Today, I drove out to central Illinois with three U of I research employees (who, when I asked, said they preferred to remain nameless in this post). I went to interview soil scientist Bill Becker, they to take samples from fields he has been treating. I ended up helping to take the samples, and as I’m now a […]
Category: Organic Agriculture
Restoration Agriculture Workshop at Sun Dappled Farms
Just a reminder to everyone out there that tomorrow is the start of for this weekend’s workshop with Mark Shepard! There will be a talk and info session (free and open to the public, with refreshments provided) Friday 5/30 at 6pm at Sun Dappled Farms, and registration for the full workshop (May 30- June 1) will […]
Comparative Study: Organic Production Enhances Milk Nutritional Quality by Shifting Fatty Acid Composition
An 18 month study by Benbrook et al. 2013 (http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0082429) reports on the first large-scale, nationwide study of omega fatty acids (ω) in U.S. milk produced using organic or conventional methods. The study asserts that ω-6/ω-3 intake ratios have risen to nutritionally undesirable levels of 10 to 15 during past decades and that the optimal […]
Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Merrigan steps down
Kathleen Merrigan, who had been serving as Deputy Secretary of Agriculture under Tom Vilsack, announced on March 14 that she would be stepping down from her post at the end of April. Merrigan has been considered a success in the organic community, advocating for beginning farmer programs, the National Organic Program, and the Know Your Farmer, […]
Local Food Awareness Day needs you!
On March 13 you can have a chance to directly influence the legislative process at the state capitol in Springfield in the form of Local Food Awareness Day, a lobbying push for small farm-friendly legislation all across the state. The Illinois Stewardship Alliance asks you to join them for this fourth annual event, which aims […]
Local agriculture experiences welcome growth at Hendrick House
Alisa DeMarco’s first year at Hendrick House has been marked with huge strides towards more sustainable food options and integration more local foods on campus. Hendrick House has been a privately owned residence hall on the University of Illinois’ Urbana-Champaign campus since 1948, with a strong family tradition behind the management team. The efforts to […]
What’s in a Word?
For the consumer who shops for food with an emphasis on questions like “who grew this?” and “how was this grown?” life can sometimes be difficult. Let’s face it, oftentimes it takes a degree in chemistry to recognize all the ingredients in the food we eat, and with our modern-age super-corporations owning any number of umbrella […]
Farmers vs. Monsanto
Agriculture giant Monsanto has been taking a lot of heat lately, arguably for good reason. Specifically, for a pleasant little habit of suing farmers for patent infringement after said farmer’s crops had been unintentionally contaminated by Monsanto’s genetically modified seed. Farmers facing such allegations, up to this point on the defensive, have in recents weeks […]