Sustainable Agriculture & Food Policy

Fellow Story

UCS alleges misconduct by Monsanto in discrediting Quist's maize research

Below in quotations are the allegations, taken in verbatim from the report, which can be accessed in full here.
July 20, 2012
Fellow Story

McGreavy's work in environmental education featured by Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners

Every July and August these walks and programs are offered free to the public, covering an amazing variety of topics through the years – animal tracking, plant identification, edible and medicinal plants, forest ecology, amphibians, birds, mushrooms, trees, deer, moose, bear, beaver and more. New educational director Bridie McGreavy, following Harding’s retirement, is adding new programs. Read the full story
July 20, 2012
Fellow Story

2013 Food Law Colloquium -- Call for Papers

CALL FOR PAPERS2013 Food Law ColloquiumMaine Law Review The Maine Law Review invites you to participate in its 2013 Food Law Colloquium. The Colloquium presents an opportunity for discussion and debate about the legal architecture of food systems in Maine, the United States, and beyond. To complement the Colloquium, the spring volume of the Review will be devoted to high-quality legal scholarship focusing on a wide range of food law topics.
July 19, 2012
Fellow Story

Bunin quoted on USDA's lack of organics testing

The USDA should start by requiring farmers who use biotechnology to abide by practices that prevent the spread of transgenic material, said Lisa Bunin, organic policy director for the Center for Food Safety. The group has opposed deregulation of transgenic crops like glyphosate-resistant alfalfa. "Why should the burden be entirely on organic producers?" she said. "The USDA needs to show its commitment to prevent contamination. The time has come for the government to step in."
July 13, 2012
Fellow Story

Gonella on Santa Barbara City College's organic garden

“The department and its instructional garden are focused primarily on teaching sustainable landscaping and gardening options,” says Michael Gonella, chair of the Environmental Horticulture Department at the college. “This vegetable garden will be a key element in the garden and will demonstrate integration of sustainable principles including organic soil care, composting and use of organic compost, water efficiency and food production.” Read the full story
July 13, 2012
Fellow Story

Krupnik speaks at workshop to promote conservation agriculture in Bangladesh

Speakers at a workshop said here on Friday that substantial and sustainable promotion of conservation agriculture is very vital for making the soil health fit for boosting crop production to ensure food security of the nation. Read the full story
July 4, 2012
Fellow Story

Chile's Salmon Aquaculture Industry

2011 Switzer Fellow Kelsey Jacobsen's research focuses on Chile's Salmon Aquaculture Industry. Hear how she is working with local governments to ensure safe aquaculture practices for years to come.
July 3, 2012
Fellow Story

Mersha on land occupation as a strategy for agrarian reform in South Africa

In South Africa, land occupation is expanding as a strategy for achieving genuine agrarian reform, food sovereignty and climate justice. Since these are all critical issues for people living in cities, land occupations in both urban and rural areas are an important, and often unrecognized, part of global movements. Read the full article
July 3, 2012
Fellow Story

Beal develops lobster aquaculture method that may help increase wild stocks

But Beal says he has come up with a better way to grow lobsters in captivity. Through trial and error over several years, he has learned how to grow lobsters in a protected environment until they are several inches long — not big enough to be sold, but big enough to settle to the bottom when they are released and possibly to improve their survival rate. Read the full story
June 27, 2012
Fellow Story

Fernández-Giménez on effects of climate change on Mongolian cashmere herders

María Fernández-Giménez, a rangeland specialist and associate professor at Colorado State University who has been observing environmental trends in Bayankhongor since 1994, believes that if there is a demonstrated market for "sustainable cashmere,” herders might change their practices. She envisions herders breeding fewer, but higher-quality goats and participating in monitoring to certify their products as organic and fair-trade, which would fetch a higher price for the wool.
June 26, 2012