Rock & Roll Farm

Tuesday! Mar 22 2005 // 2:18 pm // permalink

Mixed bag

Senators voted to keep $2.8 billion in ag budget cuts. “Congress and the President made a commitment to rural America in 2002 to adequately fund farm, nutrition, conservation, research and rural development programs thru 2007,” said [National Farmers Union President] Frederickson. “Passage of this budget reneges on that promise and re-opens the 2002 farm bill after just three years of the six year commitment.”

*****

“…the widespread adoption of herbicide-resistant cultivars…has dramatically impacted weed communities. Weed population shifts to naturally resistant species and to species with inherent biological characteristics that make the populations difficult to manage (e.g. delayed emergence), as well as the evolution of herbicide-resistant weed populations are real. Another problem is the emergence of the herbicide-resistant crops themselves as volunteer weeds. The speed at which these changes have occurred is cause for significant concern.”

From a press release by Third World Network.
The paper, “Herbicide-resistant crops and weed resistance to herbicides” is available from the journal Pest Management Science

*****

“…fast-food giant Taco Bell Corp. has agreed to work with a Florida-based labour organisation to increase the wages and improve the working conditions of thousands of workers in the state’s huge tomato industry”

*****

Science-Based Organic Farming: A Resource for Educators, a reference from the Universtiy of Nebraska Extension.

*****

Vermont could pass legislation to hold seed companies, not farmers, liable for crop contamination by bioengineered crops

*****

“Confidence in government and particularly in government regulation is compromised whenever the independence of those making decisions, including those empowered to regulate, is called into question.” The Revolving Door, a searchable database about people who have worked in/for both government and industry, with emphasis on those connected to the biotechnology industry.

Thursday! Mar 17 2005 // 6:02 pm // permalink

Grace Before Dinner

Article in Orion magazine by Deborah Madison (one of my favorite cooks/cookbook writers). She recently traveled to the Terra Madre conference. “In an Italian city, five thousand farmers, fishermen, ranchers, honey gatherers, bakers, and cheese makers from around the globe gathered for the first time.”

 

Tuesday! Mar 15 2005 // 2:03 pm // permalink

CFSC Call to Action

A call to action from the Community Food Security Coalition:

“[Call] your Congresspeople TUESDAY the 15th and WEDNESDAY the 16th to voice support for low-income people, family farmers, and the environment.

The American Friends Service Committee is providing a toll-free number for people who call in on those days: 1-800-247-2971. You will be directed to your Congressperson’s office from there.

WHAT’S AT STAKE: Most domestic programs, except Defense and Homeland Security, are at risk of cuts during this budget cycle. The combination of Iraq and the tax cuts has limited funding available for other parts of the budget—and is putting a tight squeeze on many important programs. Every committee will have cuts for programs within its jurisdiction—this is called ‘budget reconciliation,’ and it isn’t pretty. The USDA will have to cut its budget somewhere between $3 billion and $5 billion over the next 5 years. The Agriculture Committees will determine where those cuts get made. Any USDA program is open—from subsidies to conservation programs to nutrition programs— and low-income people, family farmers, and the environment are all poised to lose something in this process. Already, proposals have been made to cut Food Stamps and the Conservation Security Program.

MESSAGE: 1) Don’t cut programs that benefit low-income Americans, family farmers, and the environment. 2) Support the Feingold-Chaffee amendment to hold new tax cuts accountable to the same limits as new spending (this will help prevent passage of new tax cuts that will reduce revenue available for crucial programs and potentially increase the deficit).”

Tuesday! Mar 08 2005 // 7:09 pm // permalink

Building the Bridge: Linking Food Banking and Community Food Security

“[A] 24 page report (from The Community Food Security Coalition and World Hunger Year) explains how numerous food banks are at the vanguard of community food security efforts in their communities. It includes profiles of and interviews with ten food banks and food bankers engaged in a wide variety of community food security and self-reliance activities. It provides guidance for food banks interested in expanding their activities in these areas.”

It can be downloaded at foodsecurity.org or at World Hunger Year Report(pdf)

Saturday! Mar 05 2005 // 6:24 pm // permalink

Because there is a B in both and an N in neither.

Thursday I went to a farm auction. Farm auctions are surprisingly like Indie Rock shows. No, really.

1. Everyone crowds around a guy with a microphone, and it’s pretty difficult to understand what he’s saying.
2. There is a uniform with variances predefined by one’s archetype. In this case the uniform is Carhartts, work boots, and work gloves. Other options include camo, snowsuits, muck boots, and flannel.
3. The male/female ratio is about 75/1
4. The demeanor of the crowd is one of severe indifference.
5. Nobody dances.

There are some notable differences. Like, everyone drives a pickup. Everyone. And I’d bet most of them eat venison.

Besides the large farming equipment, trucks and a bulldozer, most of the items up for auction were old tools and workshop fixtures. I saw a workbench go for a buck. We tried for this cool hand cultivator, but it got snatched up before we even had the chance. Maybe next time. You can bet I’ll be going to these things whenever I get the chance. Deb said it was a valuable part of my farm experience. I’m assuming she wasn’t including the food from the lunch truck in her assessment. Mmmm… hot dogs and burned coffee.