A “potent thyroid toxin” that is a component of rocket fuel, perchlorate, contaminates the drinking water of up to 17 million Americans in 26 states. The EPA is finally going to start regulating it.
Monsanto GM Sugar Beets (and Alfalfa) Approval: Why This is Bad News
We have a great post going up tomorrow morning on the USDA’s recent approval of Monsanto’s genetically modified (GM) — “genetically engineered” (“GE”) if you live in Europe — sugar beets and GM alfalfa from Ken Roseboro, editor of The Organic & Non-GMO Report. It will cover health concerns (based on scientific studies), environmental concerns, legal concerns, considerable threats to organic farmers and consumers, and the USDA’s decision to ignore public concerns and comments from hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizens. But I wanted to chime in on this with a few comments of my own.
First Comprehensive Urban Agriculture Plan for NYC: Five Borough Farm Project
Creating the first comprehensive urban agriculture plan for New York City, that is a new project by Design Trust for Public Space and Added Value, the Five Borough Farm project. Here’s more from UrbanOmnibus, part of the intro to an extremely in-depth…
Happy Meal Marketing is Actually a Crime
We covered the San Francisco Happy Meal toy ban from beginning to end and then some, delving into a couple of different angles and topics. But one thing we didn’t spend a lot of time looking at was the strictly legal precedence for the ban, the legal details. Well, we aren’t lawyers, so it’s not a big surprise, but I recently read a cool, interesting, easy-to-read post on this topic (written by a lawyer) and thought it not only warranted but required a quick share.
Global Food Supply Issues & Chance of Food Riots
These days, living in a global village of sorts, we can easily take for granted the wide variety of foods we have access to and relatively low food prices. However, as the United States Agricultural & Food Law and Policy Blog (USAFLPB) notes, global food supply may be approaching its limit, we are currently seeing considerable price increases, and we could see much more in the future.
Help the Bees: Tell EPA to Ban Killer Pesticide
Bees are an essential part of our food system, as they pollinate many of the flowering plants we grow food on. “Pollination by honey bees is key in cultivating the crops that produce a full one-third of our food,” Credo Action writes. But if you haven’t heard, you should know that bees have been seeing major colony collapse in recent years. Colony Collapse Disease has decimated bees across the U.S. since 2006, killing off approximately 30% of the population each year.
Marion Nestle on “Who Decides What Your Children Eat?”
Marion Nestle of Food Politics weighs in on a Harvard School of Public Health forum on “who decides what your children eat.” She makes some very compelling points supporting the recent Happy Meal toy ban in San Francisco.
“Humane” Labeling Coming?
Animal welfare is a very important issue for most Americans, but it is definitely not a concern for the factory farmers “raising” most of our farm animals these days. Is a “humane” labeling reform on the way to help people choose better meat and animal product options?
5 Food New Year’s Resolutions
New Year’s resolutions related to food are probably some of the most common. I guess it makes sense, given that food is such a central part of our lives and is also such a central part of many of our…
Unprecedented Growth in Factory Farming in U.S.
From California to Iowa to Michigan, factory farming has blown up in the past 5-10 years. A new interactive map on this topic created by Food & Water Watch “illustrates the geographic shift in where and how food is raised…