Musings on sustainable food systems, agriculture vs. agroecology, and more!
How are your holidays going, everybody? I hope you spent a wonderful Christmas season and are still in the delicious between-Christmas-and-New-Year limbo that doesn’t require you to do anything whatsoever but read and sip eggnog and mulled wine and relax. Have you started thinking about your New Year’s resolutions? I often think that resolutions are … Continue reading For A (Climate-) Healthy 2014
Hey friends! I am making my last preparations before flying off into the sun tomorrow (with varying internet access), so I want to wish you a very merry holiday season with lots of family & friend fun, good job and plenty of relaxation. A couple of things to keep you busy between all the eggnog-drinking … Continue reading Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!
Hej hej, how are you surviving the pre-Christmas rush to get things done? I had my last class on Monday, but am still up to my ears in things-to-do before I get on a plane on Saturday for some well-needed travels. I hope you are getting into the Christmas mood though – here are some … Continue reading Link Bonanza – On Antibiotics, Ethics and Food Geography
Right now, I’m taking a class on “Economic Growth and Sustainable Development”. In it, we discuss a lot of economic notions on how to deal with non-renewable resources that might run out in the future, and how to accommodate economic growth within the confines of a finite planet. While I have found our discussions fascinating, … Continue reading Our Climate Budget – Already in the Red?
Yes! Great commentary and a crucial refocusing of the debate that mirrors my own understanding, and relatedly my (hopefully) future work!
Sometimes, when I raise issues like animal welfare in our agricultural economics classes, I feel like “that” person. You know, the PETA-supporting, tree-hugging, naive, doe-eyed idealist that people expect to sing kumbaya next. In ag econ, we care about efficiency. Optimal economic decisions. If you cannot survive as a small producer, you are clearly not … Continue reading What Are You Willing to Pay for Cheap Meat?
Many times, hailing the health benefits of organic foods, for example fruits and vegetables, has been criticized, and with good reason – while there may be less pesticide residues on the produce, the organic production method is mainly healthy for the planet, and there is little reason why an organic apple should have more vitamins … Continue reading Organic Milk – The Healthier Option?
It seems in December there is always a surge of announcements that the next year will be dedicated to one cause or another. For 2014, it’s now supposedly the Year of the Brain, the Year of Crystallography, the EU-Russia Year of Science, but also… The International Year of Family Farming! The FAO launched a big … Continue reading 2014 Declared the International Year of Family Farming
In anticipation of this past weekend’s festivities, the animal welfare organization PETA, known for its rather radical actions and stances, decided to convince a different clientele than usual of the benefits of turning to Tofurkey instead of the real deal: children. Every year, the organization takes advantage of the holiday to launch a wide-spread campaign, … Continue reading Did Your Child Like This Weekend's Turkey?