tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71837374647913886492012-02-16T10:47:03.968ZIt is our human right to prevent our water, food, air and soil from being polluted-particularly when government legislation promotes pollution of our natural resources.Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.comBlogger801100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-64590482024755074022010-07-20T16:33:00.018+01:002010-07-20T17:26:59.200+01:00

GM crop Himalyan BalsamGM crops tick all the boxes....as an "Invasive Species Threat?".(see bullet points below) This is just a thought which occurred to me when reading about non native invasive plants and the threats they pose to wildlife and the habitat.This is International Year of Biodiversity, and in the UK attention has focused on those non-native invasive plants which cause problems for

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-34994605901293111882010-03-10T09:53:00.009Z2010-03-10T10:27:56.401Z

In early Chinese tradition the 'human organism is a microcosm of the universe.'- interconnected with our environment, and with the entire ecological system. Unfortunately that's not how our government see things. They prefer treating the natural environment as seperate, unconnected parts to be exploited by different interest groups.One of the macro/micro relationships between humans and our

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-5942582816336182212010-02-09T10:29:00.007Z2010-02-09T18:14:01.769Z

We're all familiar by now with the fact that GM seeds are designed to be bought new every year, and now this applies increasingly to hybrid seeds. BUT DID YOU KNOW that it is illegal in Europe to swap or sell old seed varieties(heritage seeds) that are no longer registered on any approved lists? So even if you sold at a local market, a small box of saved seeds from your garden, of an old variety

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-41348686068478336542010-01-15T17:43:00.010Z2010-01-16T10:42:25.328Z

There are many reasons for adopting small-farm agriculture, without pesticides and without GE technology... and to pre-empt those well-worn soundbites of the pro GM lobby it's not about ...'nostalgia or a yearning for a bygone 'green and pleasant land',, it's not about a 'sentimentalised attachment to cuddly animals,and wildlife,' and it's not about an 'idealised or luddite view of pre-industrial

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-55186477827185217352009-12-30T16:37:00.007Z2009-12-30T17:09:22.662Z

In the wake of the Copenhagen Summit earlier this month it’s obviously not a good idea to wait around whilst governments go away and try to devise new realistic and equitable agreements for the next summit....or not. As for agriculture,it looks like our best hope for the future lies with lots of enterprising people getting their heads together, harnessing their expertise, and providing

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-24619955624351580122009-11-16T17:28:00.007Z2009-11-16T18:14:52.885Z

Photos-Native species of bumblebees.THE UK CURRENTLY HAS 24 BUMBLEBEE SPECIES, BUT SYNGENTA ARE BREEDING THEIR OWN FACTORY-FARMED BUMBLEBEES. . WHY?U-turns.Defra and the agri-chem industries are doing a few u-turns on some of their major agricultural strategies. This is since damage to UK topsoil and to the health and survival of our crop pollinators,

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-15625631416109889932009-10-31T14:12:00.004Z2009-10-31T14:20:57.133Z

The UK's chief drugs adviser, Professor Nutt, has hit the news headlines this morning. He was sacked for criticising government policy. More accurately, the Professor has accused the government of using the drug classification system as a tool to send out an anti-drugs message, rather than to rate drugs in terms of actual risk, which the drugs classification system is meant to do. This has

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-71272672496076668512009-10-24T20:36:00.005+01:002009-10-24T20:53:30.304+01:00

I'm not too keen on the trend in recent years for artists to place their objects/art into landscape, it seems like a random intrusion. The exception though are the works of Richard Long and Andy Goldworthy, who introduced their 'land' or 'earth' art in the eighties.They seemed to have an involvement with the earth's own resources, and explored the natural bonds and tensions that exist in nature.

