Frankenfood

Business lobby moves to criminalize filming animal abuse on factory farms

"Bills being shopped in six states by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) would make it a crime to film animal abuse at factory farms or lie on job applications, in hopes of shutting down animal rights activists who infiltrate slaughterhouses to expose ghastly conditions. The proposals mandate that evidence of animal abuse be turned over to law enforcement within 48 hours, or face a financial penalty. Several of the bills also make it a crime to lie on slaughterhouse job applications, which activists commonly do in order to get footage like the content of a video published by the HSUS, embedded below." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBusiness lobby moves to criminalize filming animal abuse on factory farms

U.S. ‘very disappointed’ by Russian ban on U.S. meat

"Washington sharply criticized Moscow Monday for banning imports of US meat, saying the Russians had ignored scientific proof that an additive in US animal feed is safe. Top US officials said that global food-safety experts had cleared the additive, ractopamine, as safe at levels used in the United States. But Russia, enforcing its own rules against any presence of ractopamine, on Monday banned all imports of beef, turkey, chicken, pork and other animals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. ‘very disappointed’ by Russian ban on U.S. meat

75-year-old soybean farmer sees Monsanto lawsuit reach U.S. Supreme Court

"On the one side is Bowman, a single 75-year-old Indiana soybean farmer who is still tending the same acres of land as his father before him in rural south-western Indiana. On the other is a gigantic multibillion dollar agricultural business famed for its zealous protection of its commercial rights. The firm insists that it maintains patent rights on its genetically modified seeds even if sold by a third party with no restrictions put on its use – even if the seeds are actually only descendants of the original Monsanto seeds." Continue reading →

Continue Reading75-year-old soybean farmer sees Monsanto lawsuit reach U.S. Supreme Court

Brain scans reveal fructose link to overeating

"People who consume fructose instead of sugar derived from cane or other natural sources feel less satisfied by their food and tend to consume more, according to research published Wednesday in The Journal of the American Medical Association. Stacked next to brain scans of individuals who consumed glucose, the results showed a clear divergence in areas of the brain regulating appetite and reward processing. It is the first scientific literature to directly link fructose consumption to obesity-causing behaviors. Similar research published in November found that use of high fructose corn syrup correlates to significantly higher rates of type 2 diabetes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBrain scans reveal fructose link to overeating

Poland bans genetically modified maize and potatoes

"Poland on Wednesday imposed new bans on the cultivation of certain genetically modified strains of maize and potatoes, a day after an EU required green light for GM crops took effect. The centre-right government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk imposed farming bans on German BASF’s Amflora strain of potato and US firm Monsanto’s MON 810 maize or corn, according to a government statement Wednesday. The ban on specific strains essentially uses a legal loophole to circumvent the EU’s acceptance of such products." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPoland bans genetically modified maize and potatoes

‘Ag-Gag’ Bills, Property Rights, and Common Sense

"Opposition to Ag-Gag legislation is steadfast across demographic, geographic and partisan lines. A majority of Republicans, Democrats and Independents agree that banning undercover investigations is wrong. Likewise, a majority of respondents in all regions (Northeast, Midwest, South and West) oppose the criminalization of undercover investigations at farms. Over the years I have witnessed that fact that the more people are exposed to the realities of the cruel and deplorable slop served up by the industrial CAFO system, the more they will demand quality food where animals are raised humanely and within their natural environment." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Ag-Gag’ Bills, Property Rights, and Common Sense

Meet the Weeds That Monsanto Can’t Beat

"When Monsanto revolutionized agriculture with a line of genetically engineered seeds, the promise was that the technology would lower herbicide use—because farmers would have to spray less. In fact, just the opposite happened. Sixteen years on, Roundup (Monsanto's tradename for its glyphosate herbicide) has certainly killed lots of weeds. But the ones it has left standing are about as resistant to herbicide as the company's Roundup Ready crops, which are designed to survive repeated applications of the agribusiness giant's own Roundup herbicide." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMeet the Weeds That Monsanto Can’t Beat

Genetically modified salmon not harmful, FDA says

"Federal health regulators say a genetically modified salmon that grows twice as fast as normal is unlikely to harm the environment, clearing the way for the first approval of a scientifically engineered animal for human consumption. The document concludes that the fish 'will not have any significant impacts on the quality of the human environment of the United States.' Regulators also said that the fish is unlikely to harm populations of natural salmon, a key concern for environmental activists. The FDA said more than two years ago that the fish appears to be safe to eat, but the agency had taken no public action since then." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGenetically modified salmon not harmful, FDA says

Across Corn Belt, Farmland Prices Keep Soaring

"Farmers are carrying less debt than they were 30 years ago, and low interest rates are also a factor because they make it less costly for farmers to borrow. The federal crop insurance program also plays a role in keeping farmland prices high, by covering a majority of losses in revenue or crop yields. Some lenders have reported that a number of farmers are taking out loans based on the current value of their land to take advantage of the farmland boom. Fed officials and some real estate brokers said these buyers could be in trouble if interest rates rose and crop prices fell." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAcross Corn Belt, Farmland Prices Keep Soaring

Iowa Farms Minting Millionaires as Rich-Poor Gap Widens

"Booming worldwide demand for grain has showered wealth on farmers by tripling Iowa land values in the past decade and setting them up for record profits this year, even in the face of the nation’s worst drought in more than half a century, the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects. Land that had long produced boxcars full of corn and soybeans is now yielding a new crop: locally grown millionaires. In doing so, it has brought to the nation’s rural areas the kind of income divide that had long been the province of urban America. Average rents are up 43 percent statewide since 2008." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIowa Farms Minting Millionaires as Rich-Poor Gap Widens