The Non-GMO Blog

PepsiCo, ADM announce agreement to support regenerative agriculture practices on up to 2 million acres of farmland

Strategic partnership between two global companies, with footprints extending from the farm gate to foods and beverages, provides unique opportunity to expand regenerative agriculture at scale Grain processing giant ADM and global food manufacturer PepsiCo recently announced a 7.5-year strategic commercial agreement to collaborate on projects that aim to significantly expand regenerative agriculture across their shared North […]

Five ancient (and new) drought-tolerant grains could help feed a warming world

Mono-cropping has neglected thousands of plant varieties with traits offering resilience against drought, epidemics, and natural disasters. Rice, wheat, and corn represent half the world’s calories, but increase soil erosion, plant-borne disease, and more. Four ancient crops and one new one—highly nutritious and drought-resistant—offer hope for our global warming crisis. Amaranth, whose seeds resemble buckwheat […]

Italy to invest 3 billion euros to transition 25% of farmland to organic by 2027

Italy plans to invest 3 billion euros (3.06 billion U.S. dollars) to transition 25% of the country’s agricultural land to organic by 2027. The decision to transition the land to organic was spurred by a new study on sustainable strategies to limit the spread of pests and disease in Italy. The study found that organic […]

Two academic leaders in organic agriculture receive recognition and a key position

Erin Silva, who holds the Clif Bar Endowed Chair in Organic Agriculture and Outreach at University of Wisconsin-Madison’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, has been named director of the Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS) for a three-year term. Silva, a plant pathologist, will set priorities for research, outreach, and funding efforts. CIAS’s goal […]

EPA risk assessment of dicamba herbicide admits extensive, ongoing damage to plants but falls short of a ban

In August, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its required risk assessment of the widely used weedkiller dicamba. While acknowledging unprecedented drift damage to crops and non-target plants, the agency stopped short of banning the chemical. Bill Freese of the Center for Food Safety calls the recent assessment “schizophrenic.” “EPA must end all over-the-top registrations […]