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ORGANIC FARMING NEWS & OPINION

Matthew Cimitile, Environmental Health News - January 6, 2009.
Crops absorb livestock antibiotics, science shows
Vegetables such as corn, potatoes and lettuce absorb antibiotics when grown in soil fertilized with livestock manure, according to tests conducted at the University of Minnesota.
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Kay Sexton, Red, Green and Blue (UK) - January 5, 2009.
Organic = No pesticide but some relaxation of rules, beg UK farmers
The plea, from organisations including the Soil Association, is the result of a sales drop and fears for the future of 5,000 organic farmers across Britain.
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Chris Torres, Lancaster Farming (Pennsylvania) - December 28, 2008.
Rodale Calls for ‘Organic Green Revolution’
A properly managed organic system, according to the report, will provide increased crop yields as well as improved drought and flood resistance.
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Andrew Schneider, Seattle Post-Intelligencer - December 28, 2008.
If it's American honey, it's likely not organic
You may be paying more for honey labeled 'certified organic' or feel reassured by the 'USDA Grade A' seal, but the truth is, there are few federal standards for honey, no government certification and no consequences for making false claims.
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Kerry Trueman, Huffington Post - December 28, 2008.
Let's Ask Marion Nestle: Are The USDA's Organic Standards A Sham?
This sort of incident perpetuates the notion that higher priced organic foods are some kind of scam, and vindicates the many small-scale sustainable farmers who've chosen to go "beyond organic" and opt out of the organic certification process altogether.
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Jim Downing, Sacramento Bee - December 28, 2008.
Organic farms unknowingly used a synthetic fertilizer
According to documents obtained by The Bee through a Public Records Act request, California Department of Food and Agriculture officials were notified of the problem in June 2004 but didn't complete their investigation and order the company to remove its product from the organic market until January 2007.
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Kim Severson, International Herald Tribune - December 25, 2008.
Is a new food policy on Obama's list?
'This time we have a Democrat in office that seems to live the dream and speak the language of both food progressivism and personal fitness'
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Steve Fogarty, Elyria Chronicle-Telegram (Ohio) - December 18, 2008.
Couple sue over raid on organic food co-op
A LaGrange couple who own an organic food cooperative and are accused of operating an unlicensed retail food business have filed suit against the Ohio Department of Agriculture, the Lorain County General Health District and the Ohio attorney general’s office.
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Grist - December 16, 2008.
Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack chosen as Obama's agriculture secretary
'I also think we ought to be looking at changing the way we subsidize agriculture generally, from a commodity-based process to a conservation-based process, which would benefit organic farms as well.'
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Ari LeVaux, AlterNet - December 15, 2008.
Change You Can Eat: Obama's Pick for Secretary of Ag May Finally Shake Things Up
As someone who eats organic and knows what a CSA is, foodies have high hopes for Obama challenging Big Ag.
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Melissa Leong, The Province (BC) - December 8, 2008.
Ont. raw-milk activist to fight fines
The farmer, whose supporters say they have raised $120,000 for his defence, said he is eager to confront authorities about the public safety of milk.
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Mike Adams, Natural News - December 2, 2008.
Melamine Found Contaminating Soy Meal Fed to Organic Chickens
Certainly, organic meat is usually safer than conventional meat, but if organic poultry farms can be caught up in the melamine scandal, then just about any animal farming operation could be hit next.
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Canadian Press, CBC - November 29, 2008.
Manitoba to conduct environmental review of farming practices
While some fear the province is targeting farmers in a bid to score political points, Agriculture Minister Rosann Wowchuk says it's all about helping the industry adopt to the threat of climate change.
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Arlene Jongbloets, 100 Mile House Free Press (BC) - November 25, 2008.
Organic farmers travel to Italy to take part in Terra Madre: a world meeting of producers
Diether and LeBourdais attended the conference on invitation from the BC-centered FarmFolk/CityFolk Society, which works with farm and city to cultivate local, sustainable food systems.
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Amy Jo Ehman, The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) - November 24, 2008.
Radical producers go free-range on farm policy
Salatin's speech was followed by Richard Heinberg, a journalist from California who writes about the end of oil, who spoke by video-conference.
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Steve Karnowski, AP (USA) - November 21, 2008.
Turf wars ending for organic dairies
The Department of Agriculture has issued draft rules for organic milk that would require that the cows be on pasture at least half the year and get plenty of fresh grass.
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Keremeos Review (BC) - November 18, 2008.
Learning centre for organic farming soon to be a reality
The idea of a learning centre for organic farming emerged at a public meeting in Keremeos in February 2004.
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Jonathan Jenkins, Toronto Sun - November 11, 2008.
