Agricultural choices must be made by these inescapable standards: the ecological health of the farm and the economic health of the farmer. Source: Opinion | Wendell Berry’s Right Kind of Farming – The New York Times
New studies show that bees prefer to forage on untreated or pesticide-laced food sources. Over time, individual bees who have visited treated flowers develop a preference for the taste. This creates a growing risk to their long-term health and colony success. Specifically neonicotinoids have been shown to affect bee nerve receptors triggering addictive behavior. Neonicotinoids...
On Wednesday, U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced bill S-3404 “The Food and Agribusiness Merger Moratorium and Antitrust Review Act of 2018.” This bill would enact an 18 month merger moratorium on national agribusiness, grocery, and food/beverage manufacturing and establish a federal commission to study ways to strengthen antitrust oversight. According to Booker, consolidation of chemical...
It took 200 scientists from 20 countries and $75 million dollars, over 13 years to sequence the genome of bread wheat. The wheat genome was complicated to sequence since genetically it is three species in one. This means that there are three pairs of every chromosome, totaling 16 billion genetic letters or nucleotides. Scientists have...
A recent case in San Francisco made headlines as the world’s first RoundUp cancer trial. The lawsuit was filed in 2016 by Dewayne Johnson. Johnson was a pest control manager for a California school who applied RoundUp over 30 times a year. Johnson, 46 has developed terminal non-Hodgkins lymphoma and claims the weedkiller caused his...
Throughout NJ there will be numerous State Fairs happening in the month of Aug. NJ State Fairs offer a variety of activities involving agriculture, arts, education, and community. They are wonderful celebrations of NJ’s rich agricultural history and future while supporting the local economy and community. Each fair offers unique insight into the culture and...
For $63 billion dollars, German life sciences and pharmaceutical company Bayer has purchased agribusiness company Monsanto. The merger will be finalized this week, and Monsanto will no longer be a company name. Monsanto’s products including glyphosate-containing RoundUp, will retain their brand names and become a part of the Bayer portfolio. This comes as no surprise...
Scott and Allison Morgan met in Florida in 2004 at the Paddy Wagon Bar and Grill. Scott, an organic farmer, was exchanging his just picked arugula for a meal. Allie, a Philadelphia native, was in Florida studying Acupuncture. They remember talking for hours about their respective interests in growing organic food and alternative medicine. Fourteen...
On May 3rd the USDA released its proposed regulations for the mandatory disclosure of foods produced using GMO or GE methods. These rules establish more detail on how disclosures will be implemented following the 2016 federal law requiring disclosure. The rules are the final step to securing GE food labeling in the United States at...
A recent article published in The Guardian discusses the toxicity of popular weed-killing products such as Monsanto’s Roundup.US government researchers have uncovered evidence that these formulated products are more toxic to human cells than their active ingredient. Government scientists are taking the first ever tests on herbicide formulations as a part of the US National...
