NewsRack: flenvcenter/Food_Independent

Michelle Obama | Let's Move - Truthout - All Articles

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

How we can empower parents, schools, and the community to battle childhood obesity.

For years, we've known about the epidemic of childhood obesity in America. We've heard the statistics -- how one third of all kids in this country are either overweight or obese. We've seen the effects on how our kids feel, and how they feel about themselves. And we know the risks to their health and to our economy -- the billions of dollars we spend each year treating obesity-related conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.

Ellen Kanner: Meatless Monday: Great American Meatout Puts Kindness on the Menu - Green on HuffingtonPost.com

Ellen Kanner — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Hello, it's the Ides of March, the day back in 44 BC when Julius Caesar's friends gathered on the steps of the Senate and stabbed...

Relying on GM Crops to Battle Climate Change 'Suicidal,' Indian Activist Charges - Common Dreams: Headlines

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

by Laurie Goering

LONDON - Faced with growing demand for food and increasingly unpredictable weather, many developing nations are debating whether to relax restrictions on the use of genetically modified crops.

Seed developers promise that a coming generation of genetically modified (GM) food crops will have climate-resilient features, from drought resistance to saltwater tolerance.

suki, inc. - Environmental News Network

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

suki, inc.

Convincing kids to eat healthy food - Earth Times

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Berlin - Parents should pay attention to colour, appearance and texture when trying to make healthy food appealing to their children's tastes. Colourful, crunchy pieces of fruit go quicker into a child's mouth than colourless fruit, said Monika Nie...

David Kirby: Obama Keeps Two Factory Farm Promises - Will Hold "National Rural Summit" - Politics on HuffingtonPost.com

David Kirby — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

I learned on Friday that the administration will soon rein in Big Ag and announce a "National Rural Summit," something that candidate Obama had promised but failed to accomplish in his first 100 days.

Water Wisdom - Common Dreams: Views

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

by Vandana Shiva

Since 1966 - and as a consequence of the introduction of the Green Revolution model of water-intensive, chemical farming - India has over-exploited her groundwater, creating a water famine.

Cuba’s green revolution — achieving sustainability - Green Left Weekly issue #780

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Cuba's successful models of sustainable development — in areas of food, housing and health — are now being widely replicated throughout Latin America.

Dramatic decline of male births in indigenous communities tied to industrial pollution - ICT: Living

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

A strange reality exists in at least one indigenous community – babies that should be born boys are instead, born girls.

Annie Spiegelman: School Gardens: Teaching the Next Generation Where Real Food Comes From - Green on HuffingtonPost.com

Annie Spiegelman — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Gardening encourages students to explore and problem-solve, while also building their self-esteem, nourishing their bodies and spirit, and nurturing an appreciation for the natural world.

Health is the Tipping Point to Identify and Eliminate GMOs - Common Dreams: Views

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

by Olga Bonfiglio

Are Americans willing to jeopardize their health with GMO foods?

UN Appeal for Haitian Quake Relief Only Half Funded - Common Dreams: Headlines

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Two months after the ruinous January 12 earthquake in Haiti, the United Nations' $1.44 billion revised humanitarian appeal for the country is only 49 percent funded, UN officials said today.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, says humanitarian work is picking up speed, but emergency shelter and sanitation are still urgently needed ahead of the rainy season. Steady rains could come as soon as the end of March, and hurricane season starts in June.

Recall of the Flavor-Enhancing Additive Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein in Hundreds of Products - AlterNet

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

This post first appeared on Food Politics. I wasn’t planning to make a big deal of the recall of hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) - and the more than 100 products containing this flavor ingredient in the United States and in Canada – because the FDA seems on the job and nobody is getting sick (as far [...] ...

