Today's News

12 December 2012

 “We believe being organic still stacks up financially, which is why we've renewed the Organic Entry Level Stewardship scheme membership.”
George Perrott, Organic Farmer, Farmers Weekly 01 December 2012

U.S. trade deal could be a lot for Europe to swallow
Can Europeans, who have balked for years at many U.S. food imports, accept a free trade agreement with the United States that opens the door for imports of genetically modified crops and chickens cleaned with chlorine?
Reuters (11 Dec)
Read the Soil Association’s position on GM crops

Commercial decision sees organic commitment renewed
When Clinton Devon Farms turned organic five years ago, it did so for purely commercial reasons. That mantra hasn't changed in the intervening period and farms manager George Perrott believes it is still the right way forward for the business, which is why it has just renewed its Organic Entry Level Stewardship scheme membership for another five years.
Farmers Weekly (01 Dec)

Live animal exports face tougher controls over welfare concerns
Inspectors will check all animal shipments until satisfied 'there is no longer a high risk' after incident in which 40 sheep died.
The Guardian (12 Dec)

New Zealand bans battery cages
The New Zealand government has announced that battery cages, which house the majority of the national flock, will be phased out over the next nine years.
Farmers Weekly (11 Dec)
New battery hen cages banned
The New Zealand Herald (06 Dec)

BSE testing on cattle slaughtered for food 'no longer necessary'
FSA says other safeguards such as removal of risky parts of animals from food are sufficient to protect against mad cow disease.
The Guardian (11 Dec)

Food safety group calls for court to limit GMO seed patents
Patent protection for genetically modified corn, soybeans and other crop must be limited so farmers can save their seeds and protect themselves against litigation, a public interest group said in a filing with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday in a case involving global seed giant Monsanto Co.
Reuters (10 Dec)

Jeremy Irons talks trash for his new environmental documentary
Oscar-winning actor explains why he travelled around the world to highlight the environmental problems caused by our waste
The Guardian (11 Dec)

SNP ignoring potential of GM foods, claims Tory MSP
The Scottish Government has been urged to listen to scientists on the controversial issue of ¬genetically modified food.
The Scotsman (12 Dec)

Leadership and change: building a sustainable NHS
It takes leadership and levers to build sustainability into the NHS, but transformation will mean an organisation that is in the business of health, not just healthcare. One area where the NHS has a great opportunity to act in the interest of all is in environmental sustainability.
The Guardian (11 Dec)
Find out what the Soil Association is doing to improve hospital food

How to get ahead in ... sustainable living
A new GCSE-equivalent qualification trains tenants and housing officers in the basics of energy efficient household management.
The Guardian (11 Dec)

Interview on Sheffield Live
Soil Association’s Abi Edgar discusses the Keep Britain Buzzing campaign, the harm caused by neonicotinoids and the benefits of organic farming.
Communities Live, Sheffield Live! (11 Dec)

Why organic labels can be a turn-off
New research flips the notion of a “halo” effect for ethical food labels. A halo effect is a phenomenon where a label leads consumers to have a positive opinion—and in the case of an organic label, a healthy impression—of those foods.
Futurity (10 Dec)

Supermarket watchdog 'must be strengthened further'
Shadow farm minister Huw Irranca-Davies has called for further amendments to ensure an effective supermarket watchdog oversees the relationship between retailers and suppliers.
Farmers Weekly (11 Dec)

Welsh Minister promotes harmony with Defra on CAP
Wales’ Deputy Agriculture Minister said he was pleased about the way Defra represented the needs of Welsh farmers.
Farmers Guardian, watch now (11 Dec)

Farming Today
A new report by the National Audit Office finds that the system for inspecting farms is costing too much. A woodland charity is concerned that a lack of information about private woodland ownership is getting in the way of co-ordinated efforts to tackle diseases.
BBC Radio 4, listen again (12 Dec)

And finally… Winter urban birdlife - your Green shoots photographs
A scrap between a parakeet and a woodpecker, some stumped ducklings and a hidden seagull – here are the best images from our November assignment of capturing images of your city's birdlife on a crisp winter's day.
The Guardian (11 Dec)