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-24393800883195048242009-10-05T13:18:00.006+01:002009-10-05T18:50:13.599+01:00

(image)Spreading organic fertilizerTalk about U-turns! Picture the incredulity on Peter Melchett's face (Policy Director for the Soil Association) when he heard Hilary Benn's(Defra Secretary of State) proclamation about the need for a strategy to protect the soil for agriculture. "UK land has been steadily degraded by 200 yrs of intensive farming and industrial pollution, warned the Department

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-24431767430770612072009-08-29T19:57:00.014+01:002009-09-05T09:48:03.645+01:00

There has been a flurry of pro GM/industrial farming proclamations reaching the media recently, and BLIMEY, SAVE US from that agency designed to protect our health -'The Food Standards Agency'!The FSA has recently published a study, (based on a review of other studies,and carried out by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)) saying that their research shows that organic food has 'no

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-63259589619604198482009-08-11T10:36:00.007+01:002009-08-11T11:36:23.841+01:00

There was an interesting juxtaposition of two articles on page 29 in the Scottish newspaper 'The Press and Journal' on July 29th.Taking up most of the page with three times the column space plus a big photograph of a forage harvester, was an article about Britain's 'agricultural machinary trade body' and its assessment on the economic outlook for farming,as measured through machinary sales. On

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-86474497567944580812009-07-26T10:05:00.002+01:002009-07-26T10:20:21.035+01:00

Even whilst international agreements are being made to cut down on carbon emissions, and promote sustainable energy, the UK government is clinging on with white knuckled obstinacy to industrialized agriculture.In sixty years crop yields have risen, but this has been at great cost to the environment, to ecological systems, and to human health. Going hand in hand with the free market economy and

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-8262548895081110612009-07-14T17:33:00.003+01:002009-07-14T17:46:27.097+01:00

Previously I mentioned the blog of Matthew Naylor http://www.fwi.co.uk/blogs/lincolnshire-farming-blog/ where I learned about the limited capacity of the peasantry to absorb knowledge and information about agricultural pesticides. Hi Mr Naylor, I was entertained by your reply and appreciate the inclusion of my blog title on Mouth of the Wash. I look forward to exchanging ideas from across the

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-13244185487942382692009-07-12T09:23:00.009+01:002009-07-15T17:20:35.468+01:00

Some time ago I highlighted an article by Matthew Naylor. His comments frequently feature in Farmers Weekly in addition to his own blog, and he generally seems to reflect the ethos of the NFU. For this reason I thought I'd find his views on the consultation called by the NFU to notify neighbours before farmers apply agro chemicals to their crops. It is important to note that the consultation is

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-13734880660824716652009-07-08T09:33:00.003+01:002009-07-08T09:48:01.604+01:00

PRESS RELEASE sent out on 7th July 2009 at 10.45amPESTICIDES PUBLIC HEALTH SCANDAL WHITEWASH FOLLOWING BIZARRE COURT OF APPEAL JUDGMENT, AS CAMPAIGNER VOWS TO FIGHT ON TO THE HOUSE OF LORDSAward-winning environmental campaigner, Georgina Downs, who last November won a historic and landmark High Court victory against the Government over its fundamental failure to protect people in the countryside

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-33983986197816754842009-06-22T09:55:00.012+01:002009-06-23T09:13:56.264+01:00

In a previous post I attempted to give some reasons (as an unqualified observer) why agricultural pesticides seem to be the common denominator in the story of honeybee decline.Certain pesticides have been proven to be highly toxic to bees, and Peter Melchett of the Soil Association says that "The government prefers to blame 'very wet weather' and 'poor management by less experienced beekeepers'

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-46970017562559222662009-05-25T23:47:00.006+01:002009-05-26T10:28:36.093+01:00

It probably hasn’t escaped the attention of many that the British Parliament is currently embroiled in an ‘expenses’ scandal. Exposures about individual MP’s expenses claims were leaked to the Telegraph newspaper which is publishing this information by installments and drawing-out the agony for worried MP’s who wonder if they will be the next to be shamed.--( No, I am not digressing from the

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-71445348735390398812009-05-08T12:15:00.019+01:002009-05-09T17:57:45.991+01:00

At last the mainstream media seems to have grasped the fact that bee die-offs have serious implications for humanity, and the problem isn't going away.Martha Kearney's documentary on bbc4 last week provided a more in depth analysis than I have seen on the tv before. In the documentary,agricultural pesticides were heavily implicated as a source of the die-offs, but Martha Kearney stopped short of

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-56067689698540109122009-04-25T09:00:00.005+01:002009-04-25T10:48:54.256+01:00

The photos above were taken three years ago on the south coast of Kent, England. They show surveillance of seagulls, beach huts and anyone who might wander onto beach. This morning John OConnor (former commander of Scotland Yard) was interviewed re the police infiltration of environmantal groups. He said they(the police) "have to police everything". Judging by the photos above the police take

