News
Updated Friday 27th August 2010. On this page.... ..
Pesticide Stewardship I Food Security I Environmental Security I Pesticide Industry I Climate Change I Pesticide Legislation/ Regulation I Pesticide Exposure/Residues I Agricultural Policy I Soil Management I Water I GM Crops I Organic Crops I Biofuels and Biopesticides I Research, Resources & Knowledge Transfer
Pesticide Stewardship
EPA to test online pesticide labels (26 August, feedstuffs.com) The Environmental Protection Agency is inviting pesticide users to participate in a new program to test a concept that would make pesticide labels more user friendly -- if they were accessed online.
Sharjah cracks down on pest control firms (25 August, gulfnews.com) Pest control companies flouting the rules will first be issued a warning, given a fine of Dh500 for their second offence and Dh1, 000 for their third.
Tanzania: Govt to destroy 700 tonnes of expired pesticides next year (25 August, allafrica.com) The government is set to use $5 million (about Sh7 billion) to dispose about 700 tonnes of obsolete pesticides.
Food Security
China goes against the grain on crops (26 August, www.ft.com) While agricultural markets focus on Russia’s devastating drought, another large shift in soft commodity production and consumption is lurking in the background: China’s mediocre crops this year, combined with a shift in dietary habits, have strained the country’s traditional sufficiency in grains, leading to higher prices and large imports.
No room for complacence with food safety at stake - Hajj Hassan (26 August, dailystar.com.lb) “We cannot continue to do things in the way that some people want us to” when it comes to food security, Agriculture Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan declared Tuesday.
Floods cause immense damage to Pakistani agriculture (25 August, thecitizen.co.tz) Massive floods in Pakistan that have killed up to 1,600 people, left 20 million homeless and destroyed crops over an estimated area of more than 1.64 million hectares, farmers and officials said.
Zimbabwe works toward food security (24 August, farmchemicalsinternational.com) After two decades of declining food production in Zimbabwe, the former net-exporting bread basket for sub-Saharan Africa, agriculture technology is beginning to help the country wean itself off food assistance.
Environmental Security
Call for Commonwealth to take over state seed collections (26 August, abc.net.au) Momentum is building to secure Australia's seed collections ahead of a major international conference on Biodiversity and World Food Security.
Hogan calls for realistic Nitrates review (25 August, independent.ie) A common-sense approach to the review of the Nitrates Directive has been demanded by Fine Gael environment spokesman Phil Hogan TD.
Pesticide Industry
Plant impact lands Syngenta deal in Brazil (25 August, proactiveinvestors.com) Plant Impact announced this morning that it had teamed up with Syngenta Brazil to carry out field trials on its ecologically friendly crop nutrition and protection products CaT and PiNT.
Hort crop insecticide gets Canadian distributor (25 August, grainews.ca) Confirm 240F, a crop insecticide for use against cabbage loopers, codling moth, European corn borer and other pests, now has a new Canadian distributor.
Research and Markets: US chemical manufacturing - agricultural report: 700 companies such as Dow, DuPont, and Monsanto with Comb (24 August, tradingmarkets.com) Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Chemical Manufacturing - Agricultural " report to their offering.
Bayer CropScience and MARKFED to promote complete package of Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) in Punjab (22 August, punjabnewsline.com) “Bayer CropScience is an innovation leader and continually strives to introduce technologies beneficial to the Indian farmer. This MoU we hope will facilitate better productivity and all round development for promoting rice cultivation in the country,” said Jens Hartmann, Country Head, India, Head of Bayer CropScience, South Asia.
Climate Change
Climate change hits farmers hard (26 August, sowetanlive.co.za) WHEN asked if they have already felt the effects of climate change, Mary-Anne Zimri and Katrina Scheepers eagerly nod their heads.
Study predicts massive impact of drought tolerant maize in Africa (25 August, physorg.com) As climate change intensifies drought conditions in Africa and sparks fears of a new cycle of crippling food shortages, a study released today finds widespread adoption of recently developed drought-tolerant varieties of maize could boost harvests in 13 African countries by 10 to 34 percent and generate up to US$1.5 billion in benefits for producers and consumers.
Asia's glaciers in retreat, could signal crop failure and flooding in the future (25 August, usatoday.com) Asia's glaciers are retreating, which could mean drought, plus crop losses upstream and flood conditions downstream for millions of people.
Autumn grain production faces challenges (25 August, english.anhuinews.com) In Nanling county of Anhui Province, heavy rain has affected the region's autumn production.
