I think we can all agree that the demand for organic fruits, veggies, and other food products has been through the roof the past couple of years and shows no signs of stopping. Some people are genuinely concerned about where their food is coming from while others have adverse side effects of pesticides and chemicals used on crops while in the fields, orchards, greenhouse, etc. So what is the hype all about? Let's tackle some of the more common questions regarding organic products in the U.S.

What...

·      Fewer bees in US a threat to world’s almond supply http://yhoo.it/Z5MIjM

·      Tuna’s Last Stand http://bit.ly/WiWsI3

In early January, scientists released jaw-dropping data showing that bluefin tuna in the North Pacific to be “functionally extinct.”

·      US Food Industry Battles Against Regulation http://bit.ly/Y9xRnn

·      Quinoa: To Buy or Not to Buy… Is This the Right Question? http://bit.ly/Wu4H2Q

·      Swedes Consuming Low-Fat Dairy Products Gain More Weight http://bit.ly/12KQx...

·      India’s rice revolution http://bit.ly/Yo0Nbq

In a village in India’s poorest state, Bihar, farmers are growing world record amounts of rice (22.4 tonnes per hectare)  – with no GM, and no herbicide. Is this one solution to world food shortages?

Using a system called System of Rice (or root) Intensification (SRI)

o   Miracle grow: Indian farmers smash crop yields records without GMOs http://bit.ly/15ApQgO

·      Baltimore Food Hub: $10M campus for food related businesses, job training...

There is nothing more valuable to a Farm Marketer than a solid opt-in email list.   Email is the greatest online marketing tool there is.  It has the most engagement and the highest ROI of anything else you can use to direct market your local food.

Now I love Facebook too and it's a terrific tool especially for reaching people who may not be familiar with your farm already or only marginally engaged.   Most people tend to look at Facebook and Email Marketing as separate but today we are going...

·      Guerrilla Grafters Secretly Graft Fruit-Bearing Branches onto San Francisco Trees http://goo.gl/JdiHn

This has been a movement in San Francisco for several years, I posted about it when they first started…

·      Australia Passes Super Trawler Ban http://goo.gl/AVXny

·      Reuters: Mystery of the disappearing bees: Solved! http://goo.gl/cASCP

·      The world’s largest vertical garden is as long as a city block (Italy) http://goo.gl/0GfX6

·      FAO: Global status of human-induced soil...

If you don't have the means to grow your own organic vegetables and raise your own livestock, the most traditional way to obtain fresh produce and locally made goods has been to purchase them at the neighborhood farmers market.  In recent years, it's encouraging to see the newfound resurgence in the popularity of farmers markets. 

For the past several years, the prevalence and added convenience of shopping at grocery stores and supermarkets, has made it all too easy to forget about where and how...

5 Ways the Stanford Study Sells Organics Short... and many more headlines regarding our food industry.

·      ‘Food Hubs’ Connect School Districts With Farmers http://goo.gl/KwEuL

Online California food hub Ag Link http://goo.gl/RsgKY, ALBA in Salinas http://goo.gl/YRL79 and others in Vermont, Oregon and …

·      Media Coverage of Stanford’s Organic Foods Study is Half Baked http://goo.gl/EbF8K

o   Busted! Co-author of Stanford study that bashed organics found to have deep ties to Big Tobacco’s...

Food industry headlines:

·      Leave Your Chemicals at the Border: Bhutan Going 100% Organic http://goo.gl/UQdZR

·      Men and Women Farming Together Can Eradicate Hunger (Kenya) http://goo.gl/U1QqV

·      Troubled Bay Area Neighborhood (Richmond, CA) Finds Comfort in Growing Own Food http://bit.ly/PHlmtG

·      Celebrate the Farmer! http://goo.gl/fhXYH and now for the other side? Don’t Romanticize Small Farmers – Some Are Jerks http://huff.to/QWWyOr

·      Bon Appetit Management Company To Buy...

·      Urban Agriculture In Brazil’s Favelas Grows Thanks to Hans Dieter Temp and Cidades Sem Fome http://huff.to/KYvCfN

·      Tomato Genome Decoded: Researchers to Publish Fruit’s DNA Sequence in Full http://huff.to/JXvUlt

·      Stanford nutrition guru on how to change our food system (without giving up pizza) http://bit.ly/KJnnrK

·      Extensive List of Organic Pest Control Remedies (recipes are easily made) http://bit.ly/rqmyh5

·      What humans hath wrought: What happens when we mess with...

Headlines regarding our food industry and the slow food movement.  Know your food and read up:

·      This Land Is My Teacher: Preserving Native Agriculture and Traditions http://bit.ly/L35Bfx

·      Meatless Monday in Sweden: Q & A with Köttfri Mååndag’s Founder http://bit.ly/MBr1EO

·      CCOF and Oregon Tilth Announce Planned Merger http://bit.ly/K9gAoK

·      National Trust Releases ‘What’s Your Beef?’ Report http://huff.to/JYjUED

·      Real Food in America: An American Food Trip http://bit.ly/Kt...