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-79106042082503327562009-04-21T07:25:00.012+01:002009-07-16T14:30:17.101+01:00

Blimey!...Question to Mr Naylor..Where are people who live in cities and do not own land expected to get their food if they do not delegate their food needs to farmers and retailers? Personally I think urban allotments are a good idea, but I don't think this is what Mr Naylor was suggesting.(J. -Thanks for the comment on previous post- I tried to trace a link to the article but they seem not to

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-33301230380023850912009-04-14T08:14:00.005+01:002009-04-16T12:40:47.074+01:00

It was with interest that I read an article by Farmer Mathew Naylor(a Nuffield Scholar) called “Take Charge of your own Destiny.”(I was flipping through an old edition of Farmers Weekly, 23rd Jan.) It seemed a muddled and contradictory piece of writing to me, but in summary I think the message was that those farmers who are used to ‘mastering the elements’ are those who have an ‘Internal Locus of

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-40491710087741422282009-04-07T23:25:00.009+01:002009-04-10T10:24:24.776+01:00

I've just visited Jamblichus's Weblog, and have copied this information(below) from one of his links.... Please visit http://Jamblichus.wordpress.com Below from http://www.ineas.org/events.htm Institute of Near Eastern and African Studies.International Seeds DayOrganizations, activists and people from various professional and linguistic backgrounds will observe April 26 as International Seeds Day

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-60994703058755728822009-04-04T11:09:00.010+01:002009-04-06T02:25:23.115+01:00

Above - fourteen 600kg bags of nitrate. Way back in 1980 Fritjof Capra (physicist) wrote a critique of Western societies overreliance on the ‘scientific method’. He predicted how a reductionist approach, and obsession with economic growth and production was depleting the planet’s natural resources. He even accurately predicted catastrophic climate change through ozone depletion. Not many people

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-14822812175585574052009-03-30T16:55:00.003+01:002009-03-30T17:18:42.186+01:00

Thanks for your comment J. I liked your article on GM's. The pro GM propaganda machine is pretty repetitive now-'luddite' seems to be one of their favorite insults for the opposition-as opposed to their scientific gravitas I suppose.David Hockney's experience re the dissappearance of trees shows how blithely authorities can rob us of things that matter. I liked his painting which reminded me of

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-76918675230906190862009-03-16T15:54:00.006Z2009-03-16T17:19:04.810Z

The Pesticides Safety Directorate(PSD), the key officials advising Ministers on pesticides, receives approximately 60percent of its funding from the agro-chemical industry.In November last year, Georgina Downs won a High Court victory against the Government over its fundamental failure to protect people in the countryside from pesticides.Speaking after the ruling, she stated, “The Government’s

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-65281427969473236162009-02-27T12:36:00.005Z2009-03-02T09:58:27.764Z

With disappearing bee colonies in Europe and America, and dwindling oil reserves,what is DEFRA pinning its hopes on for the future of farming in Britain?Answer.-They are pinning their hopes on the false promises and spurious claims of the hugely rich and powerful biotech corporates. The most persistant claim which holds governments in thrall is that GM crops will solve all our food problems for

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-80375037472721824452009-02-10T09:50:00.006Z2009-02-17T14:52:44.200Z

.Top picture-neonicotinoid chemical structure and honeybees.Second picture-organophosphate chemical structure and honeybees.BIG QUESTION-WHY IS THERE NO SERIOUS GOVERNMENT FUNDED RESEARCH INTO THE LINK BETWEEN THE HONEYBEE DECLINE AND PESTICIDES?The bee die-off has become critical, and after a long period of complacency Defra has at last committed £4.3 million to “safeguard and undertake more

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-44044936179759279502009-01-26T09:40:00.005Z2009-01-26T20:10:40.316Z

In pugnacious mood a farmer told BBC news this morning how he had planted GM's in Wales. He claimed he had not acted illegally. Farmer Jonathan Harrington has been secretly planting and harvesting two varieties of genetically modified maize on his own land within the Brecon Beacons,-a National Park and protected area.In 2000 the Welsh Assembly voted to keep Wales a GM free zone.Mr Harrington said

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-75751387439975659192009-01-11T08:02:00.005Z2009-01-11T15:08:48.602Z

save our honeybeessave our insects and birdssave our wildlifesave our rivers and watercoursessave our ecologysave the health of our children and the general publicBAN THE MOST HAZARDOUS PESTICIDES!- carcinogens,reprotoxins,mutagens,endocrine disruptorsSUPPORT THE EU PESTICIDE PROPOSALS.

