Roundup and GM crop toxin link to birth defects
Posted - June 30, 2011
Roundup and GM crop toxin link to birth defects
O.W.N. News Network
According to a new report released on June 7 by Earth Open Source, Roundup and birth defects: Is the public being kept in the dark?, regulators knew as long ago as 1980 that glyphosate, the chemical on which Roundup is based, can cause birth defects in laboratory animals. But despite this and the European Commission having known since at least 2002 that glyphosate causes malformations, the information was not made public.
Instead regulators misled the public about glyphosate
Call for tougher EU food safety systems after deadly E. coli outbreak
Posted - June 30, 2011
Call for tougher EU food safety systems after deadly E. coli outbreak
By Warren Beaumont
Farmers and European Commission agriculture ministers asked for increased compensation and regulators called for improved food safety alert and traceability systems following the deadly E. coli outbreak in Germany. The substantial food contamination with the E.Coli bug devastated Spanish, German and other European countries salad industries from late May.
European Union health commissioner John Dalli criticised Germany for issuing unverified warnings on the cause of the E. Coli outbreak, which has been estimated to cost European farmers 400 million euro a week.
During an emergency meeting of EU agriculture Ministers on June 7, Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos proposed a
GMO Update
Posted - May 1, 2009
Monsanto files lawsuit against German government for ban on GMO
By Malea Birke
In retaliation for the recent German decision to ban GMO corn, its producer, biotechnology company Monsanto, has filed a lawsuit against the government, alleging the ban is unjustified.
Last month, Agricultural Minister Ilse Aigner banned the cultivation and sale of MON 810– genetically modified corn seed, which produces a toxin to fight off a certain pest, the corn borer moth.
The crop was due to be planted this year on a total area of around 3,600 hectares in Germany, mainly in Brandenburg, where Germany
Green Perseveres Through Tough Times
Posted - March 30, 2009
Recession or Not, Green Still the Way to Go
By Adriana Michael, O.W.N.
Unemployment rates have been on the rise around the world, and the financial crisis at its peak in strong countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. This uncertainty anticipated a gloomy economy and a tough business environment for 2009. The good news is that by the end of the first trimester, the organic and natural sectors continue showing strong performance, although not at the same growth rate as in previous years.
Organic consumers are well informed, committed and have a firm idea of their purchasing priorities. In the US and Europe the industry reports steady sales of organic fruits, vegetables, dairy products, grains, bread and meat. In Germany market research firm Nielsen Co. conducted a survey of 9,000 households this past February, 54 percent of the respondents said that they may have to adjust and give up a few things due to the economic crisis, but their lifestyle will not change much. 29 percent stated that the crisis will not affect their lifestyle and purchasing decisions.
Brazil Third in Organic Farms
Posted - March 30, 2009
Brazil Ranks Third in Number of Organic Farms
OrganicsBrasil Reported Successful Participation at Biofach
By Sofia Garcia, O.W.N.
Brazil, a country known for the cultivation of both exotic and staple food ingredients, currently ranks third in terms of number of organic farms, according to a recent survey by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM).
This vast Latin American country, which concentrates most of the Amazon rainforest, has been leading the world in production or export volume of coffee, soy beans, cane sugar, orange juice and beef. Now it also offers a wide range of organic certified products for export. Thirty one exhibitors with quality ingredients such as cashews, acai berries, cacao, coffee, and processed foods, supplements, essential oils, cosmetics and even apparel made of organic certified cotton were on display at the OrganicsBrasil Pavilion at Biofach in Nuremberg, Germany this past February 19-22. Exotic Umbu fruit jam and Baru nuts, where two new product introductions at the fair.
OrganicsBrasil also had a stand for the first time at Vivaness (Biofach
Danish Lead 2009
Posted - November 1, 2008
Denmark Country of the Year at BioFach 2009
By Adriana Michael - as printed in O.W.N. Fall 2008
Next year in February, Biofach, the most international and influential fair for organic trade celebrates its 20th anniversary. Denmark has been selected
Canadian Serial Codes Improve
Posted - November 1, 2008
Canada Expands Organic Data Tracking
By O.W.N. News Network - as as printed in O.W.N. Fall 2008
Incisive data on organic trade is increasingly available, thanks to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
OTA Receives USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Funding
Posted - October 15, 2008
$750,000 over 3 years to Analyze Barriers to US Organic Exports
The United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service has approved $750,000 in funding over 3 years to the Organic Trade Association in partnership with Sustainable Strategies for projects that analyze technical barriers for the export of US organic products.
Water Pollution in China
Posted - September 19, 2008
300 million Chinese lack access to safe drinking water
Not only is China one of the world
Canadian Organics Grow
Posted - May 1, 2008
Canadian Organics Growing
By O.W.N. News Network - as printed in O.W.N. Summer 2008
Canada had 60 percent more organic farms in 2006 compared to 2001, the federal agency Statistics Canada announced recently. This represented about 3,500 farms who reported producing certified organic products, versus about 2,200 five years earlier.
Grain and hay crops were the most common, mainly for export. Various produce (combined as one category) formed the second most common Canadian organic crop.
Plenty of farms claimed to be producing via organic methods, but without certification - almost 12,000, mostly meat producers. Another 640 farms reported they were in transition to certified status.
Mandatory national organic standards still do not exist in Canada, a significant obstacle for organic producers. Voluntary standards have existed since 1999; various provincial and private standards that interpret these in slightly different ways exist. A single federal standard is to come into force in December 2008, at which point certification bodies will have to be accredited by the federal Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
Such a standard could provide a necessary boost to organics marketing. Despite the growth in farms, Canadian shoppers’ 2006 organic purchases remained less than 1% of the approximately $50 billion they spent in grocery stores in 2006.
Mandatory Labelling
Mandatory labelling about the fruit, vegetable, added sugar and whole grain content of processed foods is not an idea that Canada will support, at least not in its current form, according to Canadian authorities.
The topic is on the agenda at the late April meeting (in Ottawa, Canada’s capital) of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling, a body that works globally to implement the World Health Organization’s food standards.
The Canadian delegation, led by the federal Canadian Food Inspection Agency, presented Canada’s draft position on the Quantitative Declaration of Ingredients in pre-packaged foods in early April. It indicated Canada would not support a WHO amendment that asks national governments to require labels to list processed foods’ content of ingredients like fruits and whole grains.
By contrast, the Canadian group’s position read, packaging need only include such information where the company’s product pitch emphasizes or describes one or more such ingredients. Such logic does not bode well for genetically-modified organism labelling either. Right to Know Legislation just introduced in British Columbia would require all GMO foods and toxic and cancer causing ingredients to be labelled, but if healthy ingredient labelling is not supported by Canadian authorities, how likely is this to receive the required support?
