Musings on sustainable food systems, agriculture vs. agroecology, and more!
Since my post about nitrogen fertilizer is still one of the most successful ones yet (who’d thought?), and I’ve been working non-stop this week on a paper to analyze phosphorus and its resource, phosphate rock, for a paper in my class Economic Growth and Sustainable Development, I thought I’d give you some insights into what … Continue reading 10 Things I Didn't Know About Phosphorus Fertilizer
I know we talked about GMOs before, but it seems they have come to a whole different prevalence lately, thanks mainly to this Grist series on Panic-free GMOs. Author Nathanael Johnson goes into minute detail in figuring out everything from what GMOs really are to the literature surrounding it to the regulations attached to them. … Continue reading Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About GMOs
Have you heard of Temple Grandin? I must have been living under a rock or something because I had no idea about her and her amazing achievements – including designing equipment used in more than half of all American slaughterhouses that contributed to great steps forward in animal welfare. She also got a doctorate, is associate … Continue reading Temple Grandin – Seeing the World as A Cow Would
2014 is shaping up to be an exciting year in the food policy world – wherever you look, new policies are about to be decided upon and/or implemented. So let’s have a look across the globe and see what’s on the agenda, shall we? USA: After Congress spectacularly failed to finalize the Farm Bill during … Continue reading 2014 – What's on the Food Policy Agenda?
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
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
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?