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-56818017898742576672008-12-31T16:38:00.003Z2008-12-31T16:50:54.276Z

In response to the EU pesticide proposals which aim to ban some of the most toxic agricultural chemicals, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has stated that impending changes to EU pesticide rules “will damage food production without benefiting human health or the environment”.The above statement is an outrageous insult to everyone who lives in proximity to pesticide spraying.Rural residents experience

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-15965868112289141582008-12-27T08:19:00.006Z2008-12-27T16:21:28.578Z

When Georgina Downs won the High Court case against the government recently, the judge concluded that the government had fundamentally failed to protect people in the countryside from pesticides and has also knowingly allowed residents to continue to suffer from adverse health effects without taking any action to prevent the exposure, risks and adverse inpacts occurring.The Judgment had concluded

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-24640564096991813232008-12-14T10:24:00.003Z2008-12-14T10:52:55.144Z

"These Pesticide Proposals(the Proposal for a Framework Directive on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides and the Proposal for a Regulation Concerning the Placing of Pesticides on the Market) will set pesticide policy throughout the whole of the EU for at least the next ten years and possibly even the next few decades." Georgina Downs warns that serious lobbying by the chemical and farming industry

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-67234743863270881892008-12-05T14:28:00.004Z2008-12-06T09:08:03.022Z

Since Georgina Downs won her high court battle against the government, she has written a comment on the 'Farming Today' blog to correct any misinterpretations around her message regarding agricultural pesticides. I have recorded below paragraphs from her comments which enumerate the important points:-……"agricultural pesticides are commonly used in mixtures, often 4 or 5 different products in any

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-82290922080436920852008-11-16T08:47:00.005Z2008-11-17T10:05:37.080Z

Georgina Downs has won a milestone High Court action against the government, after her seven year campaign to reveal the fundamental inadequacies of the regulation and control of agricultural pesticides.The High Court has ruled that “people living in the countryside are at risk from crop sprays and must be given better protection.” In court the Department of Environment,Food and Rural Affairs (

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-33373993787149180892008-11-04T11:07:00.005Z2008-11-11T17:05:28.300Z

The degraded condition of land and the near extinction of some birds and wildlife is to a large extent due to the bullish attitudes of successive governments.Hedgerows, woodland, and wildplants, insects and wild animals have been sacrificed to the intensive use of pesticides and industrialised farming methods, in the mistaken belief that this is a realistic or sustainable system of food

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-5489557356362994262008-10-05T21:15:00.007+01:002008-10-13T08:06:31.496+01:00

Over half of Europe’s amphibians face extinction by 2050. Climate change, diseases and habitat destruction and urbanisation are blamed. This was an assesment of the Zoological Society of London, in September.This week the World Conservation Congress is gathering in Barcelona to discuss environmental problems and how to work towards a biodiverse and sustainable world. Thousands of the worlds

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-6645615328667313712008-09-14T12:24:00.004+01:002008-09-15T17:42:03.872+01:00

The following information is sourced from GMWatch.eu/Marie-Monique Robin's excellent documentary film "The World according to Monsanto" will be shown at the European Social Forum(ESF) on Wednesday the 17th September in Malmo Sweden.After the screening, there will be presentations on the current situation as regards GMO's by guest speakers including Daniel Mittler(political advisor, Greenpeace

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-50646870441014898822008-08-24T22:28:00.004+01:002008-08-25T12:30:06.167+01:00

GM proponents like to label those who oppose GM technology as ‘Luddites’ or ‘unscientific’. Presumably they imagine that by using these labels on their critics, they confer more gravitas to themselves and their erroneous claims for these agricultural crops. Prince Charles’ recent criticism of GM’s, triggered some bizarre and irrational responses. Because the science is powered by money, many

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-5944248769547165192008-08-05T17:47:00.004+01:002008-08-05T18:25:14.475+01:00

The application of agricultural pesticides to crops across the world has created a huge problem of toxic pollution in our air, soil, watercourses and sea. Monsanto is trying to exploit this problem by promising that GM crops will largely do away with the necessity for pesticide applications. Biotech companies claim that GM crops will provide the magic bullet to feed the world, and that the number