Pesticide ban almost ready
Draft regulations for Ontario's cosmetic pesticide ban outlaw the use of the popular lawn care product Roundup and will make the law the toughest on the continent, said Gideon Forman, executive director of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment.
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Plenty Magazine (USA) - November 6, 2008.
Rules, rules, rules
It’s all part of a greater push, according to the Washington Post, to get as many regulations out before an administration change.
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Yale Sustainable Food Project (USA) - October 31, 2008.
Obama Cites Michael Pollan in Interview
In a recent interview on Time’s swampland, Obama criticized the industrial food system in the most forthright discussion of food issues that I’ve heard yet in the presidential campaign.
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Op Ed News (USA) - October 27, 2008.
USDA Releases New Organic 'Pasture Rule' - Running out the Clock for Family Farmers?
The catalyst for the tour is a petition demanding that part of the White House grounds be turned into organic farmland.
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Moe Beitiks, Inhabit (USA) - October 25, 2008.
The White House Organic Farm Project
The catalyst for the tour is a petition demanding that part of the White House grounds be turned into organic farmland.
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Daniel Howden, The Independent (UK) - October 22, 2008.
Organic farming 'could feed Africa'
Organic farming offers Africa the best chance of breaking the cycle of poverty and malnutrition it has been locked in for decades, according to a major study from the United Nations to be presented today.
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Martin Mittelstaedt and Luke Eric Peterson, CBC News - October 22, 2008.
Ban on pesticides may face NAFTA test
Dow AgroSciences is considering using the controversial investor-protection provisions of the North American free-trade agreement to seek compensation from the federal government over Quebec's ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides.
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CBC News - October 20, 2008.
Ontario farmer convicted in raw-milk trial, seeks maximum penalty
Michael Schmidt has run a co-operative organic dairy farm near Owen Sound, Ont., for more than 20 years.
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WalesOnline - October 13, 2008.
Organic farmer scoops wildlife award
A farmer who went organic eight years ago has won the first national farming award for wildlife conservation.
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BBC News - October 10, 2008.
Using Electrons To Treat Organic Seeds
The plant developed by the researchers exposes the seed to electrons as it falls through the treatment zone.
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BBC News - October 7, 2008.
Success for plants' pest control
This method uses a chemical that is naturally produced by plants - jasmonic acid.
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Geoffrey Lean, The Independent (UK) - October 5, 2008.
Charles targets GM crop giants in fiercest attack yet
In a provocative address to an Indian audience, the Prince echoes Gandhi with a stinging attack on 'commerce without morality'.
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Environment News Service - September 29, 2008.
Organic Farm Contaminated by Pesticides Wins $1M Verdict
A Santa Cruz County jury has awarded $1 million to an organic farm in Santa Cruz whose edible herbs were contaminated by pesticides applied to vegetables on nearby farms.
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Chicago Tribune - September 26, 2008.
Citing cost, USDA kills pesticide-testing program
The Bush administration has abruptly halted a government program that tests the levels of pesticides in fruits, vegetables and field crops, arguing that the $8 million-a-year program is too expensive - a decision critics say could make it harder to protect consumers from toxins in their food.
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CBC News - September 26, 2008.
Ban cosmetic pesticides in B.C., municipal leaders demand
Cosmetic pesticides should be banned from use on private land everywhere in B.C., according to delegates attending the Union of British Columbia Municipalities convention in Penticton.
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Globe and Mail - September 26, 2008.
Food fight
In his September column, Eric Reguly wrote about the inadequacy of organic food to meet the world's food needs. We got a heap of mail on this one - everyone from organic farmers to analysts to former food inspectors wrote in.
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Mary Esch, Associated Press - September 19, 2008.
Ladybug, ladybug, where have you gone?
The decline of C-9 and some other native ladybugs happened so quickly and precipitously that scientists have launched a nationwide project to help them understand why some ladybug species have all but vanished while others have greatly increased their numbers and range.
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Kate Hammer, Globe and Mail - September 13, 2008.
Renegade farmer exposes key question: Is milk pasteurized or unpasteurized?
New data show that 2008 organic food sales will reach $32.9 billion
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Meredith Niles, Grist - September 11, 2008.
The organic times are a changin'
New data show that 2008 organic food sales will reach $32.9 billion
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Barbara Scott, Farm Focus - September 11, 2008.
First organic feed mill in Atlantic Canada
One of pieces missing in the development of the Atlantic organic industry will be filled in this fall when the Sussex Co-op in New Brunswick starts producing organic feed.
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Mike Adams, Natural News - September 10, 2008.
Almond Growers Sue USDA to Halt Mandatory Chemical Fumigation of Raw Almonds
After having their organic almond businesses devastated by the USDA's bizarre decision requiring mandatory chemical fumigation of almonds, the almond industry is fighting back.
