As a public health doctoral student, I have been taught the importance of communicating scientific information to the public, journalists, and policy makers in a careful manner, especially when dealing with complex issues.  Scientific research almost never provides clear answers, but as a scientist you should never make statements that overstep the conclusions of your [...]

Maryland House Bill 1135, the Grocery Store Property Tax Credit Bill, passed the House yesterday with 138-0 votes! The bill grants a property tax credit to grocery stores throughout the state located in low-income areas. Delegate Justin Ross, the main sponsor of the bill, represents Prince George’s County, an urban county surrounding Washington, DC. Delegate [...]

This past Saturday, the Baltimore Food Makers held their monthly potluck in Northeast Baltimore at the home of an urban chicken farming couple. Our hosts distilled a lifetime of farming know-how into a short tour of their backyard chicken coop, and fielded questions about their three hens, poultry health, nutrition, and productivity. Apparently, three hens [...]

Johns Hopkins University reached a major sustainability milestone March 11 when President Ron Daniels announced a commitment to reduce the University’s carbon footprint by more than half by 2025 - which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 141,000 metric tons a year. That is equivalent to the annual emissions from 26,960 cars or the burning [...]

Dr. Ron DeHaven, CEO and Executive VP of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)*, spoke last week to the pork industry in Kansas City, MO. DeHaven opposes legislation to ban the use of non-therapeutic (growth promoting) antibiotics and antibiotics with human uses from food animal production. DeHaven used this opportunity to spread misinformation about [...]

This post was originally published in the spring 2010 issue of Edible: East Bay. For the link to this article from that magaize - http://www.ediblecommunities.com/eastbay/spring-2010/food-for-thought.htm
Beyond “Museum” Gardens
With all of the coverage of Michelle Obama in the news lately, you would be a fool not to think that gardens are the answer to all of [...]

Dr. Keeve Nachman, Director of the Farming for the Future Program at the Center for a Livable Future gave invited testimony to the Maryland House of Delegates on Friday, March 5 on the public health risks of arsenic in poultry feed. Delegate Tom Hucker (D-Montgomery Co) introduced the bill, which also received supportive testimony from [...]

When you hear Author David Kirby tell the stories behind the people in his latest book, you can’t help but to get caught up in his emotions. Tears welled up in his eyes several times last night as he described-often in graphic detail-to a riveted Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health audience, his experiences [...]

This past weekend, I witnessed hundreds of volunteers working in a very tangible way to take back the food system for a community. The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu said, “the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” This was a stride. Two high schools in Richmond, Calif in the [...]

Media outlets were buzzing this morning with the news that a Jackson County, MO, jury had awarded an $11 million verdict to farmers affected by a CAFO owned by Premium Standard Farms. This is the second time in the last 11 years that Premium Standard Farms has been sued for the noxious odors coming from [...]