UN Appeal for Haitian Quake Relief Only Half Funded - ENS

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

UN Appeal for Haitian Quake Relief Only Half Funded

Seedy tactics in Iowa and Norway in the news this week - Gristmill

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Monsanto’s Roundup Ready soybean seedPhoto: Monsanto The first in a series of daylong federally sponsored workshops kicked off today in Ankeny, Iowa , to debate whether consolidation in agriculture—in particular in the seed industry—has stifled competition and harmed farmers. While it may be much more convenient for farmers to do their one-stop seed shopping at Monsanto, DuPont, and Syngenta, et al—assuming they don’t mind that the selection is starting to resemble Soviet-era grocery stores—it certainly hasn’t saved them money. In the past year, farmers have paid 32 percent more for corn seed and 24 percent for soybeans, reports the New York Times . USDA figures show that corn seed prices have risen a ...

CU and OCA Urge Action on Deceptive ‘Organic’ Labeling: - Commondreams.org Newswire

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2010

Consumer Advocates

Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, and the Organic Consumers Association (OCA), today filed a petition with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requesting action on the widespread and blatantly deceptive labeling practices of several “organic” personal care brands that do not comply with the National Organic Program (NOP). For a copy of the complaint click here.

Exposed: Chevron's Cover-up of Gross Environmental Abuses in Ecuador - AlterNet.org: War on Iraq

Cameron Scott, AlterNet — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Chevron claims it's not responsible for dumping 18 billion gallons of industrial wastewater into the Amazon. A local leader says otherwise.

Gazans Struggle to Keep Farming a Family Tradition - Truthout.com

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Trying to make a living as a farmer in Gaza these days is taking a toll on the family ties so integral to the Palestinian culture. Traditionally, occupations are passed from father to son for generations, and their tie to the land is particularly strong. Before Israel imposed a suffocating blockade on the 14-kilometer-long Gaza Strip in 2007 (as punishment for electing Hamas as its governing party), farmers could make a good living growing carnations and strawberries for export and vegetables for the local market.

The People's Nuclear Posture Review - Truthout.com

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Who decides our national and nuclear policy? (a) REQUIREMENT FOR COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW. "In order to clarify United States nuclear deterrence policy and strategy for the near term, the Secretary of Defense shall conduct a comprehensive review of the nuclear policy of the United States for the next 5 to 10 years." So says Section 1070 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008. This clarification of our policy is to be prepared primarily by the Defense Department, in spite of its vested interest in the outcome. read ...

Robyn O'Brien: Eight Steps the Department of Justice Could Take to Reform Farming - Politics on HuffingtonPost.com

Robyn O'Brien — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

On Friday, in an unprecedented move with the USDA, the Department of Justice will launch an investigation into the farm business.

David Becker: When it Comes to Green, it's All About...Me! - Green on HuffingtonPost.com

David Becker — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Like to support local farmers? Hurray! And you know what? It turns out their food tastes amazing. Funny how food tastes so much better when it was dug out of the ground that morning.

Lauren Elyse Matison: What to Eat This Spring: An Interview with Hudson Valley's Fare Lady - Green on HuffingtonPost.com

Lauren Elyse Matison — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

After months of slushy streets, heavy stews, and stubborn colds, I was feeling more than ready to talk about a fresh new season when I...

Kerry Trueman: Seeds of Strange: Beckistan invades Kunstlerland! - Green on HuffingtonPost.com

Kerry Trueman — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Are the teabaggers ready to stop throwing tomatoes and start growing tomatoes? Glenn Beck's latest sponsor, The Survival Seed Bank, is banking on Tea Party...

Headlines for March 12, 2010 - Democracy Now!

mail@democracynow.org (Democracy Now!) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

Headlines for March 12, 2010

Atomic Atolls - Common Dreams: Views

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT

by Glenn Alcalay

This month marks the 56^th year since the infamous "Bravo" hydrogen bomb shook the coral atolls in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific, and left its radioactive legacy for the decades ahead.

John Anjain, then-mayor of Rongelap Atoll in the Marshall Islands, told me in 1981 how a man working with the Atomic Energy Commission in February 1954 stuck out the tip of his index finger - about a half-inch - and said, "John, your life is about that long." When asked what he meant, the AEC man explained that they wer