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October 10, 2008 6:43:52 PM CDT

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Stories related to: agriculture

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Stories 1 - 20 of 52

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  • October 2008

    • Gene Tweak Could Grow Crops in Toxic Soil

      Wired  |  Oct 3, 08 10:35 AM CDT

      Gene Tweak Could Grow Crops in Toxic Soil

      (Newser) - Scientists have made a breakthrough that could dramatically boost the world's food production by making more land farmable, Wired reports. A slight change to a single gene allows plants to thrive in earth made toxic by aluminum, which currently renders nearly half of the world's soil useless for growing crops. The metal severely stunts root growth, and scientists think they’ve figured out why. More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • farming  • crops  • toxin  • genetic engineering  • aluminum  • genetically modified crops  • genetic alteration

  • September 2008

    • New England Pumpkin Crop Patchy After Summer Deluge

      Boston Globe  |  Sep 18, 08 7:45 PM CDT

      New England Pumpkin Crop Patchy After Summer Deluge

      (Newser) - An unseasonably wet growing season has devastated the New England pumpkin crop, the Boston Globe reports. The rain has multiple effects, almost all bad: some overwatered gourds swell so much they burst, while beds are washed out and depleted of fertilizer, leading to undersized specimens. And “pumpkins are pollinated by bees,” one grower sighed, “and bees don't fly when it's raining.” More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • crops  • Halloween  • New England  • rainstorms  • Pumpkin

    • GOP's Heartland Appeal Just Plain Heartless

      Wall Street Journal  |  Sep 10, 08 12:23 PM CDT

      GOP's Heartland Appeal Just Plain Heartless

      (Newser) - Sarah Palin can’t say enough about the virtues of small-town Americans, the good, honest folk “who do some of the hardest work,” skip college and join the military. But they have to work so hard and skip college because they’re not doing very well, Thomas Frank writes in the Wall Street Journal—and they’re not doing well because they keep electing Sarah Palins. More »

      Tags

      John McCain  • Sarah Palin  • Republicans  • agriculture  • Midwest  • small towns

    • UN Urges: Eat Less Meat to Fight Warming

      Guardian (UK)  |  Sep 7, 08 7:20 AM CDT

      UN Urges: Eat Less Meat to Fight Warming

      (Newser) - Meat-eaters who want to help fight global warming can do so by going vegetarian at least one day a week, a top UN official tells the Guardian . The meat industry accounts for an estimated one-fifth of all greenhouse gas emissions, released during feed production and as methane by flatulent livestock. Meat consumption has gone up fivefold since 1950, and is predicted to double by 2050. More »

  • August 2008

    • Sporting Farmers Plow for Glory in Europe

      Wall Street Journal  |  Aug 29, 08 7:07 PM CDT

      Sporting Farmers Plow for Glory in Europe

      (Newser) - Earlier this month, a high-stakes amateur athletics competition, complete with come-from-behind upset victories and confusing rules, captivated audiences. It wasn’t the Olympics, but it’s as close as most farmboys will get, the Wall Street Journal reports: The World Plowing Championships, held in Grafenegg, Austria, doled out gold to those able plow a plot of land as neatly and perfectly as possible. More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • competition

    • Midwest Adding Grapes to Its Grain

      Economist  |  Aug 22, 08 5:40 PM CDT

      Midwest Adding Grapes to Its Grain

      (Newser) - As farmers seek higher profits and politicians angle for healthier rural economies, vineyards are cropping up across the Midwest, the Economist reports. Michigan and Ohio now have over 100 wineries each, with vintage monikers handily swiped from French-named Midwestern locales like “Marquette” and “Frontenac”—or, less convincingly, “La Crescent.” More »

      Tags

      wine  • agriculture  • Midwest  • wine industry

    • Midwest Awaits Bumper Corn Crop

      New York Times  |  Aug 13, 08 8:19 AM CDT

      Midwest Awaits Bumper Corn Crop

      (Newser) - America's farmers are on track to deliver the second-biggest corn harvest ever despite June floods, according to the Department of Agriculture. Shortages were predicted after severe flooding swamped fields, but the Midwest has had ideal corn-growing weather since, the New York Times reports. A healthy soybean crop is also expected. More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • farming  • farmer  • corn  • crops  • farm  • Department of Agriculture  • soybeans  • harvest  • corn belt

    • As Feed Prices Climb, Minicows Moove In

      Wall Street Journal  |  Aug 12, 08 2:47 PM CDT

      As Feed Prices Climb, Minicows Moove In

      (Newser) - As feed prices soar, some farmers are literally shrinking their operations by turning to minicows--cattle half as big as their full-size cousins. The trendy creatures produce proportionally more beef while eating less, some researchers say. They require less space and “don’t tear up the grounds as much as your full-size cows,” one farmer tells the Wall Street Journal. More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • farming  • cattle  • livestock  • cows

    • As Darfur Starves, Sudan Exports Staples

      New York Times  |  Aug 10, 08 12:35 PM CDT

      As Darfur Starves, Sudan Exports Staples

      (Newser) - As the UN trucks in food to millions of starving people in Darfur, Sudan is exporting important staple crops to other nations, the New York Times reports. Critics charge the government profits on big agribusiness while receiving more free food in aid than any other nation in the world. But Sudanese officials claim it marks a move away from an oil-based economy toward agricultural self-sufficiency. More »

      Tags

      United Nations  • Sudan  • Darfur  • agriculture  • exports  • trade  • starvation  • food aid

  • July 2008

    • Agricultural Economist Has Growing Concerns

      New York Times  |  Jul 25, 08 1:45 PM CDT

      Agricultural Economist Has Growing Concerns

      (Newser) - Is there any way to justify US farm subsidies? Agricultural economist Daniel Sumner has a blunt answer: “No.” In an in-depth interview with the New York Times , Sumner takes on a broad range of agricultural topics, explaining the trouble with organic food (it’s too expensive), the problems with local food (it’s often inefficient) and, of course, the insanity of subsidies. More »

      Tags

      US economy  • food prices  • agriculture  • biofuel  • organic food  • subsidies  • farm bill  • agricultural economy

    • Disease Stalks Florida's Palms

      Associated Press  |  Jul 23, 08 5:10 PM CDT

      Disease Stalks Florida's Palms

      (Newser) - A mystery disease is eating away at the sabal palm, Florida’s state tree, and scientists say the prospects of successfully fighting the disease are slim. The AP reports that an increasing number of the trees, which can grow up to 50 feet tall, have suffered collapsed canopies. "There's going to be fewer palms,” one state pathologist said. More »

      Tags

      Florida  • disease  • agriculture  • research  • trees

    • Forget the Farmers Market: Buy the Farm

      New York Times  |  Jul 10, 08 3:45 AM CDT

      Forget the Farmers Market: Buy the Farm

      (Newser) - Consumers wanting food straight from the source are buying up shares of farms in growing numbers, the New York Times reports. For a set annual fee, shareholders buy access to the land and a guaranteed share of the harvest income. The number of community-supported farms in America has mushroomed from 100 in the early '90s to almost 1,500 today. More »

      Tags

      agriculture  • farming  • farmer  • crops  • organic food  • farm

    • A Different Kind of Apple for iPhone Waiters

      CNET  |  Jul 8, 08 2:32 PM CDT

      A Different Kind of Apple for iPhone Waiters

      (Newser) - The countdown is on ahead of Friday's release of the iPhone 3G, and a handful of buyers are waiting outside Apple's flagship New York store. But they’re not diehard fans—they’re activists hoping to promote sustainable