Organic Farming's Economic and Environmental Benefits. Organic farming is a rapidly expanding economic sector and makes an important contribution to human health, the health of the economy, and the health of the planet. The evidence is clear about the success of organic farming in terms of human health, prosperity, the benefits to soil and water, to birds and bees, and the ability of organic farming to mitigate damage from global climate change. Because of the many benefits of organic farming, public policies should support investing in the expanding organic sector.
The Farm Bill is due to be re‐configured and re‐authorized before the end of 2012 and, as the primary instrument of agricultural policy, the Farm Bill is a likely vehicle for investment in organic agriculture. Currently, agricultural policy does very little to support organic farmers and, in some cases, works against the interests of organic farmers. Organic Farming Could Grow Even More Jobs with Better Policy Support.
Money can grow on trees, and so can jobs -- if those trees are organic. That's the finding of a new report calling for new federal policies to support organic agriculture in next year's Farm Bill and beyond. Organic agriculture can have a strong positive impact on the U.S. economy and is good for job creation, says a new study by Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF). But with additional policy help from the federal government the sector can make the most of its economic and environmental potential is a good investment for the nation as a whole, said OFRF external relations director Denise Ryan.
The new report, "Organic Farming for Health and Prosperity," starts by making the point that the organic industry continued to grow through the recession, albeit more slowly than before the recession. After growing at an annual rate of 19 percent between 1997 and 2008, the organic agriculture sector grew by 8 percent in 2010 to $29 billion. OFRF is also asking Congress to direct the U.S. The Rise of Urban Farming and Other Varieties of Sustainable Ag | Buildings. My newest buzzword for 2011 is CSA. I'd never heard the term until recently, but now it seems to be popping up all over, as is interest in sustainable agriculture and urban farming. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture -- the practice of signing up with a local farm for weekly produce and, in some cases, meat and dairy.
I first read about CSA in Kristin Kimball's recent memoir, "The Dirty Life," which is justly attracting rave reviews on Amazon. A Manhattan writer who gave up the city for love, she has been farming an organic spread, Essex Farm, in upstate New York since 2003, with her husband, Mark. Essex Farm provides a complete sustainable diet for its 150 members. Kimball's book is an engrossing depiction of the back-breaking work and edible rewards of CSA. Urban farming is also on the rise. Urban farming comes in a variety of models. A vision of urban and vertical farming. Next Page: More visions of urban farms. Agriculture durable : la recherche européenne se coordonne. Le Conseil européen a approuvé en octobre 2010 l'initiative de programmation conjointe ''agriculture, sécurité alimentaire et changement climatique'' (FACCE-JPI), visant à rapprocher les programmes de recherche de 20 pays européens.
Ainsi, ''les Etats membres et associés travailleront ensemble autour d'une même vision et d'un même plan stratégique de recherche, et apporteront une contribution significative à la recherche en évitant les doublons, en comblant les manques et en créant une masse critique'', explique l'INRA qui codirige le projet avec son homologue britannique (BBSRC). Une première action pilote vient d'être lancée, en collaboration avec des projets internationaux, sur l'étude détaillée des risques liés au changement climatique pour l'agriculture et la sécurité alimentaire en Europe.
Il s'agira de modéliser les impacts du changement climatique et la réduction des incertitudes face aux divers scénarios de changement climatique. DuPont Is Sued Over New Herbicide. Andrew Spear for The New York TimesA Norwegian spruce in Columbus, Ohio. Its owners said that it began to wither after Imprelis, an herbicide manufactured by Dupont, was applied to their lawn. A Pennsylvania homeowner and an Indiana golf course company have filed a class-action lawsuit against DuPont charging that the chemical giant was either negligent or reckless in putting a new weedkiller on the market. The suit, filed on Monday in United States District Court for the District of Delaware, asserts that the high-profile herbicide, Imprelis, is killing trees, shrubs and ornamental plants across the country.
A similar lawsuit was filed on Friday against Dupont by a golf club in Michigan that has reported thousands of dead and dying trees on its properties. In a statement on Tuesday, DuPont said: “We are working with our customers to investigate reports of unfavorable symptoms observed on certain tree species, primarily Norway spruce and white pine.” National agro-food policy to be introduced to ensure sufficient food supply | Eco-Business. He said the policy, which was drafted for a 10-year period starting this year until 2020 and to replace the National Agriculture Policy (DPN3) which ended last year, would be tabled to the Cabinet for approval soon. The minister said the policy would be the source of reference and guidelines for departments and agencies under the ministry to carry out their projects.
“Actually, we are supposed to continue with DPN4, but we are giving extra focus on food safety assurance and food sector. “The policy will ensure sufficient food supply, safe food for consumption and also aimed at turning agro-food into a competitive and sustainable industry. “At the same time, it is also aimed at increasing the income of agro-entrepreneurs when we achieve the status of a developed nation in 2020,” he told reporters after presenting Excellence Service Award to the ministry’s staff here today.