Agriculture & Food
We eat to live. Humans use approximately 11% of Earth’s land for the cultivation of crops for food, but also for clothing, medicine and biofuels. Globally, major crops include sugarcane, pumpkin, maize (corn), wheat, rice, cassava, soybeans, hay, potatoes and cotton.
Below is the complete archive of related articles sorted by date.
New ‘Non-GMO’ label rolls out to promote organic production
California Certified Organic Farmers has released the "Non GMO & More" seal, which its members can use to verify that ...
China scientists facing ‘soft violence’ over GMO crops
China is about to get serious on the use of genetic modification (GM). After years of uncertainty, funding cuts and ...
Why do strawberries taste like straw, and can genetics bring flavor back to the big red berry
The modern supermarket strawberry looks sumptuous but often tastes like...well, straw. With a bit of help from modern genetics, can ...
Filipino farmers appeal ban on Bt eggplant
Farmers have urged the Filipino Supreme Court (SC) to junk the writ of kalikasan against Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) eggplant, saying that ...
Could spinach gene save orange industry?
Orange juice has been an American breakfast staple for decades, adding a much-needed pop of color (and vitamin C) to ...
Monsanto corn could be India’s first GM food crop
Monsanto’s Indian subsidiary expects to submit final trial results for its genetically modified (GM) corn to lawmakers within a year ...
GM opponents cloak value-based views in science
A new report out of the U.K. shows just how muddled discussion on genetically modified crops really is. Late last ...
Chemophobe activists vilify glyphosate, herbicide less toxic than many ‘natural’ alternatives
The latest scare tactic of the chemophobe lobby promotes the fear of chemicals in food. They seem oblivious to the ...
‘Contamination insurance’ for Australian non-GMO farmers?
Western Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert is calling for a national “contamination insurance scheme” to help protect farmers who choose not ...
Synbio firm Intrexon snaps up Okanagan, developers of new GM Arctic Apple
Those wondering whether the the newly approved GMO fruit, Arctic Apple, has a future now know: With this merger/take-over, new ...
Federal GMO labeling bill garners support from skeptical growers
The failures of statewide GMO labeling initiatives and the possibility that the courts will throw out the Vermont mandatory law ...
New RNA gene technology fights potato beetles, reduces pesticides
Colorado potato beetles are a dreaded pest of potatoes all over the world. Since they do not have natural enemies ...
Despite big spending, food industry not winning GM labeling debate
Despite two decades of assurances from biotechnology firms, food processors, federal regulators and even a substantial share of scientists that ...
Only Organic, Stonyfield’s Gary Hirshberg promote “hate speech” against American farming?
A consortium of organic companies under the banner of Only Organic and led by the founder of Stonyfield Farm hired ...
Humans have been playing god with farm crops for 1000s of years, and that’s okay
Some time ago I was listening to a BBC-podcast called ’the world history in 100 objects’. The episode centered around ...
Study: GMO labels won’t deter consumers
Food and biotechnology giants fighting against mandatory labeling of genetically engineered food (commonly known as GMOs) claim that it would ...
Non-GMO herbicide-tolerant sorghum to hit shelves 2017
Multiple herbicide-tolerant grain sorghum traits are coming soon to growers across the country and Alta Seeds breeder Ben Beyer took ...
UN human rights official worries about ‘corporate control’ of food
A United Nations (UN) representative undertaking a weeklong visit to the Philippines expressed her opposition to the use of Genetically Modified ...
Bioethicist calls for tighter regulation of non transgenic gene edited crops
A survey of rice, wheat, barley, fruit, and vegetable crops found that most mutants created by advanced genetic engineering techniques ...
Liberal confession: 5 reasons why the left is no better than the right on GMOs, science
Anti-science rhetoric is coming from prominent left-wing figures like liberal talk show host Bill Maher. As a liberal myself — and ...
Is it a GMO? Smart phone scan could address label concerns, but anti-GMOers oppose it
In the ever-complicated debate over labeling of genetically modified foods, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack offers this idea: Use your smartphone ...
Anti-GMO activists circulate Judy Carman’s latest suspect “study” to fan safety fears
Australian researcher whose study alleging GMO feed caused inflammation in pigs was widely discredited now claims more than 80% of ...
Did Bill Nye, the anti-GMO guy, just flip? After visiting Monsanto? Stay tuned
The 'Science Guy' has not yet announced how his views about GMOs have changed--he has been a skeptic for years--but ...
Image: The Age of Organic-Apocalypse
Tale as old as time, true as it can be... Also rampant in those times: War and Death — to complete ...
Some see conspiracy instead of consensus on GMOs
Since when is the safety of genetically modified food considered “settled science” on a par with the reality of evolution? ...
Food movement glorifies organic food but disdains average farmers
I'm a dodo bird. Or maybe a passenger pigeon. As a corn and soybean farmer, a chemical spraying, fertilizer spreading, ...
Conflicting principles: Are anti-GMO groups abusing public records transparency laws?
A succession of stories in recent weeks involving scientists and open records requests have anguished many who cherish two ideals: academic ...
