National Geographic ran a June 15, 2017 story by Sarah Gibbens entitled “Renewable Energy Record Set in the U.S.” It’s opening paragraph reports the good news – “The U.S. set a new renewable energy milestone in March, in data released Wednesday. For the first time, wind and solar accounted for 10 percent of all electricity […]
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Global agriculture is big business, and that includes the seeds that farmers need to grow their crops. The R+D priorities of the seed-biotech industry have huge implications for farmers and consumers alike, as the seeds available to put in the ground each spring determine the types, taste, and nutrient profile of the fresh produce and […]
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By Lynn Clarkson, Chairman of Clarkson Grain Note to Readers – Lynn Clarkson sent the following message, or one very similar to it, to a number of individuals in the Trump Administration, or influential with key players in the Administration. He agreed to share his message with the broader community. So, please enjoy and share […]
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Backed up by a glossy report by two ag economists from the University of Minnesota, the Farm Journal Foundation has issued a remarkably unimaginative call for a doubling of public funding for agricultural research…because U.S. ag research funding is falling behind China, Brazil, India…and because we have to feed 9 billion people. Over the years there […]
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China has become the world’s fourth largest consumer of organic food. Demand is driven by food safety concerns, in the wake of a series of food adulteration episodes and a lack of trust in the government’s ability to assure compliance with safety standards. Xinhua Insight reports that more and more young professionals are giving up careers […]
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A tipping point for the ages occurred in 2016 with the election of Donald Trump. Such dramatic changes almost always reflect deep and strong undercurrents that have built up over time. Several are unfolding now in the food and agricultural arena. I spent the first week of 2017 in the U.K., meeting with colleagues at […]
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In an edgy January 5, 2017 piece, Sean Pratt and the Western Producer Magazine have upped the rhetorical ante circulating over the October 17, 2016 letter from five major farm groups and the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) to Dannon-USA CEO, Mariano Lozano. The letter criticizes Dannon-USA for its pledge to source non-GMO ingredients and […]
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Tamar Haspel is a talented food writer for the Washington Post. She often delves into food quality and health issues. In this “Unearthed” piece she uses dollars per calorie as the basic metric of the cost of “healthy” food, and compares basics like flour and vegetable oils to processed foods like Doritos and hot dogs. […]
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This study reports some remarkable numbers quantifying the economic impact of exposures to endocrine disrupting chemicals. Pesticides cause the second largest impact — some $44 billion — right behind flame retardants. While worrisome enough, the huge increases now occurring in herbicide, insecticide, and fungicide use on farms growing the three major genetically engineered (GE, or GMO) crops (corn, soybeans, cotton) is bound to markedly increase exposures, reproductive problems, birth defects, and a host of life-long health problems. Hopefully sooner rather than later, the agricultural commodity groups and farmers will rediscover prevention-based Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and start to reduce their…
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Historic posts are reprinted verbatim from their original source. Source: Industry News, ISB Newsletter, June, 1998 It seems to get harder and harder to write about the business side of agricultural biotechnology without discussing Monsanto in one way or another. This month is no exception. In fact, in a flurry of recent activity, Monsanto has further strengthened […]
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