In Yet Another Victory for Food Activists, Cheerios Go Non-GMO

Image: flickr.com

GMOInside.org

Consumers across the country took action with the GMO Inside Campaign to push General Mills to make Cheerios non-GMO

WASHINGTON, D.C. –January 2, 2014 – With 40,000 Facebook posts from consumers who took part in GMO Inside’s campaign calling on General Mills to make Cheerios non-GMO (http://gmoinside.org/cheerios/), General Mills today posted  its statement on GMOs http://cheerios.com/en/Articles/cheerios-and-gmos. The company states: “It’s the unique and simple nature of original Cheerios that made this possible – and even that required significant investment over nearly a year,” and “we were able to change how we source and handle ingredients to ensure that the corn starch for original Cheerios comes only from non-GMO corn, and our sugar is only non-GMO pure cane sugar.”

One year ago, in November 2012, GMO Inside starting calling on consumers to put pressure on General Mills to make Cheerios without GMOs due to concerns over the health and environmental impacts of GMOs. Cheerios are a top selling cereal in the U.S. and often one of the first solid foods fed to children.  As soon as the campaign launched, tens of thousands of consumers started flooding Cheerios’ Facebook page with concerned comments regarding GMOs in Cheerios (http://gmoinside.org/launch-gmo-inside-campaign-cheerios/), and used an app put out by Cheerios to spell out anti-GMO messages in the Cheerios font (http://gmoinside.org/cheerios-facebook-page-bombarded-by-anti-gmo-activists/).  In October 2013, GMO Inside issued a real corporate responsibility report for General Mills (http://gmoinside.org/cheerios/), and called on consumers to email and call the General Mills to get GMOs out of Cheerios.  GMO Inside also put out a video highlighting the GMOs in Cheerios:



that was watched by over 200,000 viewers. Over 25,000 people took part in the email actions and calls to the company In the past week callers to the company were told that Cheerios would have a big announcement about GMOs soon.

Green America Corporate Responsibility Director Todd Larsen stated: “Removing GMOs from original Cheerios is an important victory in getting GMOs out of our food supply and an important first step for General Mills.  Original Cheerios in its famous yellow box will now be non-GMO and this victory sends a message to all food companies that consumers are increasingly looking for non-GMO products and companies need to meet that demand.”

John W Roulac, GMO Inside co-founder and co-chair stated: “This is a huge victory for the non-GMO movement. I want to thank all the “GMO Insiders “for using social media to convince America’s largest packed food brand to go non-GMO with a major product. History is being made today and more food brands will rush towards non-GMO foods. ”

GMO Inside, a campaign of national non-profit organization Green America, welcomed the news that General Mills is now producing original Cheerios without GMOs, and is encouraging consumers to let General Mills know that now is the time to make all Cheerios non-GMO.  In addition to original Cheerios, General Mills manufactures 11 other varieties of Cheerios for sale in the U.S., including highly popular Honey Nut Cheerios, and the other 11 varieties continue to include GMOs.  General Mills admits on its website that all Cheerios cereals sold in Europe are made without GMOs, and increasingly, U.S. consumers will be calling on General Mills to make all its cereals non-GMO in the U.S. as well.

Green America is the nation’s leading green economy organization. Founded in 1982, Green America (formerly Co-op America) provides the economic strategies, organizing power and practical tools for businesses, investors, and individuals to solve today’s social and environmental problems.

Media contact: Will Harwood (703) 276-3255 or wharwood@hastingsgroup.com

Source: gmoinside.org

Everyone Should be Eating More Avocados. Here's why:

Image: wikimedia.org

Paul Fassa | Natural Society

Often deemed a “perfect food”, the avocado is considered one of the healthiest foods available. Many consider this prolific green fruit, vegetable, and nut combined a superfood. Here is why you should be eating this fabulous food.

It’s important to understand that a body needs fats, as long as they’re healthy ones. Omega 3 fatty acids are missing in the average western diet, and this missing fatty acid is just one reason for the ‘bad health epidemic’ . It just so happens that avocados are high in omega 3 and omega 6 fats. Avocados are a rich source of wholesome unsaturated beneficial fats with lots of oleic acid, which is good for heart health.

