Pot Luck

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Mon May 14, 2012 at 19:00:00 PM PDT

Organic vs Conventional. Is that really the question?

by: Marcia Ishii-Eiteman

Sat May 05, 2012 at 11:10:42 AM PDT

Media are all atwitter about a new Nature study by researchers at McGill University and the University of Minnesota that compares organic and conventional yields from 66 studies and over 300 trials. In extrapolating the study's findings to the charged question of how to feed the world, more than a few got it all wrong.

The core finding of the study is that "yield differences [between organic and conventional] are highly contextual, depending on system and site characteristics." In other words, sometimes organic does better, sometimes conventional does. In fact, the sheer variety of comparisons led Mother Jones columnist Tom Philpott to observe that the study "like a good buffet... offered something for every taste."  

2,4-D corn: Another bad creation

by: Marcia Ishii-Eiteman

Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 20:54:53 PM PDT

Spring has sprung, and farmers across the country are preparing for planting season. One of their biggest headaches will be dealing with the millions of acres of cropland that have been infested with superweeds and new generations of superbugs.

These superpests have evolved as the direct - and inevitable - consequence of Monsanto's aggressive promotion of its genetically engineered "RoundUp-Ready" and insecticidal seed packages over the past 15 years.

I'd like to be able to say that help is on the horizon, and that USDA is preparing to launch a full-scale effort to enable farmers to transition off the failing pesticide-GE treadmill once and for all - onto cleaner, greener methods of farming more suited to the 21st century. But alas, the reverse is true.

Pot Luck

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Tue Apr 17, 2012 at 11:47:01 AM PDT

As Hunger Grows in America, Governor Corbett Moves Pennsylvania Backwards

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Tue Apr 10, 2012 at 16:28:59 PM PDT

This move, unfortunately, does not require state legislative approval, so here in Pennsylvania we will once again (the old PA asset test was overturned by Democratic former Governor Ed Rendell in 2008) soon join the sad list of the handful of states which will require those in need of food assistance to... beg harder, I guess.  Because to folks like our governor, poor people can never be shamed enough, apparently.

More below the fold...

Coming Up for Air

by: Jill Richardson

Mon Apr 09, 2012 at 21:38:37 PM PDT

1.Story about Kenyan ag
2. Story about Iraqi woman who was murdered in the town next to mine
3. Forget the Farm Bill - I wanted the title to start with a different word that begins with F but that didn't happen.

I've got another story on agriculture in Kenya that will be up at Latitude News soon-ish. And I did a piece for a Chinese publication on the U.S. trend of backyard chickens, which was a huge pain because some woman volunteered to be interviewed for it, and then - AFTER I wrote the entire article - told me I couldn't use her name or anything about her. Legally, I could have still used her info... but that would have been a lousy thing to do. So I didn't.

At some point, I need to finish all of the Kenya diaries on this blog. I still haven't written up the rest of the Maasai visit, the rest of my time in Bondo, and a really interesting trip to Ngong Hills that came up unexpectedly on my last day there.

In other news, one of the chickens drowned in the rain barrel, and we're gonna get two more to replace her, since I think introducing a single chicken to a flock is mean. The baby chick, Muppet, is doing well and growing her feathers. She's having so much fun with her Mama that it makes me thinks no chickens should ever have to be born in an incubator if it can be avoided.

And now that it's legal in San Diego to get miniature goats, some of my friends (two couples) got a pair of goats together. They are Nigerian Dwarfs, a dairy breed, and one is likely pregnant. The other is still too young. I've visited them once but should go back with my camera so I can post about them. They are seriously the most mellow animals I've ever met. It's hard to think that they would have been illegal just a few weeks ago, given that most dogs are more of a nuisance than they are.

I think that's about it from my end. Apologies once again for my lack of blogging. With luck, I'll be done with writing the book as of June 1 and then will have more time for blogging once again.

Pot Luck

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Tue Mar 27, 2012 at 19:17:45 PM PDT

Monsanto's endless pipeline of bad ideas

by: Marcia Ishii-Eiteman

Mon Mar 26, 2012 at 10:36:56 AM PDT

As if the disaster of RoundUp resistant superweeds sweeping our farmland weren't enough, Monsanto is now preparing to launch an even greater disaster: a new soybean engineered to be resistant to the older, more toxic weedkiller, dicamba. The seed - which Monsanto plans to market in 2014 if approved - will also come stacked with the company's RoundUp Ready gene, and is designed to be used with Monsanto's proprietary herbicide "premix" of dicamba and glyphosate.

More dicamba-tolerant crops (corn, cotton, canola) are all waiting in the wings. If this new generation of GE crops is approved, then dicamba use will surge, just as it did with RoundUp. And we all know how well that didn't work out. To the giant pesticide company, this chemical arms race is all part of the plan.

Chicken Blogging: Introducing Muppet

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 14:33:03 PM PDT

Frizzie and her new baby, Muppet.

Kenya Diaries: Day 18, Part 2 - Interview with William, a Small Farmer

by: Jill Richardson

Sat Mar 17, 2012 at 13:50:10 PM PDT

William with his wife and children.

Pot Luck

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Fri Mar 16, 2012 at 19:00:00 PM PDT

Kenya Diaries: Day 18, Part 1 - Interview with Florence Ogendi, a Small Farmer

by: Jill Richardson

Thu Mar 15, 2012 at 18:21:25 PM PDT

Florence

China puts the brakes on GE rice

by: Marcia Ishii-Eiteman

Fri Mar 09, 2012 at 17:06:55 PM PST

A raging public controversy over genetically engineered (GE) rice in China captured media attention in recent months, and has culminated in a surprising win. A few weeks ago, the country's State Council released a new Draft Food Law [1] that, if passed, would protect the genetic resources of China's food crops and restrict the application of GE technology in its main food crops.

This is significant progress in the effort by farmers and campaigners in China and indeed across Asia to protect the genetic integrity, diversity and heritage of their rice.

Pot Luck

by: JayinPhiladelphia

Thu Mar 08, 2012 at 19:00:00 PM PST

Kenya Diaries: Day 15 - Travel to Bondo

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Mar 07, 2012 at 20:24:39 PM PST