Grow

The National Organic Coalition (NOC) today announced that more than 200,000 people submitted comments to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) critiquing the substance and conclusions of its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on Genetically Engineered (GE) Alfalfa. Groups, including NOC, Center for Food Safety (CFS), Organic Consumers Association, Food & Water Watch, CREDO Action and Food Democracy Now, mobilized their communities to help generate the unprecedented number of comments.

After using conventional farming techniques for years, Jim Koan of Almar Orchards in Flushing wanted to try growing his apples and animals in a more natural way.

He eliminated synthetic sprays and drugs and began incorporating natural methods to control pests, fertilize plants and treat sick animals. "Everything we use is made by God," he said.

Koan is among the increasing number of Michigan growers who have switched from conventional to organic farming in the past decade for environmental, health and marketing reasons.

Yonkers, NY—Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, today released new poll data showing that two-thirds of organic food consumers are concerned about genetically engineered (GE) ingredients contaminating organic food. Given the popularity of alfalfa sprouts among health-oriented eaters, Consumers Union urges the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to consider the overwhelming consumer concern before deciding to allow GE alfalfa on the market.

Picture a hot summer day in California farm country, say 112 degrees. In the tiny community of Tooleville, surrounded by olive trees and orange groves, there’s one thing you won’t see here that you’d see almost anywhere else in the sunny state—kids splashing in backyard pools.

“People don’t let their kids swim in pools here,” says resident Eunice Martinez. “They’re scared of what would happen if they accidentally swallow the water.”

PHILOMATH, Ore. (AP) -- Organic farmers fear this year's spring breezes will be carrying pollen from genetically altered sugar beets, which they say could render their crops worthless, and they hope to persuade a federal judge this week to halt the plantings nationwide.

Experts and industry groups say such an injunction could jeopardize U.S. sugar supplies, about half of which comes from the biotech beets planted on more than 1 million acres in 10 states stretching from Michigan to Oregon.

The current financial downturn hasn't spared Wisconsin's organic farmers, but in general they have been able to ride it out, says a new report about the state's organic sector.

We are looking at the end of (relatively) cheap oil, food and transportation, crises that have already had a devastating impact on Third World nations and communities of color. These issues hit Cuba a stunning blow in the early 1990s, which they overcame by using what they have – scientific intelligence, organization and human energy instead of money and machines.

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To adapt the old real estate maxim, the three most important elements to a successful garden are soil, soil, soil. Plant health begins with creating rich, fertile earth and continues with making sure your garden plots remain healthy and your plants well fed.

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In this interview, organic lawn care expert and founder of SafeLawns.org Paul Tukey explains the benefits of managing your lawn organically, and offers his top 5 tips for keeping your lawn healthy this year.

For all of its ecological baggage, synthetic nitrogen does one good deed for the environment: it helps build carbon in soil. At least, that’s what scientists have assumed for decades.

If that were true, it would count as a major environmental benefit of synthetic N use. At a time of climate chaos and ever-growing global greenhouse gas emissions, anything that helps vast swaths of farmland sponge up carbon would be a stabilizing force. Moreover, carbon-rich soils store nutrients and have the potential to remain fertile over time—a boon for future generations.