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Megan Grittani-Livingston, Whistler Question - September 5, 2008.
Tricky times for some spud growers
Seed potato farmers hurt by high dollar, fuel prices, but local food push helping others.
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Alberta Farmer - September 4, 2008.
U of Guelph opens organic farming centre
Local organic food production and resource conservation are to be on the curriculum at the new Guelph Centre for Urban Organic Farming, officially opened at the University of Guelph.
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Peter Melchett , The Guardian (UK) - September 3, 2008.
Organic food: no flash in the pan fad
Far from being niche, our research shows that as the price of oil increases, organically farmed food is the most profitable option.
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Graham Tibbetts, The Telegraph (UK) - September 2, 2008.
Organic food to be cheaper than other produce
With oil predicted to reach $200 a barrel within five to 10 years, the profit margin on organic wheat, barley and oil seed rape would be as much as £411.
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New Scientist - September 1, 2008.
Organic wine is twice as good for the planet
A bottle from the organic farm had an eco-footprint of 7.17 square metres, half that of the non-organic wine with a footprint of 13.98 square metres.
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Juliette Jowit, The Guardian - August 29, 2008.
Shoppers lose their taste for organic food
Organic food sales have fallen more than at any time in the last decade as shoppers try to cut costs and experts warn that consumers are more confused than ever about whether it is worth paying the higher prices.
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Michaela Schiessl and Christian Schwägerl, Der Spiegel - August 27, 2008.
'The Cow Is a Climate Bomb'
Whether cattle are reared organically or with conventional farming methods, the end effect is bad for the environment, according to a new German consumer report.
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Steven Carroll, Irish Times - August 26, 2008.
Education on food growing urged
The Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association (Iofga) said Ireland’s dependence on using nitrogen in food production was no longer acceptable and a new strategy was needed to help the environment.
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Taylor Hengen, Popular Science - August 25, 2008.
New research finds higher-than-expected levels of pesticides in hives
While pesticides have consistently been acknowledged as a contributing factor within this problematic milieu, recent research at Penn State has revealed that pesticide levels in hives are much higher than researchers predicted.
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Stephen J. Hedges, Chicago Tribune - August 25, 2008.
Irradiation step doesn't quiet debate on FDA moves
After two years of nearly constant food-borne illness outbreaks and recalls of everything from tainted peanut butter to tons of hamburger meat, the Food and Drug Administration's decision last week to allow the irradiation of lettuce and spinach to kill dangerous bacteria didn't surprise anyone in the food industry.
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Pig Progress - August 22, 2008.
Canadian Government invests in organic farming
The Government of Canada is providing organic farmers with the support they need to tap into new and locally-based markets.
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Organic Market Info - August 21, 2008.
Norway: farmers are leaving organic agriculture
According to the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, which reported figures from the Norsk institutt for landbruksøkonomisk forskning, for every seventh person starting organic farming, six have quit.
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Stephen Tvedten, Safe Pest Control - August 21, 2008.
50-year-old pesticide coverup in UK
Drawing attention to the link with WWII nerve agents, the scientists strongly advised the government to label products containing OPs as a 'deadly poison' and to warn users that death could result from a single exposure.
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Tom Philpott, Grist (USA) - August 20, 2008.
Monsanto finds a buyer for its rBGH business
Pharma giant Lilly snaps up Posilac for 'at least' $300 million
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Jane Kay, San Francisco Chronicle - August 19, 2008.
Lawsuit seeks EPA pesticide data
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is refusing to disclose records about a new class of pesticides that could be playing a role in the disappearance of millions of honeybees in the United States, a lawsuit filed Monday charges.
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Dan Shapley, The Daily Green (USA) - August 7, 2008.
Monsanto Wants Out of Dairy Hormone Business
Will rBST Survive Without a Corporate Backer with a Reputation for Bullying?
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John W. Warnock, Regina-Post - August 5, 2008.
A return to small family farms?
In a study sponsored by the World Bank and the UN Food and Agricultural Organization, 400 scientists from 100 countries concluded that "the old paradigm of industrial, energy-intense and toxic agriculture is a concept of the past."
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Organic Market Info - August 4, 2008.
European Commission launched new Organic Farming Campaign
It focuses on increasing consumer awareness and recognition of organic products, and especially on young people and children.
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Cahal Milmo, The Independent (UK) - August 4, 2008.
Organic food becomes latest casualty of the credit crunch
Dairy farmers are turning their backs on Britain's organic milk market as economic pessimism dents consumers' previously buoyant demand for organic produce.
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The Independent (UK) - August 3, 2008.
Soil Association campaigning for more of us to start growing our own
The organisation wants to persuade the public to start growing their own vegetables and fruit, as well as raising animals where possible, because of fears that rising food and energy prices, coupled with a major terrorist attack or climate change event, could seriously threaten Britain's food supply.
