April 30th, 2013

The European Union votes to give honey bees a reprieve from a class of pesticides known as neonicotinoids, long suspected of triggering massive bee deaths that threaten agriculture worldwide. The pesticides are still be allowed in the United States.

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March 14th, 2013

The Monsanto “rider” is a noxious attachment to the Continuing Resolution budget bill pending in Congress, and not just because it would accelerate the adoption of controversial GE foods. Lawmakers and groups opposed to the rider say it’s an affront to due process.

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February 26th, 2013

The looming ‘sequester’ budget cuts would affect virtually all government spending — except Social Security recipients — including Medicare and defense, energy, medical, education, nutrition and agriculture programs. It would even trim money for air traffic controllers. But that’s not the only scary cut on the table…

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September 26th, 2012

A student in Omaha, Neb., has identified a problem with school lunches — as well as a solution that could help solve an entrenched food waste issue in school cafeterias across the country.

In order to get the best price for a school lunch, kids are required to take one serving of a fruit or a vegetable to create a full meal. If they don’t, they can end up paying higher ala carte prices.

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June 2nd, 2011

Get out your carrot sticks and broccoli bits, the latest missive fired from the USDA on healthy eating finally elevates fruits and vegetables to the standing many believe they deserve.

Even the normally skeptical Center for Science in the Public Interest was excited by the new clarity on healthy priorities being offered by the U.S. government.

“While no one graphic can communicate every nuance of healthy eating, this easy-to-understand illustration will help people remember what their own plate should look like,” CSPI enthused. “It likely will shock most people into recognizing that they need to eat a heck of a lot more vegetables and fruits. Most people are eating about a quarter of a plate of fruits or vegetables, not a half a plate as recommended.”

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February 4th, 2011

Organic milk, which has won strong consumer support in recent years, is being put at risk by the government’s recent decision to deregulate genetically engineered alfalfa, says the president of one of the nation’s most successful organic dairies.
Albert Straus, president of the Straus Family Creamery in California, says that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ruling allowing genetically modified alfalfa to be planted anywhere “will deprive consumers of their right to be certain that they are feeding organic food to their families.”

Alfalfa is a key food for dairy cows, and unless cows are fed an organic diet, their milk cannot qualify to be Organically certified. Alfalfa, the fourth most-planted crop in the nation, could be changed forever if GE varieties are planted across the U.S., Straus says in a statement today.

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February 1st, 2011

Organic farmers, food companies and advocacy groups have united to oppose the federal government’s de-regulation of Monsanto’s genetically engineered alfalfa.

A new 20-group coalition announced Tuesday that it also would be opposing the regulatory release of other types of GE (also known as GM or genetically modified) crops expected in the coming months if the USDA approves the unrestricted planting of GE sugar beets, corn and soy crops.

These crops have been engineered predominantly by Monsanto to resist specific Monsanto-created pesticides, including the “Roundup Ready” alfalfa, which was approved for unrestricted planting by the USDA last week.

Organic farmers fear the spread of GE crops because they’re dependent on pesticides, which harm the soil and waterways, and because they can contaminate non=GE crops via cross-pollination. When GE crops invade organically raised fields, they destroy the purity of organic row crops and produce and can cost a farmer his organic certification.

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January 31st, 2011

Eat your veggies! And, while you’re at it, quit drinking so much soda.

The government’s new dietary guidelines issued today are unequivocal. Americans need to get serious about eating healthier. They need to put more produce on their plates and push out the sugar, saturated fats and sodium that have crept into the American diet in so many ways, via soda, packaged meals and sweet snacks.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (yes, it’s 2011, in case you’re reading in real time) are more explicit than ever, federal officials said, because the nation’s got big obesity issues.

So instead of just urging us to eat 5 to 7 “servings” of fruits and vegetables every day, the mantra of the last adjustment in the food pyramid, these new guidelines tell us to drink water instead of “sugary drinks”, switch to 1 percent milk, and fill half of our plates with fruits and vegetables.

But wait! Don’t overfill that plate. Portion size and exercise also are part of the equation.

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November 3rd, 2010

This Thanksgiving you’ll be confronted with dozens of claims and selling points about turkeys.
Most of these labels have some specific meaning. But it’s not always what you think. A “USDA certified Organic,” turkey, for instance, has been raised and processed according to reams of enforceable rules. Producers earn the Organic certification by meeting government requirements for how their livestock is fed, kept and processed.

But even though Organic turkeys must be fed organic grains and be allowed “exercise, (and) freedom of movement” — that doesn’t mean they had a fairytale existence. Organic doesn’t equate to “humane.” These birds may have never seen much sunlight or foraged for food like their ancestors.

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August 2nd, 2010

We don’t really need the federal government to tell us to appreciate Farmer’s Markets. It’s pretty obvious how these markets can help us — bringing the freshest produce to town, supporting local farmers and food artisans, increasing our “food security” and expanding our universe of healthy options.

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July 12th, 2010

A decline in planting and an increase in demand have led to a predictable conclusion from the U.S. Department of Agriculture: Exporters, livestock feeders and ethanol makers are exhausting the corn stockpile faster than farmers can produce supply. Despite record crops in each of the past three years and potential for a third this year, the USDA expects corn carryover to shrink to the lowest level since 2006-07.

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March 31st, 2010

From Green Right Now Reports

We’d all like to have our cake, and eat it too. But while that’s impossible, it may soon be true that we can eat our cake with fewer calories and have it taste as good.

Possibly.

The USDA’s National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research in Peoria is developing cake mixes that zap fat and calories, but without stripping the dessert of its flavor and texture.

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