Avocados Come with All the Amino Acids You Get from Animal Protein

The avocado provides all 18 essential amino acids needed by a body to create complete protein. But instead of going through the effort of breaking down complex animal proteins for usable amino acids, avocados offer complete amino acid kits for your body to use according to its needs.

Unlike meats, avocados don’t putrefy in the stomach, and with avocados’ high fiber content, there’s no threat of constipation. Avocados are without the antibiotics and hormones that are injected into the GMO corn/soy meal fed to cattle raised for mass slaughter to fill the meat counters of supermarkets.

Related: Health Benefits of Avocados

Other Nutrients in Avocados

Avocados are bursting with enzymes, phytonutrients, and are rich in minerals, including the usually deficient master mineral magnesium, which is involved in over 300 cellular metabolic functions. They also help the liver manufacture glutathione, the important master antioxidant that replenishes spent antioxidants.

Vitamins A, much of the B complex, K, E, and C are also available in avocados. The nutrient order of importance is enzymes, minerals, and vitamins. Vitamins won’t work without minerals, and neither minerals nor vitamins get into your cells without enzymes.

There are few accessible tasty foods packing as much nutritional value as avocados. Here’s a table of fats, amino acids, minerals, and vitamins – all the nutrients in avocado.

Picking and Preparing

Though it’s normally suggested to buy fruit and vegetables organic due to pesticide exposure, you can get away with non-organic avocados and save some money. They are at the top of EWG’s “Clean 15 List”, which means they aren’t especially toxic. Many of them come from Mexico, where avocado is served commonly in homes and restaurants.

You can tell when avocados are ripe mostly by feel. If you can mush an avocado slightly with a gentle squeeze, it’s ready to eat. However, if you are not using all of them right away, pick some green hard ones and let them ripen at home.

Related: 4 Healthy Secrets of Avocados

Remove the skin by cutting into it just enough to peel it off and preserve the dark green section nearest the skin where a lot of nutrition is concentrated. Sliced for salads is an ideal way of eating avocados easily and often.

There are many recipes for blending avocados and making dressings or sauces, but the party favorite is the big Kahuna for nutrition as well as taste: guacamole! The combination of mashed avocado, olive oil, sea salt, pepper, a little chopped chili, chopped onions, and mashed garlic creates a synergistic super food as well as a tasty treat.

Source: naturalsociety.com

Additional Sources:

NutritionData.Self

Vegetarian.About

An Introduction to Organic Farming (And Why We Should Support It)

Image: naturalnews.com

Michael Ravensthorpe | Spiritfoods

Organic farming is a method of farming that rejects the aggressive machinery and chemicals used by conventional farming in favor of gentle techniques that are in accord with nature. Whereas conventional farmers use mechanical plows to till the soil, for instance, organic farmers prefer to use natural tillers – earthworms and microorganisms – to till the soil for them. And whereas conventional farmers use chemicals to spray the crops, organic farmers prefer to deal with pests using natural repellents.

Though organic farming cannot compare to conventional farming in terms of crop production per area, it surpasses it in all other avenues.

Reasons to Support Organic Farming

Environmentally-friendly – Organic farming methods observe the laws of Nature, are sustainable, and respect the rights of livestock and crops. Using natural farming methods, soil that has been degraded by chemicals, fertilizers, and machinery is healed. Soil ecology becomes balanced once again, and water returns to its natural purity.

Tastier and more nutritious crops – Organically-farmed crops are considerably more nutritious than crops that were modified and sprayed. In some specimens, crude fat, amino acids, protein, and trace minerals were identified to be 300 percent higher than in their non-organic equivalents. This is understandable, since a crop can only provide as many nutrients as the soil in which it grows allows. If the soil has suffered from erosion and its earthworms have been killed by machinery, then it will produce inferior crops.

Respect for life – Organic farmers do not feed their livestock growth hormones, antibiotics, or other poisons that damage the animals’ immune systems and make them more susceptible to disease. Organic farmers also tend to provide their animals with large spaces in which to walk and forage, whereas conventional farmers favor cages or cramped indoor environments.

