¡Join the fight!
In a rundown of the ongoing joing Department of Justice/Department of Agriculture antitrust hearings, most recently held in Madison, Wisconsin to examine consolidation in the dairy industry, this article from Dairy Today drops some eyebrow-raising information:
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack noted that dairy farms numbered 110,000 a decade ago but are approaching 60,000 today. At the same time, the top 10 food retailers now control 82% of food retail sales compared to 65% a year ago. Read more...
Big Ag's blowback against all foods local, regional, and organic is getting stronger and louder. Now, instead of simply targeting mere figureheads like Michael Pollan or Michelle Obama, they're targeting the USDA's Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food program, and enlisting allies in Congress to join the food fight. From KC Star's website: Read more...
Organic food sales reached $26,6 billion in 2009 according to the Organic Trade Association's 2010 Organic Industry Survey, posting an impressive 5.1% growth of 2009.
Detractors have been predicting that consumers would turn away from organics in 2009, which was a dismal year economically from start to finish. Read more...
United States Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan (left) took another step in her ongoing rehabilitation of the USDA Organic program by targeting the use of two synthetic additives in the organic baby formula industry. From the Washington Post:
Most U.S. manufacturers of conventional and organic baby formula have supplemented their products with the fatty acids DHA and ARA for several years in order to make them more closely mimic breast milk. Some studies suggest the omega 3-fatty acid DHA and the omega-6 fatty acid ARA promote cognition and eyesight in babies. Read more...
USDA Sec. Tom Vilsack (left) went before the House Ag Committee this week and laid out five priorities for the next Farm Bill, slated for intense food-fighting in 2012. These five priorities are (via the Delta Farm Press):
* broadband access,
* renewable energy and bio-fuels,
* regional food systems and supply chains,
* forest restoration and private land conservation, and
* ecosystem market incentives. Read more...
Do you buy local chicken or local steak? Do you support beef and poultry farmers who sell at your local farmers markets? Like to order a nice grass-fed burger from a neighborhood joint? Read more...
An audit has found that the federal government has inadequately protected the public from tainted beef. From the Des Moines Register:
The USDA’s internal watchdog says the government has failed to monitor beef adequately to ensure it isn’t contaminated with residue from veterinary drugs, pesticides or heavy metals, the Agriculture Department’s inspector general says. And even when inspectors do find contamination they don’t have the meat recalled, according to the auditors. Read more...
The Today Show ran a decent piece on demystifying certified organic and "natural" food labels (video -- my apologies for the "Real Food" crap at the beginning of this spot), with Consumers Union's Urvashi Rangan sorting out the issues.
Love the reaction at :34 that USDA certified organic does't allow sewage slude. ("Is that even an issue?" Yes, Kathy. Yes it is.) Read more...
Via our friends at Food Democracy Now!:
The evidence is in: America's food system is broken.
Every week we read about record-breaking food safety recalls, a spiraling childhood obesity epidemic, and the continued loss of independent family farmers.
All of these problems can be traced back to one thing: excessive consolidation by big, corporate food. But change may be on the way. Read more...
This is a food and farming nerd's dream. Check this out:
The USDA's Food Environment Atlas
It's an interactive map that can show you, U.S. county by U.S. county: the number of farmers markets, percentage of farmers markets, availability of grocery stores, farm-to-school programs, adult diabetes rates, childhood preschool obesity rates. It's an incredible document. Take a look.
The USDA has also released a report tracking American eating habits over the last century.