How to improve crop yields while reducing climate change (24 August, smartplanet.com) With a one-two punch aimed at reducing climate change and improving crop yields worldwide, the for-profit company re:char is turning agricultural waste into soil-improving biochar.
Pesticide Legislation and Regulation
Pesticide company to pay penalty (26 August, cjonline.com) A Kansas City, Mo. pesticide manufacturer has agreed to pay nearly $40,000 in fines and spend another $100,000 to correct, prevent and respond to chemical accidents and releases, the federal Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday.
Yemen returns 195 tons illegal pesticides to their countries (24 August, sabanews.net) Yemen returned back 195 tons of pesticides during the first half of this year.
Pesticide Exposure and Residues
Pesticides may be a leading cause of major diseases (24 August, naturalnews.com) Chronic illness is widespread in many industrialized nations like the U.S., and more studies than ever are linking this disease epidemic to pesticide exposure.
Are we buying fruits and vegetables' dangerous toxins? (24 August, allvoices.com) We all enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables especially those we get at the Farmers Market.
Dispatch: Don’t get so hyperactive about pesticides (23 August, acsh.org) WebMD on Friday cited a study in Environmental Health Perspective claiming that prenatal exposure to a class of pesticides known as organophosphates may increase the risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children, especially boys.
Agricultural Policy
Political will vital for farmers to benefit from EAC Common Market (26 August, thecitizen.co.tz) The government needs to go an extra mile to help farmers benefit from the East African Common Market (EAC-CM), farmers say.
Rwanda: Government to spend Rwf 28 billion on fertilizers and seeds (25 August, allafrica.com) THE government will spend an estimated Rwf 28bn on fertilizers and seeds to help farmers in the country produce bumper harvests this season.
Tanzania: Farmers want a piece of the pie from agro-investors (25 August, allafrica.com) As large-scale investors' interest in acquiring vast swathes of land for commercial agriculture in Africa intensifies, farmers believe the time is ripe for the government to press investors to allocate shares to villagers as a corporate social responsibility.
Analysis-Brazil ups stakes for foreign investors in farmland (24 August, reuters.com) Brazil's essential role as a provider of food for the world's expanding population is at risk if the government makes good on threats to curtail foreign investment in farmland.
15,000 hectares earmarked for agricultural development (24 August, bworldonline.com) The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has identified an initial 15,000 hectares of upland areas for agricultural development.
Gov’t asks farmers to raise corn output to 3 tons per hectare (24 August, mb.com.ph) Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala has called on farmers in Central Visayas to raise their output of white and yellow corn to three metric tons per hectare.
Soil Management
Zbto farmers trained on vermiculture, soil testing (25 August, nagalandpost.com) Altogether 25 farmers from ten selected villages, under Zunheboto district, attended a two-day training programme on integrated land development project (RIDF-XV), under NABARD negotiated loan programme, at Zunheboto district soil conservation office August 19 and 20.
Award winning research to aid non-wetting soils solutions (25 August, fw.farmonline.com.au) Non-wetting soils research has received a boost with the development of an innovative soil hydrology model by Department of Agriculture and Food researcher Craig Scanlan.
Soil surveys (24 August, stockmarketsreview.com) We may take soil for granted as we walk on it each day, but what lies beneath the ground can tell us a lot about our Earth – ranging from what crops can grow through to the stability of the land for construction.
China mulls law amendment to better prevent soil, water loss (23 August, xinhuanet.com) Chinese lawmakers Monday began reviewing a draft revision of the Law on Water and Soil Conservation, which would provide comprehensive protection for land and water resources in planning, controls and monitoring.
Water
Project kicks off to grow crops with waste water (Accessed 26 August, abc.net.au) A project that will treat waste water to grow fruit and annual crops is being commissioned at Mildura.
It's time to determine timing, amount of final irrigation (Accessed 25 August, mobile.nebraskafarmer.com) The 2010 growing season started with a wet, cool spring that delayed planting in some areas and has now moved into a relatively hot summer that is helping crops mature fairly quickly.
40 MAF water valuing Rs 240b has gone into sea (25 August, pakobserver.net). About massive quantum of 40 million acres feet of water has gone downstream Kotri into sea during the ongoing flooding season and there is much more left to go.
Salt causing area soybean problems (25 August, natchezdemocrat.com) Soybean crops around Concordia Parish are starting to show signs
of struggle, as salts in the irrigation water are making it hard for them to grow.
