Soil health: Combatting climate change from the ground up

Midwestern floods and drought in the western and southeastern U.S. are signs of a growing “new normal” in climate impacts—challenging farmers and scientists to come up with a sustainable solution that creates more resilient farms. Creating healthier soil is garnering serious attention; ten states this year have initiated soil management policies including cover crops, diversified […]

Regenerating rural communities with regenerative agriculture

By Jonathan Lundgren, Blue Dasher Farm Recently, I read a book called From the Hidewood (Robert Amerson 1996), about the Hidewood Valley where Blue Dasher Farm operates. It was set in the late 1930s, a time of tremendous change in so many aspects of rural life in South Dakota. Farms in the 1930s and early […]

Nestlé, Chipotle involved in lawsuits over non-GMO claims

Food manufacturing giant Nestlé USA, Inc. and fast casual restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill have had to fight lawsuits over promoting foods as being non-GMO. A California federal court recently ruled that Nestlé must face a proposed class action lawsuit over non-GMO labeling claims on many of the company’s products including Lean Cuisine ravioli, Buitoni […]

Non-GMO Project growth “extreme and consistent”

The percentage of shoppers shunning genetically modified foods has tripled over the past decade, according to market research firm The Hartman Group. In 2018, 46% of consumers avoided GM foods compared to 15% in 2007. The reasons consumers avoid GM foods include discomfort, distrust, and uncertainty, and they perceive such products as unhealthful and potentially […]

Organic policy experts form watchdog agency for needed oversight

In light of USDA shortcomings to provide corporate and governmental oversight over organic industry interests, Beyond Pesticides has formed OrganicEye, to protect the definition and integrity of the label and organic food production. As organic has grown into a $50 billion industry, corporate agriculture has worked to shift primary organic production from family-scale farms to […]