Department of Agriculture
-
USDA ID-tag plan for farm animals has some small-scale farmers unhappy
If only Orwell could get a load of this. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is promoting a system that would have farm-animal owners and livestock handlers attach microchips or other ID tags to their furry and feathered charges so they could be monitored throughout their lifetimes by a centralized computer network. The National Animal Identification […]
-
![]()
![]()
How the feds make bad-for-you food cheaper than healthful fare
If you’re going to talk about poverty, food, and the environment in the United States, you might as well start in the Corn Belt. So good, and so good for you — until it’s turned into soda. Photo: stock.xchng. This fertile area produces most of the country’s annual corn harvest of more than 10 billion […]
-
![]()
![]()
White House to greens: We should totally do this again some time
Say anything. Uncle Sam wants you … to cooperate on conservation. Not only that, he’s willing to listen. At least that’s what he says. Earlier this week, St. Louis hosted the White House Conference on Cooperative Conservation. The invitation-only event was modeled after Teddy Roosevelt’s 1908 Governors’ Conference, which brought all the country’s governors, Supreme […]
-
![]()
![]()
Bush’s pick to head the USDA is a big ethanol booster
At a White House ceremony last week announcing the nomination of Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns (R) to succeed Ann Veneman as agriculture secretary, President Bush called his pick “a strong proponent of alternative energy sources, such as ethanol and biodiesel,” later adding that “in a new term, we’ll continue policies that are pro-growth, pro-jobs, and […]
-
USDA’s Mark Rey drags feet on releasing info about forest policymaking
Mark Rey. Photo: USFS. According to lawyers from Defenders of Wildlife, Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey, who oversees the U.S. Forest Service, seems to be pulling some moves out of the Dick Cheney playbook — the very same tricks of evasion and secrecy that have jeopardized the vice president’s reputation in the fiasco surrounding his energy […]
-
A new consumer revolution could change the way we label food
There’s a tongue-in-cheek ad campaign going on in New York City right now regarding smoking in public places. The ads feature slogans like, “If they ban smoking in airports, people will never fly again,” and “If they ban smoking in bathrooms, people will never gossip again.” I thought of this campaign when I stumbled across […]
-
Fishy Business
For the second time this year, congressional Republicans have used behind-the-scenes trickery to weaken organic-labeling standards. Powerful Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, tacked a measure onto the recently passed $79 million war-spending bill that directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture to come up with a plan for certifying and labeling […]
-
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (known familiarly as CJD) is something you do not want to get. Your brain degenerates, piece by piece. First you feel depressed, then you have trouble coordinating. You lose sight, speech, motor control, as the disease travels through the brain. When it reaches the control centers for breathing or heartbeat, you die. Medical […]
