A Woman’s Death sorting Grapes Exposes Italy’s Slavery- April 11, 2017
After months of investigation, this year the authorities arrested six people, accusing them of using their recruiting and transportation agencies to extort wages from women so poor and desperate they dared not speak up and worked under extreme conditions.
Read more.
A Staten Island Urban Farmer- NY Times Mar 10, 2017
Formerly farmers at Happy Acres Farm in Sherman as Empress Greens. Very happy to read that they are doing well in Staten Island:
Zaro Bates operates and lives on a 5,000-square-foot farm on Staten Island, which may make her the city’s only commercial farmer-in-residence. But instead of a shingled farmhouse surrounded by acres of fields, Ms. Bates lives in a second-floor studio in a midrise apartment complex built on the site of a former naval base overlooking New York Bay. Read more here.
Got Almond Milk? Dairy Farms Protest Milk Label on Nondairy Drinks, Feb. 13, 17, New York Times
If milk comes from a plant, can you still call it milk?
Not according to the dairy industry. Facing growing competition from dairy alternatives like almond, soy and coconut milk, the nation’s dairy farmers are fighting back, with an assist from Congress. Their goal: to stop companies from calling their plant-based products yogurt, milk or cheese. Dairy farmers say the practice misleads consumers into thinking that nondairy milk is nutritionally similar to cow’s milk.
Read more here.
Goats, Alpacas and (of Course) a Hen: Life on a Hobby Farm, Feb. 11, New York Times
They sometimes earn a small profit — though they mostly just break even — by selling some of their herd, along with the soft alpaca fleece and fleece products that Ms. Conn learned to knit and crochet. “I’m not in it to make money,” she explained. “I’m in it because I like the lifestyle. It’s a fun lifestyle.”
Read more here.
As School Gardens Spread, so do Teaching Moments- Dec. 7, 2016, Washington Post
Some lessons are obvious, such as the biology of growing a radish from seed. But the garden offers insights that go far beyond the brass tacks of cultivation. Geology, hydrology, poetry, music, ecology, cooking and microbiology all find a home in this arena we call a garden, as well as dozens of other subjects beyond most people’s imagination. Read more here.
Most Primate Species Threatened with Extinction, Scientists Find- Jan. 18, 2017, New York Times
Primates are threatened by the wholesale destruction of forests to make way for agriculture. In the Amazon, the jungle is being converted to cattle ranches and soybean fields, while in Madagascar, rice paddies are taking the place of lemur forests. Read more here.
Life on the Farm Draws Some French Tired of the Rat Race- Jan. 17, 2017, New York Times
More younger people are making lives as small-scale farmers in France, drawn in some cases by idealistic notions of tilling the land and of getting away from the rat race of the cities. They often leave behind well-paid jobs, as well as relatively comfortable lives that they nonetheless find unfulfilling.
Read more here.
Hawaii’s last working sugar mill, in Puunene, Maui, produced its last harvest last month.
Read more here.
PULSE of Ag Survey – Respond and you may win $100! Through Jan. 13
Survey on Outlook for Northeast Farming, Commercial Fishing and Forest Products
We are seeking input from farmers, commercial fishermen and forest products producers
Northeast farmers and forest products producers encouraged to share input – 10 chances to win $100!
Farm Credit East is conducting a brief survey to learn more about Northeast producers’ 2016 results and expectations for the year ahead. Anyone engaged in the business of agriculture, commercial fishing or forest products within the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York or Rhode Island is invited to participate. Survey participants will be entered into a drawing to win one of ten $100 Visa gift cards.
The survey will take no more than 15 minutes to complete. Responses are mostly multiple choice – no long essay answers required. Responses will be kept confidential and be used only for statistical purposes. At the completion of the survey, statistical results will be compiled and made available on our website.
Click here to participate in this survey! To be entered into the drawing for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card, Northeast farmers, fishermen and forest product producers must complete this survey by Friday, January 13, 2017. Thank you for your participation!
No purchase is necessary, you do not need to be a Farm Credit customer to respond or win a prize.
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For more information:
Contact: Chris Laughton
Telephone: 860-741-4380
Email: Chris.Laughton@farmcrediteast. com
Are Hydroponic Vegetables as Nutritious as Those Grown in Soil?- Dec. 23, 2016
The bottom line is it depends on the nutrient solution the vegetables are grown in, but hydroponically grown vegetables can be just as nutritious as those grown in soil.
Read New York Times article here.