Majoring in Organic
I spoke to a class at University of Florida and, during introductions, student after student told me their name and their major: “organic crop production.”Though this was a course in advanced organic...
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Got Science?
The Union of Concerned Scientists is using this catchy spoof to attract people’s attention to the challenges of global climate change. At the Organic Farming Research Foundation, we “got science” and...
View ArticleFive Years Later, Scientist Still Thinks Organic Can Feed the World
Controversy arose in 2007 around an article published by a group of graduate students and their professors at the University of Michigan, asserting that “it is time to put to rest the debate about...
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When 100% Organic Beer Means Organic
It seems a no-brainer: organic beer is made with organic hops, right? Not necessarily. In 2007, conventional beer makers who wanted to jump on the organic bandwagon persuaded the USDA that there...
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Surviving the Drought with Organic Practices
Despite the drought that has been withering his neighbors' fields, organic farmer Klaas Martens, is anticipating a year of good crop yields and way above average crop income.The reason?Klaas isn't...
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From the Ground Up: What Does It Mean to be Certified Organic?
This is the first of a three part series. The Spirit of OrganicAt the heart of organic certification is what many farmers, researchers, and advocates call the “spirit of organic.” This spirit is...
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Growing Organic Beans, Counting Organic Beans
This is part 2 of the 3-part series "From the Ground Up: What Does It Mean to be Certified Organic?"Many people don’t know that part of the organic certification process is keeping good records of...
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The Real Dirt on Organic Farming
This is part 3 of the 3-part series "From the Ground Up: What Does It Mean to be Certified Organic?"“The soil is the great connector of lives, the source and destination of all. Without proper care for...
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The Birds and the Bees and the Flowers and the Seeds…
With more than two-thirds of all agricultural plants dependent on insect pollinators, primarily bees, to produce seed, effective pollinator management is important to organic seed producers, especially...
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More Buzz on Pollinators
In celebration of National Pollinator Week, we are following last week’s post with some great buzz on native bees, courtesy of our friends at The Xerces Society and the Wild Farm Alliance.While we love...
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Knowledge is Power: The Natural Farmer Shares Its Bounty
A wealth of practical organic farming information has been gathered over the years by farmers and researchers all over the country, and is shared through a variety of methods. One storehouse of...
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Freedom’s Just Another Word for Organic
Organic agriculture provides real independence for farmers, for consumers, for communities, and for the world. As we know, organic farmers and ranchers use production methods that are independent of...
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Reducing Dead Zone through Organic Practices
The concept of Organic Agriculture moves center stage in the global sustainability debate.--One Earth, One Future: 2012 Consolidated Annual Report of the IFOAM (Integrated Federation of Organic...
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The Climate, it is a-Changin’
Agriculture and, in particular, organic agriculture can be part of the solution to mitigate greenhouse gases through farming practices that build soil fertility, avoid use of synthetic fertilizer and...
View ArticleSome of the Most Vital Research Needs Time and Money to Bear Fruit
By Klaas Martens, OFRF Board Member"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe."- Naturalist, John MuirImagine what more than a century of...
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Feeding the Future with Ancient Grains
By Karen AdlerYou may have noticed grains such as quinoa, buckwheat, and spelt skyrocketing into high demand in recent years in the U.S. You may have even wondered who is meeting that demand. As it...
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Sowing the Seeds of Organic Integrity
Free Download:________________At the recent EcoFarm Conference in California, I attended a session called “Keeping GMOs out of Organic Food and Farms.” The panel included representatives from an...
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Home on the Organic Range
Does that title conjure up images of healthy cows grazing peacefully on green rolling hills and ranchers watching baby calves frolic in the grass for the first time? Beyond the idyllic scenes, it takes...
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Balancing Conservation and Food Safety on Organic Farms
The practices of conserving and fostering biodiversity and natural resources are at the heart of organic farming, and are part of the USDA National Organic Program (NOP). At the same time, ensuring...
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Putting the “Sweet” in Organic Sweet Corn!
What could be better than that burst of sugary goodness as you crunch into the first ear of summer corn? One reason we look forward to this is that corn has actually gotten sweeter over the years...
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