Have you ever heard of the World Food Prize? It is supposed to be an alternative ‘Nobel Prize for Agriculture’ that honors “outstanding individuals who have made vital contributions to improving the quality, quantity or availability of food throughout the world“. The 2013 laureates have just been announced, and have caused a splash – since … Continue reading The World Food Prize Winners 2013 – Anybody Surprised?
I am a huge learning addict. Case in point – this blog, which gives me a good reason to go and do hours (sometimes) of research on things such as flood prevention or in vitro meat. Another favorite tool of mine to add to my knowledge and understanding of the world around me are MOOCs. … Continue reading Summer Learnin': Sustainability of Food Systems
These past days, dramatic scenes have unfolded all over Germany and Central Europe in general: after unrelenting rainfalls had overburdened the natural absorption capacity of soils and riverbeds, massive floods spread throughout Central European lowlands and threatened the lives and livelihoods of thousands of persons. People had to be evacuated, some even died, and many … Continue reading Floods in Central Europe – Caused by Human Activities?
Have you ever wondered how cities today, and in the past, are provided with the immense amounts of food they need to feed their inhabitants? Carolyn Steel gives a fascinating overview on the interrelations of food and urbanity and the possibility of creating a proper ‘sitopia‘, a food place. I particularly like the last quote … Continue reading The History of How Food Shaped Cities
This morning, I found an exciting piece of news in my inbox: “Connecticut Passes Nation’s First GMO Labeling Law“! That should be a cause of celebration, especially after the industry-financed defeat of a similar law in the California polls. However, wait until you hear all the stipulations attached to the bill. The main big catch: … Continue reading GMO Labeling Laws: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
When I was visiting my grandparents a couple of weeks ago, I told them that I was going to go on a field trip with my program and we would visit a tractor company. To which my grandma – who grew up on a farm – responded: “make sure to ask them about soil compaction!” … Continue reading All You Need To Know About Soil Compaction
Whenever I used to hear about ‘urban farming’, I was a little skeptical, and didn’t know whether to place it in the camp of ‘awesome ideas of tomorrow’ or ‘trend fad of today that won’t last through the next summer’. Why not, I thought, concentrate on fixing the big issues (such as land degradation or … Continue reading Rethinking Urbanization
Tart cherries – or, as we say in Germany, Sauerkirschen – have been a steadfast presence during my childhood, featured in cakes, desserts and on my grandparents’ trees. In Canada, Sauerkirschen preserves were one of the things my family would splurge on in La Vieille Europe, the Old Continent specialty store that also imported delicacies … Continue reading The Tart Cherry Revival – Or a Case for Biodiversity
I’ve been a vegetarian for 10 years, out of ethical and increasingly environmental considerations – and we have talked about the environmental impact of livestock production in abundance. However, I realize that the probability of most people switching towards an herbivore lifestyle is rather low, whether they want to maintain protein intake or plainly like … Continue reading Lab-Grown Meat – the Future of Farming?
Yesterday, I went to a talk by a rep of Germanwatch, a German NGO, on European Agricultural Policy and its relationship to climate change. As part of the presentation, the presenter gave a great overview of how European agricultural policy evolved and I thought I’d reproduce it here for all the non-Europeans (and Europeans!) who … Continue reading A Brief History of European Agricultural Policy