GMO Crop Growth Expands Around Globe

Led by U. S. producers, 14 million farmers around the world planted genetically modified crops last year, increasing planted biotech cropland by seven per cent, even as biotech crop use declined in Europe, according to an industry report issued Feb. 25. Expansions were noted for biotech soybeans, corn and cotton, and the appeal to farmers

Global GMO Crop Growth Expands

Led by U. S. producers, 14 million farmers around the world planted genetically modified crops last year, increasing planted biotech cropland by seven per cent, even as biotech crop use declined in Europe, according to an industry report issued late last month. Expansions were noted for biotech soybeans, corn and cotton, and the appeal to


Options Abound For Improving Phosphorus Management

“The underlying problem leading to food waste stems in part from consumer behaviours supported by an economic system built to produce more than we need.” Anew report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development outlines several avenues that could be explored to improve phosphorus management: Another case for local food networks: “Cycling phosphorus exported in

Producers Need To Participate In Their Organizations

A National Food Strategy is required to ensure that we have a vibrant contributing agriculture sector in Canada. As the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) celebrates its 75th anniversary, the future of Canadian agriculture is at a crossroads and the future of food in this country is uncharted. Currently, Canada has no comprehensive strategy for


Low Donor Support For Haiti Farming Alarms UN Body

Only eight per cent of a $23 million appeal to help Haiti revive food production after a devastating earthquake has been funded, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Feb. 12. At a meeting of UN agencies in Rome also attended by Haiti’s agriculture minister one month after the earthquake, FAO director general Jacques

Briefs continued – for Feb. 18, 2010

Fatal mishap: A driver who abandoned a broken-down half-ton and a set of heavy harrows partially obstructing the traffic lane on a major highway overnight has been charged with criminal negligence causing death after a car collided with the equipment, killing the occupant. The accident on Hwy. 16 near Russell June 27, 2009 killed Jason


Consumers Seen Holding Key In Food Revolution

“We need to ensure the consumer really is king.” – TORY AGRICULTURE CRITIC NICK HERBERT Consumer power must bring about a revolution in the way food is produced and sold, with healthier food delivering a smaller environmental impact a top priority, according to Britain’s Farm Minister Hilary Benn. Benn, unveiling a new government strategy, said

Largest U. S. Farm Group Rallies Against Climate Bill

The largest U. S. farm group will oppose aggressively “misguided” climate legislation pending in Congress and fight animal rights activists, said American Farm Bureau Federation president Bob Stallman Jan. 10. In a speech opening the four-day AFBF convention, Stallman said American farmers and ranchers “must aggressively respond to extremists” and “misguided, activist-driven regulation … The


Foreigners Buying African Farms A Good Thing

The outsourcing of food production in Africa by some Asian and Middle-Eastern countries will boost global stocks and may help stave off future food crises, the World Bank says. In the aftermath of last year’s food crisis, capital-rich nations who lack sufficient arable land to feed growing populations started buying or leasing large portions of

Groundbreaking Moments In Global Agriculture

Chicago | Reuters – Organized cultivation of food crops like wheat and barley began about 10,000 to 12,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent, what is now the Middle East. Great strides in agriculture have been made since through innovation, technology and genetics to help feed the world’s growing population. Despite this, however, more than