From the monthly archives:

December 2009

Corporate Bait & Switch—Organic To Natural

December 30, 2009 Farming & Agriculture

As organic products continue to command a higher price than conventional products, unscrupulous corporate suppliers will be tempted to do what is becoming known as the organic to natural bait and switch.
Mike Adams writes in NaturalNews.com,
Until early 2009, Silk brand soy milk was made using organic soybeans. But earlier this year, Dean Foods (owner of [...]

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USDA Report Aimed At Smaller Organic Growers

December 30, 2009 Farming & Agriculture

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the release of Breaking Down Market Barriers for Small and Mid-sized Organic Growers, a report developed by the California Institute for Rural Studies, focusing on marketing challenges faced by organic fruit and vegetable farmers in California and their potential commercial buyers.
The report cites grower difficulty in getting organic price [...]

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Illahe Vineyards

December 29, 2009 Farming & Agriculture

Illahe Vineyards  is a certified sustainable winery in Dallas, Oregon. Since the winery is only about 15 miles from where I live, I have sampled their very tasty varietals and recommend it if you can find it at your wine supplier.
Illahe has 50 acres of vines on top of a south facing slope at their [...]

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Trade Issues Regarding Specialty Crops—2008 USDA Report

December 29, 2009 Farm/Garden Politics

Even though locally grown food is an ever increasing trend for growers, farmers in the U.S. exported over $14 billion worth of specialty crops around the world.
The 2008 annual USDA report shows trade issues and tariff barriers for each country that U.S. farmers export products to. It is interesting to see what some countries [...]

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Ag Extension Services Threatened

December 29, 2009 Farm/Garden Politics

With the double whammy of huge budget shortfalls facing the federal, state and local governments across the country and pressure from right wing tea baggers to cut taxes, infrastructures and public services that many people rely upon will be the first to be cut and closed down.
One such service, is the Oregon State University Extension [...]

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Unproductive Garden Center Customers

December 29, 2009 Farm/Garden Politics

One possible New Year’s resolution for a gardener could be: I will regularly support and actually purchase plants and garden products from a local, independent garden store instead of a big box store…
On a forum of retail garden store owners and employees, a question was put forth on how to deal with “unproductive customers” who [...]

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Acacia Plant Controls Ants With Chemical

December 29, 2009 insects

Victoria Gill, Science reporter for BBC News writes,
In Africa and in the tropics, armies of tiny creatures make the twisting stems of acacia plants their homes. Aggressive, stinging ants feed on the sugary nectar the plant provides and live in nests protected by its thick bark.
This is the world of “ant guards”.
The acacias might appear [...]

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EPA Announces Plan To Require Disclosure Of Secret Pesticide Ingredients

December 28, 2009 Farming & Agriculture

Marla Cone writes on cornucopia.org,
Reversing a decade-old decision, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday that it plans to require pesticide manufacturers to disclose to the public the inert ingredients in their products.
An inert ingredient is anything added to a pesticide that does not kill or control a pest.
In some cases, those ingredients are toxic [...]

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iPhone App For Shelf Life Of Food

December 28, 2009 vegetables

When some food in the refrigerator turns all slimy, black and moldy, you are sure it is no longer edible. But how about those food items that might be borderline. Well, as the Apple tv commercial says, “There’s an app for that.”
StillTasty, both as an iPhone app and a web site, gives the shelf life [...]

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Organic Farm Spotlight—Boogy Creek Farm

December 27, 2009 Compost

Boogy Creek Farm is a five acre organic urban farm in Austin, Texas started in 1991 by the husband and wife farmer team of Carol Ann Sayle and Larry Butler. Earlier, Carol had a 20-year career in painting, but she enthusiastically put down the brush to take up the hoe. Her canvas is now Boogy [...]

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