Climate Food and Agriculture

Altering the market to promote sustainable farming

The Aug. 16 issue of Science magazine features an ominous headline: “Dead Zone Grows.” To the right of the headline is a map of the Gulf of Mexico with an irregular green stripe hugging the shoreline. This is the Dead Zone, an area of the gulf where oxygen levels are so low that most marine […]

Running Knows

Climate change is caused by human activities — and maybe by more of them than previously thought. That was the conclusion of a report released today by NASA, which found that land-use changes such as farming, irrigation, and urban sprawl contribute as much if not more to climate change than does the burning of fossil […]

Sea, Sea, My Playmate

More than 200 small grocers, restaurants, and seafood distributors in 40 U.S. states have announced that they will not buy, sell, or serve genetically altered fish. Among those joining the biotech boycott are such celebrity chefs as Alice Waters at Chez Panisse in Berkeley and Michael Schenk at Oceana in New York City. Whole Foods […]

Greener Pastures

Sign of the Thames

New water-quality targets being established by the European Union could radically change the face of farming in Europe, forcing farmers to scale back or even abandon their practices in some traditionally agricultural areas. The Water Framework Directive will require all rivers, lakes, and canals to be restored to “good ecological quality” within 15 years — […]

Quite a Pear

There have been wars fought over oil and opium, spices and sugarcane — and now it seems there is a war brewing in Washington state over pears. The battle was touched off when the Seattle-based Washington Environmental Council sent a letter to an irrigation district in the eastern part of the state threatening legal actions […]

More Than Meats the Eye

In the last two decades, there’s been a national growth spurt in super-sized animal feedlots and slaughterhouses. That spurt has outpaced the ability of regulators to keep such places operating safely and cleanly — and that has led to polluted water bodies, food safety scares, and on-the-job injuries, according to a report released yesterday by […]

Onion Jack

Times are so bad for organic farmers in the United Kingdom that the whole market for organic foods could collapse, according to research published today by the National Farmers Union. According to the data, one in three organic farms in Great Britain is losing money. If there is hope, it lies in the Organic Action […]

Swiss Bliss

Organic farming results in a smaller yield than conventional agriculture, but is far more energy efficient and better for the land. That might sound intuitive to many organic advocates, but it took a 21-year study by Swiss scientists to prove it. Research published in the most recent issue of Science showed that organic farming is […]

Toxics: Australian for Fertilizer

Businesses across Australia are legally disposing of their industrial waste by selling it as fertilizers for farms and home gardens, according to an investigative report by the Sydney Morning Herald. The fertilizers often contain such toxic metals as arsenic, mercury, chromium, and lead. In western Australia, radioactive material from aluminum refineries is being used at […]