Organic dairy farms being crushed by factory operations
The Capital Times (Madison, WI) - 1/29/2010.By Mark Kastel – Family farmers who produce organic milk are petitioning for the swift adoption of new strict rule-making that would rein in the abuses of a handful of factory farms, which are violating both the spirit and letter of the federal organic law. |
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Six Meaningless Claims on Food Labels
The New York Times - 1/28/2010.By Tara Parker-Pope – Although food labels are supposed to tell us exactly what’s in the food we’re buying, marketers have created a language all their own to make foods sound more healthful than they really are. Today’s “Consumer Ally” column on AOL’s WalletPop site explores misleading food-label lingo, noting that some commonly used phrases have “almost no meaning.” |
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And the winner of the USDA food safety sweepstakes is …
Grist - 1/26/2010.By Tom Laskawy – Dr. Elizabeth Hagen! No, you’re not expected to know who she is. Suffice it to say that, as anticipated, USDA Chief Tom Vilsack turned to an under-the-radar choice for Under Secretary of Food Safety. Hagen, currently the USDA’s Chief Medical Officer, will, if confirmed, take charge of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which is responsible for the safety of meat and poultry products. The interesting aspect of this pick is that she is an infectious disease doc and public health specialist who has been working at USDA for several years – and thus should have a good grounding in food safety methods. |
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Organic or conventional, farmers are working in unison
Kennebec Journal - 1/26/2010.Op-Ed by Jon Olson, Maine Farm Bureau – Maine agriculture is on a roll. While the number of farms in the United States is declining, the number of Maine farms is growing. The last U.S. Department of Agriculture census counted 8,136 Maine farms in 2007. That's a gain of over 2,000 farms in the last 10 years. Farmers markets are increasingly popular and more and more people are signing up to buy directly from farmers through CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture). |
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