The Organic & Non-GMO Report Newsletter

Harnessing soil as a potent weapon against climate change

Farmers are a group who engage with climate impacts most directly—and floods in the Midwest in 2019, California droughts, and East Coast hurricanes have hit rural and agricultural sectors hard, along with already tight profit margins and trade disruptions. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) sees agriculture not only as a victim of climate change […]

“Regenerative Organic Certified” is 2020’s biggest trend, says Whole Foods

Taking the organic label a few steps further, a new certification standard is moving into the mainstream. Regenerative Organic (ROC) will apply to foods made with organic ingredients, sourced from farms embracing pasture-based animal welfare, offer fair labor and economic stability for workers and communities, and prioritize soil health, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and land management. […]

Minnesota farmers discover the rewards of cover crops

The Midwest has been beset by floods this past year, exacerbating an erosion problem stemming from decades of industrial agriculture’s mono-cropping. But seven farmers near Dundas and Faribault, Minnesota, are going against the centuries-old practice of fall tilling (leaving fields bare all winter)—instead they’re planting cereal rye and tillage radishes. They’re thrilled to find earthworms […]

A Big Idea

A Midwestern farmers’ network is trying to save our soils, one field at a time.

Organic food-grade prices rise while feed-grade dip

Organic grain markets diverge as feed grain prices continue to stall Prices for food- and feed-grade organic grains diverged at the end of 2019, with food-grade commodity prices enjoying a bump over last year while feed-grade prices continue to lag, according to Mercaris, a market data service and online trading platform for organic, non-GMO, and […]