Organic farmers ask for $100 million annual research funding
The 2023 farm bill should gradually scale up federal funding for organic agriculture research and extension to $100 million a year, said the National Organic Coalition on Tuesday. The alliance of farm, environment and consumer groups also said the USDA should dedicate $75 million a year to developing seeds and animal breeds that are adapted to regional climates and soils.
Bird flu found in flock in No. 1 turkey state
For the first time, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was confirmed in Minnesota, the top turkey-producing state in the nation, said agricultural officials over the weekend. Some 14.6 million birds in domestic flocks have died of HPAI or in culling of infected herds to reduce the spread of the viral disease this year.
International contest of ideas: Farm to Fork vs. productivity coalition
The United States will launch a "coalition for productivity growth" to promote the use of high-tech tools such as gene editing and precision agriculture to build a more sustainable food system, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Thursday. The coalition would stand in contrast to the EU's Farm to Fork Strategy of greatly reducing the use of fertilizers and pesticides and putting 25 percent of European farmland into organic production.
Record sales of organic food as pandemic boosts home cooking
Americans bought a record $56.5 billion of organic food last year, an increase of nearly 13 percent from 2019, as shoppers flooded grocery stores due to stay-at-home orders during the pandemic, said a survey released on Tuesday by the Organic Trade Association. Certified organic food …
Organic farmers want a solution to their plastic problem
It's not well known, but organic farmers – like their conventional farming neighbors – depend on plastic to grow a lot of produce. "It's spread over the ground as a form of mulch to suppress weeds, conserve water and aid plant growth," reports Lisa Elaine Held in FERN's latest story, produced in collaboration with NPR's The Salt.
Less risk of pesticide exposure on organic farms, says study
Farmworkers face the greatest risk of adverse health effects from exposure to pesticides, says a report released today by the nonprofit Organic Center, which studies the environmental and health effects of organic food and farming.
Organic food sales rise by 6.4 percent in a year
Americans purchased a record $45.2 billion worth of organic food last year - half of it in fruit, vegetables, dairy and eggs - as organics took a still-larger share of U.S. spending on food, said a survey commissioned by the Organic Trade Association. Sales of organic food more than doubled in the past decade and now account for 5.5 percent of grocery sales.
USDA fills two vacancies on organics board
As the National Organic Standards Board opened its semi-annual meeting this week, the USDA announced two appointments to the group’s 15-member board.
USDA says aeroponics are still eligible for sale as organic
Two months after an advisory board voted to deny organic certification to aeroponic agriculture, the USDA said aeroponic crops remain eligible for the organic seal. "USDA will consider this [advisory] recommendation; aeroponics remains allowed during this review," said the Agricultural Marketing Service in a bulletin to organic growers.
USDA says it will kill its welfare rule for livestock on organic farms
Eleven months into the Trump administration, the Agriculture Department decided it lacks statutory authority to implement the livestock welfare rules that is wrote for organic farmers, and will announce today that it is killing the regulation. Groups representing conventional agriculture cheered the decision, which was disclosed at the end of last week, while the organic industry and its allies in Congress said USDA disregarded public sentiment and "could damage a marketplace that is giving American farmers a profitable alternative."
Report urges states to step up their aid to organic farms
With demand for organic food outrunning U.S. production, state agriculture departments frequently have too little money and limited expertise to help the sector grow, says a report by the Berkeley Food Institute. It recommends states dedicate more money and personnel "to keep up with the growing organic market" and include organic agriculture in "state pride" programs that trumpet local products.
California congressman backs organic-ag research bill
Congressman Doug LaMalfa, a Republican representing Northern California's first district, joined a bipartisan effort to increase funding for the USDA Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI). The bill, originally sponsored by Reps. Chellie Pingree of Maine, Dan Newhouse of Washington, and Jimmy Panetta of California, seeks to renew OREI and increase its funding to $50 million per year.
U.S. organic farm total rises 15 percent in a year, says consultancy
The booming U.S. demand for organic food is fueling a rapid expansion at the ground level, with more farms turning organic and growers devoting more land to feedstuffs for organic cattle and poultry, says Mercaris, which monitors the sustainable agriculture sector. "We look forward to seeing imports edge downward in coming years" as domestic corn and soybean production increases.
Soil on organic farms can hold more carbon, says study
Research by Northeastern University indicates soil on organic farms contains more of a key component for sequestering carbon than soils on other farms, said the Organic Trade Association. The trade group said the study, which compared samples of soil from across the country, "provides a significant proof point that organic agricultural practices build healthy soils and can be part of the solution in the fight on global warming."
Indoor-farming company set to go global with major investment
The tech-investment firm SoftBank Vision Fund says it will spend $200 million to help the indoor farming startup Plenty expand around the globe. Currently the company has two farms, one in San Francisco and another in Laramie, Wyoming, but it wants to scale up, tapping into population centers around the world.
Roberts cites ‘dysfunction’ at organic ag board, hints at farm bill action
At a hearing to gather ideas for the 2018 farm bill, Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts hinted at an overhaul of organic agriculture regulations, citing “uncertainty and dysfunction” at the National Organic Standards Board, which advises the USDA on what should be allowed in organic production.
Shortsighted cuts threaten organic industry, says Rep. Pingree
Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree, with firsthand experience as an organic farmer, says the Trump administration’s proposals to cut USDA funding for organic agriculture programs “seem especially foolish and shortsighted” and that the integrity of the USDA “certified organic” seal must be protected.
Time to double research funding for organic farming, say lawmakers
Funding would more than double, to $50 million a year, for research to boost organic agricultural production under a bill proposed by three members of the U.S. House of Representatives.