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 […]
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Ron Revord: First ASAP Scholar
The Agroecology and Sustainable Agriculture Scholars Program is seeking applicants for fall 2013. To give you an idea of the kinds of things students might do we thought we’d tell you about the 2012 ASAP Scholar, Ron Revord. Ron is a M.S. student in NRES who has designed his research in plant breeding around the […]
Jobs Alert for Seniors
On March 9st a representative from U.S.PIRG, a collection of state-based advocacy groups, will be on U of I’s campus for an information session on recent job openings, to take place at 7pm in Davenport 113. To quote the organization itself, “U.S.PIRG is a federation of state-based public interest advocacy groups. We will be […]
Wal-Mart Rumored to Push for GMO Labeling; What Does it Mean?
The debate over whether to label GMO-products is continuing to rage on all fronts, from growing statewide movements in Washington, Oregon, Vermont and others, and the defeat of Proposition 37 in California, which would have required GMO labeling. However, reports are rumoring that Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the world, let alone the U.S., is […]
FLAG post
The Farmers’ Legal Action Group (FLAG) has just recently released their highly-anticipated guide to written organic agriculture contracts, Farmers’ Guide to Organic Contracts, and it’s now available, for free, right at your fingertips (scroll down, its under “Publications and Articles”). According to FLAG, “One major goal of the Farmers’ Guide to Organic Contracts is to encourage an organic marketing system […]
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 […]
Job Opening: Food Processing Certification Specialist
Attention anyone who wants/needs a job: the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association announced this week an immediate opening for a full-time position, based in Columbus, OH, as a Food Processing Certification Specialist. The position will be responsible for providing support in reviewing applications submitted by organic processors and producers, providing technical assistance and maintaining compliance […]
New Urban Gardening Research And More – Get Up to Speed!
Article by Laura Witzling The first community gardening literature review has been published, a massive quantitative research study on urban soil in New York community gardens is underway, Mother Jones just featured a powerful spread of photographs from a Chicago urban garden, and an inspirational TED Talk about growing food with students has more than […]
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 […]
Restoration Agriculture Project. Check out the video!
Article and video by Heather Faivre This spring students at the University of Illinois initiated a study of permaculture design at the Sustainable Student Farm on the South Farms of the Urbana, Illinois Campus. The study is called Restoration Agriculture, and the goal of the project is to compare the production of traditional corn and […]