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-76357106379990395442008-07-06T16:48:00.004+01:002008-07-12T16:35:39.679+01:00

From ‘The Press and Journal’.(June 20th2008)'....First Minister Alex Salmond delivered the unequivocal message that Scotland would remain GM free as he arrived at the Royal Highland Show.Mr Salmond had no objection to a debate on the use of GM, but said the Scottish Government was wholly against its use. He added:”The reason we are against it is because we have a very clear vision of Scotland’s

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-56218408646563325482008-06-24T10:57:00.007+01:002008-06-26T18:12:59.178+01:00

McCarthy predicts that the countryside will ‘become entirely sterile and lifeless’.Michael McCarthy in The Independent, Thurs.19th June, predicts that the environmental and ecological impacts of introducing GM’s commercially into Britain, would mean that…'Nothing would be left'…. 'the countryside will become entirely sterile and lifeless.'Contemplating this scenario leads to a lot more questions

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-25022183676277607522008-06-16T07:08:00.010+01:002008-06-24T11:34:42.736+01:00

"Our food, Our future!” say environmental protestors.Hilary Benn(Secretary of State for the Environment) has agreed to let scientists at Leeds University conduct the trials over the next three years. Since I wrote this post, Gordon Brown has declared today (19/6/08) that he wants the GM debate to reopen. He seems to be in favour of GM's (surprise, surprise),this is a sample of Gordon Brown's

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-21263871794438554542008-04-30T15:49:00.012+01:002008-06-19T07:59:08.069+01:00

Email the Commission before May7th GMO vote!An important vote on GMO's is due to take place on May 7th in Brussels. The agro-chemical industry wants EU permission to grow pesticide-producing maize plants and a GM potato that contains an antibiotic resistant gene.(For information about GM crops and intensive, industrialized arable agriculture with pesticides, please see my previous post)Greenpeace

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-84543509915207261792008-03-25T08:53:00.023Z2008-06-19T08:01:11.466+01:00

What is intensive/industrial farming?Intensive farming is an agricultural system through which (it is claimed) more food will be produced and the lower the price will be for the consumer. This system infact generates huge external economic costs and other serious impacts on humanity and the environment:- Loss of farmers' livlihoods, and cause of malnutrition in developing nations.Severe and

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-13309172904772479692008-03-09T08:37:00.007Z2008-03-09T10:11:48.960Z

On March 7th about 300 Brazilian women raided a research unit of the agricultural biotech company Monsanto and destroyed an experimental field of corn. These facilities are located in Santa Cruz das Palmeiras, in Sao Paulo state.The group of activists protested the Brazilian government's decision last month to give clearance for two varieties of GM corn for commercial use-MON810, produced by

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-14209323721626898492008-03-01T16:37:00.005Z2008-03-02T14:33:15.414Z

Public demand for free range eggs and chickens has soared in the UK since the tv series featuring two chefs who highlighted the cruelty involved in raising battery hens. The demand has been so great that UK producers have run out of supply and supermarkets have resorted to sourcing from France. What has all this to do with GM’s?.... despite ever increasing demand for organic and free range

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-85627760767735436672008-02-24T12:17:00.009Z2008-02-26T08:46:37.971Z

The UK is seen as one of the last bastions to be conquered by the biotech industry regarding GM crops. They aim to establish GMO’s as the only farming system worldwide. At the present time public opinion in the UK and France is standing in the way of this corporate ambition in Europe.This take-over process doesn’t involve real dialogue with the public about the risks and dangers of GM’s, or the

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-28677758251205600392008-02-22T12:13:00.004Z2008-02-22T12:25:16.733Z

THE SKY IS THIN AS PAPER HERE. Section of lithograph, Robert Rauchenberg,1981

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-7532766587163122822008-02-18T15:12:00.006Z2008-02-18T15:48:13.021Z

Is this what DEFRA refers to as 'stewardship of the countryside?'For most people stewardship of the countryside probably brings to mind well-kept hedgerows, woodland and strips of set-aside land, for wildlife to thrive, or at least survive. But DEFRA's brave new world involves the forceful protection of vast acreages of monotonous monocrops, grown so that corporate capitalism can thrive.The

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-13206886310862902702008-02-11T09:27:00.000Z2008-02-12T08:45:57.627Z

