Today's news - 24 January 2013

 “It’s time the world’s decision-makers came to the right decision on hunger. It’s time to end the unnecessary suffering caused by the failure of the current food system. We can make hunger a thing of the past if we act now.”
Archbishop Tutu
The Guardian (23 Jan)

Food for Life!
In July 2012 the Department for Education announced an independent review into school food led by Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent, co-founders of the LEON chain of restaurants. The review aims to ‘significantly increase the number of children eating good food in schools and to determine the role of cooking and growing fruit and vegetables in schools.’
Education Magazine no.52 p16-20
Read more about the Food for life Catering Mark

Monopoly of grain trade has forced millions into starvation, say charities
Hundreds of millions of people face starvation because five multinational companies control 90 per cent of the world’s grain trade, leading charities were protesting last night as they launched a campaign to reduce levels of hunger in developing countries.
The Guardian (23 Jan)

Don't buy South African wines: striking workers' plea to foreign consumers
Farm labourers fight for pay rise to £10.60 a day in £850m-a-year fruit and wine sector.
The Guardian (24 Jan)

Selfridges raw milk sales prompts FSA prosecution on food safety charges
The Food Standards Agency is to charge the retailer over its vending machines that sold unpasteurised milk.
The Guardian (23 Jan)

Scientists put an end To moratorium On bird flu research
After researchers created versions of the bird flu virus that could spread more easily, critics began to worry that the work could spawn a pandemic if a virus escaped from the lab. After halting their work for more than a year, scientists now say the benefits outweigh the risks, and they are set to restart their experiments.
NPR (23 Jan)

EU freezes approval of new GMO crop cultivation
The European Commission doesn't plan to give the green light to new genetically modified crops in the coming months, as it wants first an agreement on the draft legislation that would allow member governments to decide individually whether to grow or ban GM plants, a spokesperson said this week.
EurActiv.com (23 Jan)
The Soil Association’s position on GM

Hunger and malnutrition: the key datasets you need to know
How much food is available? What are people eating? How much do poor people spend on food? We explore the statistics.
The Guardian (23 Jan)

Organic food supplier chooses biodegradable packaging
As part of its Green Packaging Initiative launched in 2011, organic food supplier Ja! Natürlich took a further step to avoid plastics recently by introducing a range of 100% biodegradable fruit and vegetable nets made from Lenzing Modal fibre.
Knittingindustry.com (23 Jan)

Why India’s Waste-to-Energy Industry Won’t Catch Fire
K.S. Sivaprasad, an engineer from India, spent four decades perfecting a factory that accepts city trash, dries it, picks out the burnable elements and ignites them to create electricity. His first full-scale plant chews through 700 tons of garbage a day and delivers 5.5 megawatts to the power grid.
New York Times (23 Jan)

Laos under international spotlight in search for land rights activist
Sombath Somphone disappeared a month ago after stopping at a police checkpoint, yet officials deny knowing his whereabouts. Sombath has campaigned for land rights for subsistence farmers at a time when land grabbing is becoming increasingly common.
The Guardian (24 Jan)

Groups say the fight against Monsanto GMO’s is not over
Although authorities have approved the planting of Monsanto’s genetically modified corn in Costa Rica, environmentalists say they have not given up, but rather are prepared to resist even more by taking legal actions.
InsideCostaRica.com (23 Jan)

The Maize Manifesto: No to GMO Maize
The National Union of Autonomous Regional Peasant Organizations (UNORCA) calls upon organizations, activists, and cultural and public figures, and all concerned people, to join us in to demand no to GM maize and no to Monsanto in Mexico.
viacampesina.org (23 Jan)

Defra figures reveal rise in bovine TB
The number of cattle slaughtered in the UK due to bovine tuberculosis has risen by 12% in the past year, according to DEFRA.
Farmers Weekly (18 Jan)

Existing SPS entitlements to 'carry through' to next reform
Existing Single Payment entitlements will be carried through to the next version of the scheme in England, Defra Secretary Owen Paterson has indicated.
Farmers Guardian (24 Jan)

NFUS challenges retailers on imported pork
NFU Scotland has bought imported pork in supermarkets and challenged retailers to prove it is produced legally.
Farming Weekly (24 Jan)

Farming Today
MEPs vote on changes to the £40 billion subsidy given to European farmers.
BBC Radio 4 (24 Jan)

And Finally… Dog evolved on the waste dump
BBC News (23 Jan)