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April MacIntyre, M & C (USA and UK) - August 2, 2008.
Organic skincare products take over supermarkets
The organisation wants to persuade the public to start growing their own vegetables and fruit, as well as raising animals where possible, because of fears that rising food and energy prices, coupled with a major terrorist attack or climate change event, could seriously threaten Britain's food supply.
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MarketWatch (USA) - July 11, 2008.
Duchy Originals Wins Award for New Website
Duchy Originals, the pioneering organic food company founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 1990, has won a prestigious APA (Association of Publishing Agencies) Award for its new website.
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Chris Benfield, Yorkshire Post (UK) - July 11, 2008.
Costs favouring organic
The price of fertilisers could force a major return to organic farming whether people think it is a good idea or not, according to the Soil Association.
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Kent Spencer, The Province - July 10, 2008.
High fuel prices seen as unexpected boon to local food producers
The new economics will support the 100-mile diet, a program which maintains food should be grown no farther than 100 miles away in order to save on transportation costs.
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Sally Williams, Western Mail (Wales) - July 10, 2008.
Great organic switchover points to a new agricultural revolution
The amount of Welsh land classed as organic grew by more than a fifth last year, prompting a leading expert to predict all of Wales’ farmland will one day make the switch.
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TransWorldNews - July 7, 2008.
California Suit Against Whole Foods for Carcinogen in Body Care Products
Reacting in part to a study released by the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) in March of this year, but also based on their own testing, the Attorney General of California has filed a major lawsuit against body care household-cleaning product companies whose products recently tested highest for the carcinogenic contaminant 1,4-Dioxane.
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John Tepper Marlin, Huffington Post - July 7, 2008.
Report from the Green Edge: The Organic World Congress
What impresses me about the IFOAM conference is the depth of representation from the academic, NGO and government community, with 400 oral presentations and 350 poster presentations.
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Richard Gray, The Telegraph (UK) - July 6, 2008.
Forget free-range - the tastiest chickens are the intensively farmed birds
Food scientists assessed the quality of birds raised in a variety of conditions and found those that were intensively farmed had the best flavour, while those reared under organic guidelines were the least tasty.
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Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald - July 4, 2008.
Farm Tours During Calgary Stampede
This year's agricultural activities are going to extend beyond the Stampede grounds as a series of day-long farm tours offers the curious a window into how their food is produced.
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Science Alert (Australia & New Zealand) - July 4, 2008.
Test to verify organic food
Karyne Rogers of GNS Science’s Stable Isotope Laboratory in Lower Hutt said the method was an inexpensive way to verify the organic status of vegetables by distinguishing between vegetables grown with organic or industrially made fertilisers.
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Andrew Bounds and Roman Olearchyk, Financial Times (Germany) - July 1, 2008.
Alarm at flood of bogus pesticides
A new counterfeit phenomenon is putting public health in danger - a special taskforce has found traces if illegal and dangerous chemicals in pesticides in 14 European countries.
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Karin Heinze, Organic Market Info (Germany) - July 1, 2008.
IFOAM World Congress in Italy: principles for an ecological future
At the heart of everything were the four principles embraced by organic farming worldwide: health, ecology, fairness and care.
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Innovations Report (Germany) - June 30, 2008.
An Impossible Coexistence: Transgenic and Organic Agriculture
The cultivation of genetically modified maize has caused a drastic reduction in organic cultivations of this grain and is making their coexistence practically impossible.
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Caroline Davies, Guardian (UK) - June 29, 2008.
Home-grown veg ruined by toxic fertiliser
Gardeners across Britain are reaping a bitter harvest of rotten potatoes, withered salads and deformed tomatoes after an industrial herbicide tainted their soil.
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Mathias Wildt, Reuters - June 20, 2008.
Small farms best for environment: organic group
Small-scale, not industrial farming, is the answer to food shortages and climate change, organic farmers argued this week.
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Stuart Laidlaw, Toronto Star - June 17, 2008.
Going organic eventually pays off
Even if their production drops - and it probably will - it's still economically viable for dairy farmers to switch to organic, a University of Guelph study has found.
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Fresh Plaza - June 16, 2008.
How Organic Agriculture contributes to combat Desertification
Organic Agriculture helps to improve soil fertility, prevent wind and water erosion, improve water infiltration and retention capacity and reduce surface and ground water consumption and contamination – all measures contributing to bringing land back to life.
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Laura Crowley, Food Navigator Europe - June 12, 2008.
Organic market should remain resilient amid spiralling costs
The growing success of the organic market will be only slightly marred by soaring food prices, which are tightening consumers' purse strings across Europe, say industry experts.
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