The GM corporates seem like those stubborn and relentless rulers who won't relinquish their hold on power and cease their destructive policies, despite the suffering and protests of their citizens.Recent news on 8th Feb, has reported that one of the most destructive pests of cotton crops has evolved a resistance to GM crops. It is believed to be the first documented example in the wild of an

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-47934950539347921002008-02-06T20:33:00.001Z2008-02-22T09:13:47.390Z

'Friends of The Earth' commented on their website that public companies have to maximise profit and keep investors happy. This means economic growth comes before people and the planet. They also stated that many corporates were now more powerful than governments. Both of these assertions are undoubtedly true but the fact that corporates are more powerful than governments doesn't necessarily mean

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-30036574636726571532008-01-29T17:21:00.000Z2008-02-01T16:01:49.757Z

The more I learn about farming in Cuba, the more impressive I realize the Cuban achievement is. I mentioned the organic agriculture of Cuba in a previous post. Using little mechanization and no pesticides or fungicides or synthetic fertilizers, Cuba has managed to produce enough food to feed its high population. In addition, the overall effect of living in the city (Havanna) with every available

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-16105315721651696052008-01-23T16:22:00.000Z2008-01-23T16:57:46.675Z

Biotech companies such as Monsanto, Syngenta and BASF claim that they are committed to reducing poverty and hunger throughout the world (altruistic motives indeed), but they have withdrawn from a major international project to map out the future of agriculture.The International Assembly of Agriculture, Science and Technology for Development is concentrating attention on how to feed the world's

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-66007319421269430982008-01-20T11:15:00.000Z2008-01-21T16:18:28.648Z

The following is from Paris 'Associated Press' Jan 11 2008...."Militant French farmer Jose Bove and about 15 supporters called off their hunger strike in its eighth day after the government ordered the suspension of the use of genetically modified corn.France will suspend cultivation of MON810, the seed for the only type of genetically modified corn now allowed in the country, until a European

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-45301993695450416382008-01-19T10:45:00.000Z2008-01-19T11:25:17.110Z

Much of the opposition to GM crops is based on the potential harm they pose to humans and wildlife, and the possibility of uncontrollable spread of modified genes into non GM plants and crops.In addition to the risks posed to humans and the environment, Jose Bove expresses a further concern over GM's. His ethical opposition is perhaps best summed up in his slogan "the world is not merchandise"

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-44727297115677680762008-01-18T13:14:00.000Z2008-01-18T13:29:46.829Z

Jose Bove (see previous post) and 15 other campaigners started their hunger strike two weeks ago on January 3rd.Bove wants the French government to use European Union Legislation that allows members to ban GM crops.At the present time Nicolas Sarkozy, France's President, has suspended the use of MON810, the only GM crop currently authorized in France. This crop is a brand of maize which is highly

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-818689585925870702008-01-09T16:11:00.000Z2008-01-11T13:20:47.205Z

"People who campaign against GM crops are committing a crime against humanity". Not my words. This seems to be the latest ludicrous claim of the GM protagonists in their attempts to conquer the European market. 'Ludicrous' because in view of the problems caused by GM's, described only briefly below, it would be far more accurate to describe the GM corporates as committing a crime against humanity

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-47547156281360829472007-10-18T11:49:00.000+01:002007-10-21T10:08:03.647+01:00

DEFRA supports the spraying of agricultural pesticides next to residential properties and other buildings such as schools and hospitals. Despite the report of the Royal Commission DEFRA CONTINUES TO SHOW CONTEMPT for the UK residents who are repeatedly exposed to highly toxic chemicals in this way. The European Parliament are voting on new safety policies which will provide more protection for

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-65392130158518055062007-10-10T08:48:00.000+01:002007-10-11T15:22:06.550+01:00

1000 species of insects, plant diseases and weeds are now resistant to pesticides.-but humans are not!Rainwater in parts of Europe contain such high levels of dissolved pesticides it would be illegal to sell it as drinking water.If these facts are of concern to you, it is not too late to email your MEP today, before he/she votes on the EU pesticide proposals this month!The pesticide proposals

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-87417614078443095682007-09-21T16:37:00.003+01:002008-04-28T17:46:21.276+01:00

