Search Results for: gmo

Dust Flying in Countryside Over USDA Animal ID Proposal

Contact: Judith McGeary, Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, 512-484-8821 Bill Bullard, R-CALF USA, 406-252-2516 Gilles Stockton, Western Organization of Resource Councils, 406-366-4463 Mark Kastel, The Cornucopia Institute, 608-625-2000 Farmers and Ranchers Appeal to Vilsack for Adequate Time to Respond Austin, TX:  Forty-nine advocacy groups representing the interests of family farmers, ranchers, and consumers have formally… Read more »

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,… Read more »

For Bob Hill, Growing Bananas Has Certain A ‘Peel’

Morris Plains gardener does what others say is “impossible.” Morris-Plains Patch, New Jersey (link no longer available) By Liz Alterman When Bob Hill set out to grow bananas in the backyard of his Morris Plains home, fellow gardeners thought he was, well, bananas. Having discovered his green thumb as a kindergartner when he was able to… Read more »

Bees in Freefall as Study Shows Sharp US Decline

The Guardian By Alok Jha, science correspondent The abundance of four common species of bumblebee in the US has dropped by 96% in just the past few decades, according to the most comprehensive national census of the insects. Scientists said the alarming decline, which could have devastating implications for the pollination of both wild and… Read more »

Court lets part of organic-milk case proceed

[Cornucopia’s initial review of this mixed decision leaves standing the core-complaint enabling consumers to go after Aurora and the retailers for misrepresenting their product as “organic.” The court’s decision that the Organic Foods Production Act has purview over organic marketing only illustrates how important it is for the USDA to carry out the intent of… Read more »

Mayor’s Agriculture Plan Soon to Bear Fruit

San Francisco Chronicle by Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer Vegetable gardens will soon be sprouting in unlikely places throughout San Francisco including a building that produces steam to heat the Civic Center, Department of Public Works land in the Bayview, outside McLaren Lodge in Golden Gate Park and at the San Francisco Police Academy in… Read more »

Cropp Cooperative Joins with Stonyfield to Sustain More Family Farmers

Agreement Helps Organic Dairy Farmers in Northeast and Midwest Organic Valley LA FARGE, WI – CROPP Cooperative and Stonyfield Farm today announced a new phase in their partnership, a creative measure designed to sustain organic family dairy farmers and preserve consumer choice. Beginning January 1, 2010, CROPP will manage the organic milk supply for Stonyfield… Read more »

Non-Organic Organic Food

CommonDreams.org by Jim Hightower When it comes to a healthy diet, I am not a purist. Too late for that because I grew up eating such culinary concoctions as toasted sandwiches constructed of Spam, white bread and that oddly orange, oddly spongy cheeselike stuff known as Velveeta. As an adult, I even have been irresponsible… Read more »

A 50-Year Farm Bill

New York Times By WES JACKSON and WENDELL BERRY The extraordinary rainstorms last June caused catastrophic soil erosion in the grain lands of Iowa, where there were gullies 200 feet wide. But even worse damage is done over the long term under normal rainfall — by the little rills and sheets of erosion on incompletely… Read more »

Unsustainable Shrimp Farming Degrading the Environment, Posing Health Risks

Eli Penberthy The Cornucopia Institute Consumer demand for shrimp is soaring. In 2006, the US alone imported 1.3 billion pounds of farm-raised shrimp, more than any other seafood. The results are wreaking havoc on the environment, threatening the livelihood of fishing communities, and significantly contaminating the water and food supplies in the US and abroad…. Read more »