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Congress extends farm bill, still manages to screw sustainable farmers
Posted by Grist: Twilight Greenaway on January 3rd, 2013
Grist: Is something always better than nothing? In the case of the farm bill extension that was buried in Tuesday’s last minute fiscal cliff deal, maybe not.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) calls the deal - which will provide $5 billion in subsidies to industrial-scale corn, soy, and wheat farmers while short-changing local food, organics, and beginning farmers, and decimating on-farm conservation efforts - “deeply flawed.” The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), meanwhile, has referred...
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The year in food and farming
Posted by Grist: Twilight Greenaway on December 27th, 2012
Grist: It`s been quite a year for food and farming coverage here at Grist. Below is a wrap-up of some of the biggest stories of the year.
1. The worst drought in half a century
Corn withered, farmers scowled and resorted to feeding their cows candy, and many predicted the coming of the real Hunger Games. But the country’s worst drought in over 70 years was far more complex than most news sources reported. Most of that industrial corn was heavily propped up by crop insurance (supplemented with taxpayer...