Why are we using precious landto feed our gas-guzzling cars?Governments and corporate bodies present agro-fuels as the panacea for the problems of a post peak oil era.Their bold assertions are myths.(text in colour are quotes from an article of Eric Holt-Gimenez, Ph.D.Executive Director,Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy)It is now acknowledged by the scientific community that

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-79101404448281980382007-09-15T17:56:00.000+01:002007-09-21T08:49:53.343+01:00

Agri-business, food processors and supermarkets have totally taken over control of our food, from the time it is planted, (or born) to its purchase at the retailers. They have degraded its nutritional value, and contaminated it with chemicals:pesticides and herbicides on crops, and antibiotics and growth hormones in animals. This is before it even reaches the processors where additives and more

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-50147895347161373252007-09-14T09:12:00.000+01:002007-09-16T15:53:37.001+01:00

"Food, Trade And US Power Politics In Latin America." Toni Solo. 2004.He quotes a statement by Columbian Senator Jorge Robledo Castillo:"A nation whose food supply was located somewhere else in the world stands to lose if for some reason it cannot be made available for domestic consumption......"Toni Solo points out that "people at all levels across Latin America see this very clearly. A

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-71403820608595663992007-09-13T17:22:00.000+01:002007-09-14T13:27:44.314+01:00

I provide some quotes below from a policy brief by Peter M Rosset, Ph.D. Executive Director Food First/The Institute for Food and Development. The policy brief was prepared for "Cultivating Our Futures" the FAO/Netherlands Conference on the Multifunctional Character of Agriculture and Land,12-17 September1999, Maastricht, The Netherlands..."In this policy brief I challenge the conventional wisdom

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-15872205841163605472007-09-09T15:41:00.000+01:002007-09-10T09:34:35.371+01:00

This is really about the lack of Gordon Brown's plans for the future of agriculture and the agricultural environment. Given the urgency of the need to create strategies for energy, efficiency and production in all fields(excuse the pun), there is almost a deafening silence from government. There are the occasional suggestions for using low energy light bulbs, but that's about the extent of their

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-65138865351523202392007-09-05T14:49:00.000+01:002007-09-05T15:32:32.934+01:00

There is an interesting article by Megan Quinn called 'The Power of Community:How Cuba Survived Peak Oil.' It features on the website of Global Public Media. I'll just quote a little bit about farming in Cuba, but her article is well worth reading for other aspects of cuban life......"Havana, Cuba--At the Organiponico de Alamar, a neighborhood agriculture project, a workers collective runs a

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-83326139449449291412007-09-03T11:00:00.000+01:002007-09-03T11:33:44.751+01:00

Setasides are being scrapped next year to make way for the crazy rush to grow biofuel crops. Biofuel crops are also displacing food crops. Truly crazy in a country as small as Britain.Setasides are not an escape into bygone times-just the opposite. They have been recognized as vital green arteries for wildlife and biodiversity, which are buffers against the burgeoning pressures of intensive

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-55079965631041658352007-09-02T08:34:00.000+01:002007-09-02T09:30:39.422+01:00

All the big players are jostling for control of the land and control over how it is farmed. The combined power of agri-business and government has taken away a fundamental human right of the international population to make choices about foods grown in our own nations, geographical regions, and local communities.They deprive us of choice as to whether we have pesticide residues in our food, or

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-6314317172324310702007-08-04T07:34:00.000+01:002007-08-04T08:19:00.341+01:00

With this latest outbreak, hopefully things will be handled more efficiently and more humanely than the previous attempts which I described in my previous posts. When this foot and mouth outbreak is over, the arguments for moving to more sustainable, less intensive farming systems becomes even more important. Even in 2007, it is better to work with nature, rather than trying to squeeze every last

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-6542542238374651972007-07-28T10:53:00.000+01:002007-09-27T16:20:41.697+01:00

"The next day there was no dawn chorus"Shambo hit the headlines.He seemed to symbolize something very dysfunctional with the way DEFRA manages crisis in farming.On the radio this morning a farmer related his experience; he lost hundreds of cattle when they were slaughtered by DEFRA in the last foot and mouth outbreak. He described how his cattle were left in a huge pile,after the slaughter,

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-26560151767620279862007-07-26T18:48:00.000+01:002007-09-27T16:10:56.047+01:00

Shambo held up a mirror to DEFRA and will remain as a symbol against the 'maximum production at all costs' policies of DEFRA.

