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News archives

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Black farmers press for settlement payout
WASHINGTON — With Congress bailing out the auto industry and financial institutions, black farmers are pressing the federal government to pay money owed to thousands of black farmers as part of a discrimination settlement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “This is an issue that has been go... Continued...

Davis promises help for black farmers
WASHINGTON -- Rep. Artur Davis reassured black farmers Wednesday that Congress and the Obama administration will deliver on a promise to compensate them for past discrimination by the Department of Agriculture. "We are going to put more money on the table," Davis, D-Birmingham, told a group of bl... Continued...

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Ecopreneur Profile: Jan Joannides and Brett Olson, co-founders of Renewing the Countryside
In a world overdosed with negativity, Jan Joannides roots for the opposite underdog, building an organization and livelihood around showcasing the positive side of what’s working right. As co-founder of Renewing the Countryside, Joannides created a means to showcase positive examples of rural rev... Continued...

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Jackson sees possibility of 50-year farm bill ahead
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Wes Jackson needs to look no further than the 200-foot gullies eaten out of Iowa farm fields by last summer's flooding to demonstrate that the current system of agriculture isn't working. The plant geneticist and co-founder and president of the Land Institute in Salina, Kan.,... Continued...

Thursday, April 23, 2009

A Food Revolution in the Making, from Victory Gardens to the White House Lawn
Last month, First Lady Michelle Obama broke ground for a new vegetable garden on the South lawn of the White House. It's the first time food will be grown at the President's residence since Eleanor Roosevelt planted her Victory Garden during World War II. Back then, as part of the war effort, the go... Continued...

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

For Vilsack, the Proof Is in the Planting
In another sign that the Department of Agriculture is embracing sustainable food, the agency today will unveil expanded plans for a People's Garden that will include the entire six-acre grounds of the Whitten Building, the department's neoclassic marble headquarters on the Mall. The plans, to be ... Continued...

Unintended Consequences of U.S. Farm Policy on Mexico's Farmers
The news that surrounded last week’s visit to Mexico by President Obama regarding Mexican corn farmers may have come as a surprise to some but not to those that have followed the issue since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Several interviews were broadcast on the U... Continued...

Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Names Doug Caruso As Administrator Of The Farm Service Agency
WASHINGTON, April 22, 2009 - Today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the appointment of Doug Caruso as Administrator of the United States Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency (FSA). The FSA administers and manages farm commodity, credit, conservation, disaster and loan prog... Continued...

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Food and Society 2009 Conference, “Gathering for Good Food”
SAN JOSE, CALIF. W.K. Kellogg Foundation today opened its ninth yearly Food and Society initiative www.foodandsociety.org conference www.foodandsociety2009.org at the Fairmont San Jose. The conference brings together 600 food and agriculture experts from across the U.S. to explore and identify w... Continued...

GMO Taro Ban Passes with Amendments
HONOLULU - The state Legislature this week finally indicated that it plans to say no to Hawaii taro GMO. The "Taro Security Bill" was approved by the state Senate on third reading Thursday, after passing in the House last month. It will ban the controversial practice of using and developing genet... Continued...

VOTE HEMP
A federal bill was introduced yesterday that, if passed into law, would remove restrictions on the cultivation of non-psychoactive industrial hemp. The chief sponsors of HR 1866, "The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2009," Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX), were joined by ... Continued...

Tyson fighting AG's request to depose its chairman
Tyson Foods Inc., the world's largest meat producer, is fighting a request by Oklahoma's attorney general to depose its chairman in a federal court case over poultry litter pollution. Earlier this month, Tyson filed a motion for a protective order in attempts to keep company chairman John H. Tys... Continued...

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Kansas is ripe for tapping into its local food production potential
TOPEKA -- The future of food in Kansas just might include a nod in the direction of the state's agricultural past. Some state officials see a growing demand for locally grown fruits and vegetables, pervasive nearly a century ago, as an economic opportunity for the state once more. A presentati... Continued...

Friday, April 17, 2009

EPA Proposes Regulating Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The Environmental Protection Agency issued a proposal today finding greenhouse gas emissions pose a danger to the public's health and welfare, a determination that could trigger a series of sweeping regulations affecting everything from vehicles to coal-fired power plants. In a statement issued a... Continued...

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Organic farmers needn't worry
Organic farmers on the North Fork can rest easy. Rampant Internet rumors have warned that a federal food safety bill might spell doom for growers who shun the use of synthetic pesticides and genetically modified seeds, but a key watchdog group for organic farming has ensured that the sky is not f... Continued...

Food Fight : The Food Safety Bill Is Cause for Concern, Not Panic
Over the past several weeks, blog posts and alternative media sites were riddled with panic over H.R. 875, the new bill introduced in the House over food safety regulations. The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 aims to "establish the Food Safety Administration within the Department of Health an... Continued...

PETA Notifies EPA That Greenpeace, Center for Food Safety, and Others Took Big Bucks From Drugmaker
Washington -- PETA has submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asking it to turn down a petition from the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA) that calls for the regulation of nanosilver. Although nanosilver has been available over the counter for years ... Continued...

EPA Will Mandate Tests On Pesticide Chemicals
The Environmental Protection Agency for the first time will require pesticide manufacturers to test 67 chemicals contained in their products to determine whether they disrupt the endocrine system, which regulates animals' and humans' growth, metabolism and reproduction, the agency said yesterday. ... Continued...

Monday, April 13, 2009

Community gardens let people grow, share food
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — David Fitzgerald raises chickens for meat and eggs, produces honey from dozens of beehives and grows a variety of vegetables — all without antibiotics, hormones or chemical fertilizers. Despite the long hours, he considers it all a dream. "It's a dream to turn back and sho... Continued...

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Family Farmers Fear Being Run Over by Food Safety Juggernaut
CORNUCOPIA, Wis., April 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Momentum is building in Congress for new food safety reforms aimed at addressing the growing cycle of food contamination outbreaks. But concerns are also being raised cautioning legislators not to trample organic farmers, backyard gardeners and co... Continued...