Post by gakaren on Aug 28, 2015 16:30:36 GMT -5
A collection of little bits/pieces of news from all over....interesting and informative!
Farmworkers See Jobs, Earnings Shrivel In California Drought (Capital Public Radio)
More than 21,000 people are out of work this year from California’s drought. And those farmworkers who are lucky enough to have a job are often working harder for less money.
Germany Starts Move to Ban GMO Crops (Reuters)
German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt informed German state governments of his intention to tell the European Union that Germany will make use of new “opt-out” rules to stop genetically engineered (or “GMO”) crop cultivation. The new EU law, approved in March, gives individual countries the right to opt out by banning GMO crops even after they have been approved as safe by the European Commission. In separate news, Reuters also reported that Monsanto said it would abide by Latvia’s and Greece’s requests under a new EU opt-out law to be excluded from its application to grow a genetically modified crop across the EU, but accused them of ignoring science.
Strawberry Grower Pledges To Go Organic (Capital Public Radio)
Driscoll’s, one of the largest strawberry growers (and the largest brand) in the country, has recently pledged to grow all of its baby plants organically. Until recently, all of California’s organic strawberry seedlings started “conventionally,” meaning they were cultivated in soil that had been chemically fumigated. Nate Lewis, a crop specialist with the Organic Trade Association, says the Driscoll’s pledge could lead to an industry-wide shift.
More than 21,000 people are out of work this year from California’s drought. And those farmworkers who are lucky enough to have a job are often working harder for less money.
Germany Starts Move to Ban GMO Crops (Reuters)
German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt informed German state governments of his intention to tell the European Union that Germany will make use of new “opt-out” rules to stop genetically engineered (or “GMO”) crop cultivation. The new EU law, approved in March, gives individual countries the right to opt out by banning GMO crops even after they have been approved as safe by the European Commission. In separate news, Reuters also reported that Monsanto said it would abide by Latvia’s and Greece’s requests under a new EU opt-out law to be excluded from its application to grow a genetically modified crop across the EU, but accused them of ignoring science.
Strawberry Grower Pledges To Go Organic (Capital Public Radio)
Driscoll’s, one of the largest strawberry growers (and the largest brand) in the country, has recently pledged to grow all of its baby plants organically. Until recently, all of California’s organic strawberry seedlings started “conventionally,” meaning they were cultivated in soil that had been chemically fumigated. Nate Lewis, a crop specialist with the Organic Trade Association, says the Driscoll’s pledge could lead to an industry-wide shift.
