industry giants that market candy-like energy bars as healthy and nutritious. The report, Raising the Bar, Choosing Healthy Snack Bars… Read more »
Pesticide Use by Farmers Linked to High Rates of Depression, Suicides
Environmental Health News by Brian Bienkowski Credit: Pl77 On his farm in Iowa, Matt Peters worked from dawn to dusk planting his 1,500 acres of fields with pesticide-treated seeds. “Every spring I worried about him,” said his wife, Ginnie. “Every spring I was glad when we were done.” A clinical psychologist spoke to him on the… Read more »
Food Vs. Fuel: Growing Grain for Food Is More Energy Efficient
ScienceDaily Using productive farmland to grow crops for food instead of fuel is more energy efficient, Michigan State University scientists concluded, after analyzing 17 years’ worth of data to help settle the food versus fuel debate. “It’s 36 percent more efficient to grow grain for food than for fuel,” said Ilya Gelfand, an MSU postdoctoral… Read more »
Controversial EU Decision on Glyphosate Under Challenge
Cornucopia’s Take: The approval by the European Union to give Monsanto a five-year authorization for continued use of its flagship pesticide glyphosate is meeting with resistance. Organizations concerned with health and the impacts of dangerous chemicals used in agriculture are mounting a legal challenge to the decision. Cornucopia is one of many organizations questioning the… Read more »
As Farmers Age, Plans Match Aspirants With Pros
Omaha World Herald By SHARON COHEN AP National Writer RICHLAND, Iowa (AP) – He quit his job and drove his wife and their four young daughters across country, a 21st-century pioneer lured to these faraway farm fields by the promise of a life-changing deal with an older stranger. Isaac Phillips always wanted to be a… Read more »
U.S. Government Scientists Find “Inerts” in Roundup More Toxic than Glyphosate Alone
Cornucopia’s Take: The U.S. National Toxicology Program is now analyzing, for the first time, the top-selling glyphosate-based herbicides on the market. They are finding the inert ingredients, added to enhance application and effectiveness of glyphosate, among other things, make the formulations markedly more toxic than glyphosate on its own. Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, has… Read more »
Congress Should Prioritize Modern, “Healthy Farm” Practices When Farm Bill Debate Re-Starts This Month
Industrial Model of Agriculture Is a Dead End, Scientists Say Union of Concerned Scientists WASHINGTON — U.S. agriculture is at a crossroads: continue the polluting, soil-depleting industrialized farming methods of the past, or invest in modern practices of the future. A policy brief and interactive web feature released by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)… Read more »
Farmers, Ranchers and Consumers Fight USDA Animal ID Scheme
View Agribusiness-Friendly Proposal as Threat to Free Commerce Washington, DC: A coalition of agriculture and consumer organizations from across the nation is challenging the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) decision to push ahead with a complicated and expensive Animal ID program. The organizations sent a joint letter to the Congressional Office of Management and Budget… Read more »
Eat the Peach, Not the Pesticide
Consumer Reports Source: USDA Consumer Reports’ new produce guidelines show you how to make the best choices for your health and for the environment Across America, confusion reigns in the supermarket aisles about how to eat healthfully. One thing on shopper’s minds: the pesticides in fruits and vegetables. In fact, a recent Consumer Reports survey of 1,050 people found… Read more »
