What goes in Obama’s mouth may be as important as what comes out.

Leaders in the sustainable agriculture community are not the only ones trying to bend the Obama Transition Team’s ear toward a healthy, sustainable food system (see blog post from 12/23/08). As a recent New York Times article pointed out, everyone from foodies to farmers , chefs to consumers, has high hopes for how Obama will address food issues.

Will there be a new White House chef who concentrates on using local organic ingredients? Will those ingredients come from food grown on the white house lawn? (Those from The Who Farm and Eat the View certainly hope so).  A White House organic garden or a First Family fed organic food would be highly visible symbolic gestures for broader policy changes-changes that could slow global warming, protect our national security and improve our population’s health. Michael Pollan’s open letter to the ‘Farmer in Chief ‘and a recent op-ed in the Christian Science Monitor discussed what some of these policy actions to should look like. (Both noted the importance of eliminating large scale industrial animal farming as we know it.) And, an op-ed in today’s Boston globe noted that Obama would do well to listen to such advice rather than succumb to agri-business pressure, displaying “the courage to defend what the likes of Michael Pollan have to say, without apology.” Read More >

Op-eds Run Nationwide Calling for Antibiotic Ban in Food Animal Production

The use of antibiotics in animal agriculture and the FDA’s recent decision to reverse a proposed rule on their use was the topic of an op-ed that began running in daily newspapers during the past week. The op-ed is authored by John Carlin, former governor of Kansas and chairman of the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production. The op-ed has appeared in several newspapers, including the Tacoma News Tribune; Portsmouth (NH) Herald; Columbia (MO) Daily Tribune; Lawrence (KS) Journal World.

Sustainable Agriculture Leaders Advise Transition Team

Today leaders in the sustainable agriculture community, organized by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, briefed members of the Obama transition team on priorities.  It was great to have the transition team’s ear, and to hear so many positive action ideas for the administration’s initial work.  CLF director, Dr. Bob Lawrence spoke of the epidemic of antibiotic resistance, and emphasized the need for the FDA to strengthen antibiotic licensing and permitting requirements in animal agriculture.  He also urged the USDA to take an in-depth look at the food safety impacts of antibiotic use in animal agriculture.  These recommendations and others are outlined in more detail as part of the Pew Commission report.

Most of the recommendations discussed did not address public health per se, although many had significant implications for public health.  We in the public health community are organizing to provide further input on issues relevant to the connections between food systems and public health.

Here are some other public health-related recommendations discussed during the call.
Read More >

Baltimore: A National Model for Sustainable School Food?

Last Saturday my family and I went to check out Bragg Nature Center, soon to be the Baltimore school system’s working organic farm. They were having an open house and plant sale fundraiser. I thought I’d share some pictures and info. 

As a CLF’er and a parent of a Baltimore city schoolkid, I have high hopes about the arrival of Tony Geraci, the new city school food service director, from New Hampshire [p.18].  His plan to turn Bragg farm’s overgrown land and dusty greenhouses into an active farm serving the schools is just one piece of the dizzying list of creative programming he’s already initiated, in his quest to make this city a national model of healthy, green, financially sustainable food services. Other items on the list include buying local – contracting with regional farmers, food education, support and training to school food service staff, and happy meal-style breakfast boxes filled with healthy foods.  His enthusiasm generates a lot of in-kind support – for example, he got the Baltimore Orioles and Ravens to agree to have their faces on, and I think even to pay for logo toys inside the breakfast boxes.

(On a recent morning when we went to check out the breakfast boxes -which turned out not to be there – my son’s school breakfast  menu consisted of cinnamon toast crunch cereal, trix yogurt, apple juice (that’s a fruit, right?), regular or chocolate milk, and graham crackers for dessert.  Geraci’s got his work cut out for him, weaning kids off that much sugar.) 

But back to the farm. Here’s what it looks like now. (There were also goats tasked with eating the brush on a hill, but my camera battery died before I could immortalize them for this blog.)

 

As I said, Geraci’s got his work cut out for him. It’s fun to imagine the site bursting with organic produce.

The land near Catonsville, MD was purchased by the city years ago with the idea of turning it into a nature center, but that idea never came to fruition.  Geraci plans to turn it into a 33-acre organic farm, renamed Fresh Start.  The city will use it to teach students about nutrition and sustainability. Students will be involved in planting seeds, gardening, and preparing healthy foods.  Maybe some nights they’ll have campfires under the stars.  Geraci hopes the farm will be operational in a year, and paying for itself in two years.  It won’t grow enough to serve the schools directly in a substantial way, especially in the beginning. So interestingly, Geraci is looking into programs like farmers’ markets or community supported agriculture that can educate youth while generating income.

