USDA: (source link below) "Rapid growth in adoption of genetically engineered crops continues in the U.S."
Genetically modified crops get boost over organics with recent USDA rulings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/genetically-modified-crops-get-boost-over-organics-with-recent-usda-rulings/2011/03/10/ABAAWNLB_story.html?hpid=z4Lyndsey Layton, Washington Post: "...Organic growers say that, without safeguards, their foods will be contaminated by genetically modified crops growing nearby. The genetic engineering industry argues that its way of farming is safe and should not be restricted in order to protect organic competitors.
"Into that conflict comes Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who for two years has been promising something revolutionary: finding a way for organic farms to coexist alongside the modified plants.
"But in recent weeks, the administration has announced a trio of decisions that have clouded the future of organics and boosted the position of genetically engineered (GE) crops. (US Secretary of Agriculture Tom) Vilsack approved genetically modified alfalfa and a modified corn to be made into ethanol, and he gave limited approval to GE sugar beets.
The announcements were applauded by GE industry executives, who describe their genetically modified organisms as the farming of the future. But organics supporters were furious, saying their hopes that the Obama administration would protect their interests were dashed....
----
Discussion on food prices (via @FT @bigpictureag)
Vilsack also wrote this week in the Financial Times on keeping rising food prices in check. In response, Kay McDonald at Big Picture Agriculture commented on the administration's biofuels policy as a driver of rising prices, which is draining a large percentage of the corn harvest from the food/feed supply chain towards federally mandated biofuels energy production. Rising corn prices drive up prices of a range of foods: meat, dairy, wheat and soy products.
also see: March 22: Opinion, Tom Vilsack, Financial Times: How to avoid a global food price crisis
"...In the short term, nations should embrace transparency and the free movement of food supplies. They should share information on stocks and production; abstain from export bans while using export quotas and taxes sparingly; avoid panic buying and hoarding; reduce import tariffs and taxes, and put in place targeted safety nets for the most vulnerable.
"In the long term, worldwide agriculture has a steep hill to climb. The global population is on the rise and strong economic growth in developing countries is expanding middle classes and increasing demand for agricultural products..."
also see: Big Picture Agriculture, Kay McDonald, Response to Vilsack in FT: "Global Food Security Now and Later"
"Although I don't want to oversimplify the complex factors involved on the subject of global food security, there is a useful tool that is helpful in roughly assessing the food supply, and that is the stocks to use ratio...."
"...It was evident in Vilsack's Op-Ed for the Financial Times that his goal is to carry out Obama's desire to increase the U.S.'s agricultural exports while downplaying the role that the U.S. ethanol policy plays on global food security. The coarse grains shortage we are experiencing is most entirely due to corn ethanol policy in the U.S., not a production problem. Last year, 15% of global corn production went to produce ethanol in the U.S. High corn prices result in higher meat, dairy, wheat, and soy for consumers...."
Chart Above: USDA: Adoption of Genetically Engineered Crops in the U.S.
also see: End of surplus: Higher food prices may be here to stay
also see: Samuelson: The global food crunch
also see: Mapping global food crisis hot spots
also see: Debunking the stubborn myth that only industrial ag can feed the world
Posted via email from Signs From Earth Notes