GM Crops
8 reasons genetically modified organisms are bad for you (Accessed 25 August, organicauthority.com) Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are created when a gene from one species is transferred to another, creating something that would not be found in nature.
China told to develop its own GM food (24 August, truthabouttrade.org)
The Chinese consume millions of tons of genetically modified (GM) soybean oil every year without fuss despite the fact that attitudes toward GM food remain as divergent in the nation as they are in the rest of the world.
In the fields of Italy, a conflict over corn (23 August, nytimes.com) Giorgio Fidenato declared war on the Italian government and environmental groups in April with a news conference and a YouTube video, which showed him poking six genetically modified corn seeds into Italian soil.
GMO crop catastrophe in USA a lesson for EU (22 August, voltairenet.org) As the European Union moves closer to approving the cultivation of GMOs despite stiff widespread opposition, it ought to be paying urgent attention to the agricultural arms race unfolding in the United States.
Organic Crops
New Jersey to help producers go organic (Accessed 26 August, americanagriculturist.com) On Monday, New Jersey Department of Agriculture announced it would help eligible in-state organic producers and handlers get reimbursement of a portion of their organic certification costs under USDA's Organic Certification Cost Share Program.
Sustaining an organic life in Sag Harbor (25 August, sagharboronline.com) After growing up on his family’s farm in Ames, Iowa, where Dale Haubrich began his career as an organic farmer in 1978, the world had a dramatically different food culture, with only one state — California — certifying organic produce.
Local vineyard showcases virtues of organic farming (24 August, en.ammonnews.net) The owner of the first certified organic vineyard in the Middle East said he has taken a natural approach to breathe life into arid land near the Syrian border and cultivate grapes from around the world.
Orphans get modern farming skills (23 August, newvision.co.ug) A total of 131 orphans have graduated after a four-year certificate course in organic farming and animal husbandry under the Kitovu Mobile Orphan Home Care Programme.
The organic heart of Kandgool (23 August, expressbuzz.com)The story of Kandgool village in Aurad taluka of Bidar district is somewhat different from the other villages of Karnataka.
Biofuels and Biopesticides
Greece awards 16 companies contracts to provide bio-diesel (26 August, balkans.com) The Greek Environment, Energy and Climate Change ministry announced the results of a tender for supplying the Greek market with 164 million litres of biodiesel in the next 12 months (July 2010 until June 2011), saying contracts have been awarded to 16 companies.
Growing fuel instead of food: agro-fuels in Chiapas (25 August, upsidedownworld.org) Capitalism also makes its wealth from plunder, or theft, because they take what they want from others, land, for example, and natural resources.
Oilseeds fueling future energy needs (25 August, centredaily.com) Farmers markets are an example of regional bioenergy suppliers for human consumption.
Feature-Brazil taps small farmers for biofuels campaign (24 August, Reuters)With its biofuels business increasingly dominated by giant corporations, Brazil is seeking to extend its biofuels sector to include farmers like Lucas Scariot, who makes around $10,000 per year
from selling grain.
Food security stalls China's quest for new energy (23 August, sify.com) Corn-based ethanol fuel could help reduce vehicular emissions in China but high production costs and large population have hindered its growth in the country, say experts.
Research, Resources & Knowledge Transfer
Farmers urged to properly store cowpea (25 August, ghananewsagency.org) A total of 2,300 farming communities in the Northern Region are benefiting from a training programme that would ensure proper storage of cowpea, to enhance food security in the country.
'Informed farmers vital to food security' (24 August, sify.com) To achieve food security, scientific research-oriented farming, propagation of latest global information among the farmers and suitable policy research are very vital, experts and scientists said here Tuesday.
Call for more support for seed banks (24 August, abc.net.au) The head of Plant Health Australia says the seed banks, which hold all our agricultural crop germplasm, are neglected and underfunded.
Govt funds study on impact of climate change on soil, crops (24 August, msn.com) Alarmed by the adverse impact of global warming on the farm sector, the union government has financed a study to assess the extent of damage on soil, crop, fishery and water, and other natural resources particularly in the drought-prone areas to formulate contingent crop planning strategy.
New research in drought-resistant plants leaps ahead at UW-Madison (24 August, piercecountyherald.com) Farmers may no longer have to worry about droughts if new research at UW-Madison reaches its potential. Scientists have discovered 50 proteins that can help plants live without water.
