Plight of the bumblebee
Earth Island Journal - 9/17/2009.By Adam Federman – Bombus franklini, a North American bumblebee, was last seen on August 9, 2006. Professor Emeritus Robbin Thorp, an entomologist at UC Davis, was doing survey work on Mt. Ashland in Oregon when he saw a single worker on a flower, Sulphur eriogonum, near the Pacific Crest Trail. He had last seen the bee in 2003, roughly in the same area, where it had once been very common. “August ninth,” Thorp says. “I’ve got that indelibly emblazoned in my mind.” |
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A Rich Symphony of Food – Go to Portland and Eat
New York Times - 9/16/2009. By Julia Moskin – The overnight temperature is dropping toward frost this week and probably won’t rise above it until May. Most of the cruise ships are gone, and with them the fudge buyers, the lobster seekers and the chowderheads who clog the Old Port neighborhood in the summer. But the quiet and the chill are deceptive. Portland’s many chefs and bakers, its turnip farmers and cookbook sellers and assorted mad food geniuses are gearing up for another lively winter. |
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If JBS-Pilgrim’s deal goes through, four mega-firms will dominate the meat
Grist - 9/15/2009.By Tom Philpott – Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Brazilian firm JBS – the globe’s largest beef processor – was on the verge of buying U.S. chicken giant Pilgrim’s Pride. Although the companies have since remained mum on the tie-up, rumors of an imminent deal continue to swirl. |
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USDA’s $65 million drop in the bucket
Grist - 9/15/2009.By Tom Philpott – The U.S. Department of Agriculture is so fired up about local food economies that it’s coughing up $65 million for a new program called “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food.” My first reaction: $65 million?! That’s all?! |
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