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-34953913794314765232007-07-18T15:48:00.000+01:002007-07-20T16:23:27.267+01:00

Set-asides are due to make way for yet more pesticides all over again! Quote from the Press and Journal:-"cereal farmers are demanding set-aside is scrapped early as floods at home and severe droughts elsewhere in the world increase the prospect of more poor harvests-and potential food shortages." Ironic isn't it, when it is 'intensive' farming which helps contribute to climate change, and causes

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-83965432586556999232007-07-16T18:02:00.000+01:002007-07-16T18:41:36.579+01:00

With the intensive farming system it is difficult to track the source of food. An American farming report which I read the other day, stated that hamburger meat may contain the meat of as many as 1000 cows!! We might be able to trace our own food produced in the UK, but do we know what sort of conditions the animal was reared under? Remember Bernard Mathews and his factory farmed turkeys and the

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-80800222348419694892007-07-14T18:43:00.000+01:002007-07-16T18:45:12.374+01:00

The devastating effects of livestock diseases which haveoccurred in the UK are difficult to forget;There is a correlation between livestock diseases and farming practice, including movements of cattle around the country.The point of industrial agriculture is lower cost products to create greater productivity. When epidemics and mass culling happen, all farms and their livestock(even healthy

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-69680866605749948532007-07-08T13:17:00.001+01:002007-07-13T08:32:43.758+01:00

One third of everything we eat is pollinated by bees; this includes all fruit and most vegetables. According to many scientists working in this area, we have taken the process of pollination in agriculture forgranted. They say that even in this country, the uk, we have had a narrow vision of agriculture, which has been driven by the economic goal of quick, cheap food.Quick, cheap food has led to

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-87712335899665918562007-07-07T21:14:00.000+01:002007-07-09T08:56:08.273+01:00

Global trade in food isn't viable anymore. Lots of reasons why not. Even apart from the problems caused by global warming, there are important reasons for nations to meet their own food needs; Farmers and communities in the developing world are often exploited by globalization. Deprived of their old diversity of food crops which provided a good staple diet, they have to produce huge acreages of

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-24516219907353071722007-06-30T08:10:00.001+01:002007-06-30T08:58:46.676+01:00

Exposure to toxins can be by inhalation, skin contact, eyes and ingestion. The diagram(by agro-industry) at the top of the page gives the very misleading impression that spray falls neatly onto the crop, and nothing else. Nothing could be further from the truth. The spray is blasted high into the air, above tree canopies, and the vapour can be inhaled by people many hundreds of yards outside the

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-33012800503900833502007-06-29T12:09:00.000+01:002007-06-29T12:52:30.071+01:00

I often see farmers breaking safety regulations. They spray agricultural chemicals,(ie pesticides,fungicides) over public footpaths and rights of way, which traverse crops, sometimes only two or three minutes before walkers use the footpath. These chemicals sometimes have rei's of 3or 4 days,(ie it isn't safe to enter the sprayed area for that time.) No notifications or warnings are put on site

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-58575138921378531122007-06-25T11:27:00.000+01:002007-06-25T13:19:03.024+01:00

Shared Terrain or State Terra?There's a lot of opposition to the use of agricultural pesticides, and the government sees this as an opportunity to promote what they claim are the benefits of genetically modified crops. There are currently two main types of genetically modified crops, those engineered to be resistant to herbicides in order to kill weeds and those engineered to produce toxins to to

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-18904833450606352482007-06-18T09:14:00.000+01:002007-06-18T18:20:43.888+01:00

Hear no evil, see no evil, smell no evil:- This has always been the stubborn and perverse response by successive governments to successive 'Royal Commission for The Environment' reports over the years.Scientists have produced substantial evidence that agricultural pesticides and fungicides are unsafe to be used at all, let alone anywhere near to human habitation.Georgina Downs, leading campaigner

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7183737464791388649.post-32525858291479178632007-06-16T17:19:00.000+01:002007-06-22T11:15:47.563+01:00

The average western adult contains between 300 and 500 traces of man-made chemicals in their bodies. Before the second world war there were none.During the war in this country there was a need to increase food production, and so the use of pesticides and fungicides began.After the war 4000 farmers were disposessed of their land by government because they wouldn't farm in the intensive way that

Blatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04597826722218587280noreply@blogger.com1