The Organic & Non-GMO Report Newsletter

Transitioning the Minnesota family farm to a certified organic dairy

When you have an opportunity to inherit a 320-acre farm with little infrastructure that’s belonged to the family for over 100 years—what to do with it? Carrie and Derek Redden used it to manifest a farming dream. Raising beef cows and chickens as a hobby had piqued a desire to build an organic dairy farm—even […]

University of Georgia study aims to help farmers transitioning to organic production

With the continuing demand for organic food, a three-year study done at University of Georgia hopes to refine best practices for farmers interested in transitioning to organic. The research began with a focus on land previously pastured or currently unmanaged “derelict” farmland. Kate Cassity-Duffey is lead researcher for the USDA-funded study, “Breaking New Ground: Reducing […]

Lower organic yields dampen the upside of environmental and climate cost savings, German study finds

Though organic agriculture yields still lag behind conventional, organic farming could save as much as $4.33 billion in climate and environmental costs, a ten-year German study has found. The EU aims for organic farming to occupy 25% of arable land by 2030. The Munich Technical University study included data from 40 organic and 40 conventional […]

Organic Trade Association releases forward-looking 2023 Farm Bill platform

Building on progress proposed for the organic sector in the 2018 Farm Bill, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) released its platform for the 2023 bill. Priorities include ensuring organic standards keep pace with marketplace demands, providing research and risk management tools to organic farmers, and enacting policies strengthening resilience of the supply chain. “Organic is […]

Global organic farmland and market continued to grow in 2021

Organic retail sales increased by 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) and reached almost 125 billion euros ($135 billion) in 2021; organic farmland grew to 76.4 million hectares (188.7 million acres). Organic farmland and retail sales both continued to show growth worldwide, according to data from 191 countries (data as of the end of 2021). Published […]