These are ambitious undertakings.  It will be useful to contribute to the small farm to school literature with rigorous evaluation.  Stay tuned for updates as Fresh Start gets started!

Full Grass Access for Organic Dairy Cows

Tomorrow, Dec 23rd, is the deadline to get your comments to the USDA about the Organic Pasture Proposal. This proposal would require organic dairy cows to be pastured during the entire grazing season.  Organic standards already require some access to pasture, but depending on the producer, the standards have been interpreted differently.

For a brief overview of the issue, here is an NPR story for last week. There is a link to the entire draft rules, either in html or pdf version on the USDA comments page.

Ag Nominee Vilsack: Concerns on Ethanol, Biotech, Climate, CAFOs, Corporate Concentration, Hunger and Nutrition

In response to the blog post below, it is worth expanding, to clarify the reasons many in the sustainable agriculture community – and others who are concerned about sustainability, justice and public health – are feeling let down by the choice of the new secretary of agriculture, even as we try to remain hopeful about the overall direction of change.  
 
First, Tom Vilsack is a major proponent of ethanol production. Industrially produced corn ethanol has been disvalued for climate change mitigation because it contributes more emissions than it reduces. Further, industrial corn ethanol production leads to substantial environmental impacts from fertilizer and pesticide use. But the impacts go beyond environmental, to corn ethanol’s destabilizing effect on food prices around the world. The former U.N. special rapporteur on the human right to food has termed corn ethanol “a crime against humanity.” As of early December, the U.N. reported that nearly 1 billion people around the world are now undernourished; these numbers have risen substantially  in the wake of the food price spikes. Estimates on ethanol’s role in the rise in food prices range from a few percent up to 3/4. Vilsack does support moving over the mid-to-long term towards other forms of ethanol.  But even with alternate ethanol sources, significant problems in terms of land use for energy vs. food, corporate concentration, and unsustainable production methods are likely to remain. Read More >

CLF is Sponsor of Earth 3.0

 

Earth 3.0 Cover

Earth 3.0 Cover

In Sept 2008, Scientific American launched a new special issue series titled Earth 3.0, aimed at addressing issues and technology affecting our environment. The second issue of this series has just been released, and the Center of Livable Future is again one of the sponsors. The issue is available at newsstands and at the series web site below.

 
This special issue addresses urgent energy, environment and sustainability issues facing the world today and discusses the political policies on limiting carbon dioxide emissions and developing alternative energy sources. Please visit the Scientific American Earth 3.0 web site for more details.

Ag Nominee Vilsack: Keen on Climate Change; Weak on CAFOs?

While many in the sustainable agriculture community are still in shock today over President-elect Obama’s choice for Secretary of Agriculture—former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack—some are saying it’s not a bad move.

In yesterday’s New York Times, Lee Schipper, a project scientist in global metropolitan studies at the University of California at Berkeley, said that Mr. Vilsack “may have more sway over U.S. greenhouse gas emissions than anyone in the ‘dream team’ presented Monday.”

Still, Mr. Vilsack’s nomination has many wondering what impact he will have on many key issues. “As a state senator, he voted for the infamous House File 519 in 1995, which stripped counties of the right to impose restrictions on CAFOs,” writes, Tom Philpott in Grist. 

New Report Exposes Subsidies to Factory Farms

A new report released exposes how industrial hog and dairy operations are subsidized through the federal Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).  The report, entitled Industrial Livestock at the Taxpayer Trough, estimates that between 2003 and 2007, roughly 1,000 industrial hog and dairy operations have captured at least $35 million per year in taxpayer support through EQIP. Click here to read the study.

 

“During his campaign, President-Elect Obama said conservation programs like EQIP should help family farmers use good environmental practices, not fund corporate expansion,” said Vern Tigges, member of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and family farmer from Carroll, Iowa.  “He needs to make this a priority and stop factory farms from abusing taxpayer-funded programs like EQIP.”

 

CFFE is leading the fight against the corporate takeover of the hog industry and working for policies supporting independent family farmers.  Member groups include: Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, the Land Stewardship Project (MN), and the Missouri Rural Crisis Center.