organic farming

15 Stories

Organic Meat Production Is No Better for the Planet
Study: Meat Prices
Should Jump 146%
new research
Dec 23, 2020 12:31 PM CST

Study: Meat Prices Should Jump 146%

If they're to cover their associated climate costs, that is

(Newser) - You're doing the planet no favors by eating meat that was produced organically, at least when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions—and whatever meat you're eating, it should cost much, much more than it currently does. That's the determination of a new analysis based on German...

Head of Huge Organic Food Scheme Dies by Suicide

Farmer Randy Constant was to begin serving a 10-year term in weeks

(Newser) - A 60-year-old Missouri farmer blamed for running the largest organic food fraud scheme in US history has died by suicide, weeks before he was to report to federal prison to begin serving a 10-year term, a coroner said Tuesday. Livingston County Coroner Scott Lindley confirmed the death of Randy Constant...

USDA Has Bad News for Happy Livestock

It walks away from stricter Obama-era animal welfare regulations for organic livestock

(Newser) - New rules, decades in the making, that would have required organic meat and egg producers to abide by stricter animal welfare standards were withdrawn by the feds on Monday, reports the AP , frustrating organic farmers and animal welfare groups but leaving some traditional farm groups rejoicing. The US Department of...

Bad News About Your Supposedly Organic Milk

The 'Washington Post' investigates one of the biggest organic farms

(Newser) - If you've ever purchased Great Value organic milk at Walmart, we have bad news for you: Per an in-depth investigation at the Washington Post , that supposedly organic milk is actually pretty similar to conventional milk. The Post investigated Aurora Organic Dairy, one of the largest organic operations in the...

Sad Truth of Small Farming: No One's Making Any Money

90% of US farmers depend on outside funds: Jaclyn Moyer

(Newser) - Running a small farm: an idyllic pursuit, surrounded by natural beauty and immersed in a sense of satisfaction. Right? Well, sometimes, writes Jaclyn Moyer at Salon . But that's just a tiny part of a grueling job in which there's a very good chance you won't be able...

Organic Food No Better for You
 Organic Food No Better for You 
STUDY SAYS
Sep 4, 2012 4:33 AM CDT

Organic Food No Better for You

Study finds no nutritional benefits

(Newser) - There's no question that organic food is better for the planet, but there's no evidence that it's better for the person eating it, according to a new study. Scientists analyzed four decades of research, and found that organic meat and produce have no more nutritional value or...

We've Ruined the Tomato
 We've Ruined 
 the Tomato 
OPINION
Jun 11, 2011 2:36 PM CDT

We've Ruined the Tomato

It's got plenty of weight but no taste: Author

(Newser) - In America’s melting pot of food culture, few ingredients have been as broadly assimilated as the tomato. Whether it’s ketchup, marinara, salsa, or just fodder for salads, our country’s demand for the tomato is extreme. But as journalist Barry Estabrook says in an interview with Salon , America’...

Organic Egg Farm Accused of Factory Farm Conditions

Petaluma Egg Farm is a top producer for Organic Valley label

(Newser) - Organic eggs: The phrase brings to mind chickens roaming in a pasture, foraging for food, and scratching the ground. But at California's Petaluma Egg Farm, which provides eggs under the Organic Valley label, hens are confined to screened porches with a roof and a floor. Technically, the eggs meet...

Maine Man on Trial in Russian Roulette Death

Man slain in gay threesome in organic farmer's sex dungeon

(Newser) - An organic farmer is on trial for manslaughter after killing a man in a game of Russian roulette during a gay threesome in the sex dungeon of the victim's Maine home. Bespectacled Ivy League grad Bruce Lavallee-Davidson says he thought the gun wasn't loaded when he pulled the trigger against...

Video Sting Shuts Down Cruel Slaughterhouse

Hidden camera catches calves being beaten, skinned alive

(Newser) - The Humane Society released more video yesterday from its hidden camera sting of Bushway Packing, after the USDA shut down the organic veal slaughterhouse on Friday. The footage, shot this summer, isn’t for the queasy; calves too weak to walk are dragged, kicked and shocked repeatedly, among other abuses....

'Hobby Farms' Cropping Up
 'Hobby Farms' Cropping Up 
Oct 5, 2009 12:18 PM CDT

'Hobby Farms' Cropping Up

USDA says small farms are becoming more popular even as large farms grow

(Newser) - Most evenings, Gary Mithoefer can be found at the end of a long gravel driveway off a busy highway, tending two garden plots filled with white sweet potatoes, squash, cabbages, and a dozen other vegetables still thriving in early fall. The 62-year-old, who gardens after his workday ends at his...

'Natural' Foods Rile Up Organic Advocates

(Newser) - Americans are buying more so-called "natural" foods and angering advocates of organic, who say the distinction is a scam, the Chicago Tribune reports. The natural food market—that is, any food labeled "natural"—has spiked by 10% to $12.9 billion with cheaper-than-organic prices. But it's mostly...

'Organic' Foods May Not Be as Pure as You Think

USDA's label increasingly meaningless as agri-business pushes in

(Newser) - Demand for organic food has boomed into a $23 billion-a-year industry, but consumers who often pay twice as much for food with the coveted label aren't always getting what they expect. The criteria for obtaining a "USDA Organic" certification have been relaxed in recent years, with ostensibly organic products...

Soured Economy Spoiling Organic Milk Market

(Newser) - "Got Milk?" isn't the question organic dairy farmers want to hear these days. Consumers couldn’t get enough of organic milk three years ago, but the souring economy and glut of new-to-the-market organic farmers have spoiled sales, which are expected to drop nearly 15% this year. “We’...

College Students Dig Farm Internships

(Newser) - Liberal arts students are ditching traditional summer internships of office coffee-fetching for life on the land, reports the New York Times. As part of a generation well-versed in Michael Pollan's attack on industrial agriculture and interested in social change, these students see organic farm work as a political statement. "...

15 Stories