No chemical fertilizers – Organic farmers do not use chemical fertilizers. Instead, they stick to natural alternatives. For example, fish amino acids provide nitrogen, eggshells provide calcium, and animal bones provide phosphorous. These alternatives are inexpensive as well as effective.

No pesticides or herbicides – Pesticides are used to kill insects that threaten crops. Unfortunately, many sprayed insects find their way into the crops anyway, meaning that the toxic pesticides are passed onto us as well! Therefore, instead of using chemical pesticides, organic farmers use alternatives such as alcohol, light, aromas, and poisonous plants, which do the job just as well. And when it comes to herbicides, most natural farmers don’t use an equivalent at all. Instead, they use the weeds as compost to create ideal growing situations for their crops.

Conclusion

As you can see, the benefits of organic farming are considerable. Conventional farming is not a wise practice; it favors the profits of today over the planet of tomorrow. Eventually, land that was repeatedly farmed using aggressive machinery and toxic chemicals will turn to desert, forcing the farmers to move outwards and degrade other locations like a virus. Organic farming, however, is embraced by farmers who love the land that sustains them and ourselves. Their gentle, natural methods of farming ensure that the soil remains rich, that the insects within it are happy, and that the crops produced are robust and nutritious. Therefore, if you care about your health and the environment, then it is a good idea to support your local organic farms whenever possible!

About the Author

Michael Ravensthorpe is an independent writer whose research interests include nutrition, alternative medicine, and bushcraft. He is the creator of the website Spiritfoods, through which he promotes the world’s healthiest foods.

Source: naturalnews.com

When You Get Cravings it's Actually Your Body Trying to Tell You Something

Image: wikimedia.org

Carly Fraser | Live Love Fruit

What are your food cravings really telling you? Usually when you crave something, that is your brain signalling that it is lacking a certain nutrient, and so it will automatically gravitate to the things that are easy, un-healthy and leave us wanting more (since the foods we often gravitate to will momentarily satisfy us, however, our brains will keep on firing, and telling us to eat more – since we didn’t give it the proper nutrients – which leads us into a rabbit hole of over-eating).

Our environment is also a major trigger for food cravings. Social situations, visual cues, and smells, are ways in which we delve into our deep-rooted food desires. If you want to find ways in which you can battle your cravings successfully, then you need to understand what your brain is telling you it wants. Here is a guide which can help you achieve just that! Source: livelovefruit.com

Image: http://livelovefruit.com/2013/12/what-your-food-cravings-really-mean/

What You Didn't Know About Fermented Foods and Why You Should Eat More of Them

Image: naturalnews.com

Heidi Merker | Natural News

Digestive health is a foundation of overall health and vitality. I invariably recommend probiotics and fermented foods to my clients. After implementing them, my clients often experience better digestion, diminished gas and bloating, and improved immunity.

I am German-born and lived most of my life in Germany, so fermented foods have always been a regular part of my diet. Sauerkraut is probably the most well known German food and a staple of German cuisine. Meaning “sour cabbage” in German, traditional sauerkraut is sliced green cabbage that has been fermented by lactic acid bacteria, giving it a pronounced sour flavor. It is most often used as a condiment. The bacteria and yeast needed for lacto-fermentation are naturally in the cabbage, so all that’s needed to make sauerkraut is cabbage, spring or non-chlorinated water, and high quality sea salt, like Celtic Sea Salt or Himalayan Salt. As the cabbage sits in the brine, over a 3-6 week process, the bacteria are activated and the natural sugars in the cabbage are transformed into lactic acid.

The Health Benefits of Fermented Foods

Coming from Germany, I’m used eating Sauerkraut all winter and I believe this is one of the main reasons why I don’t get the flu. Sauerkraut, along with all traditionally fermented or cultured food, contains high quantities of healthy bacteria, enzymes, omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins, like Vitamin C and B-vitamins.

Fermented foods help to improve digestion because they are enzyme-rich. The body needs enzymes to digest, process, and absorb food. If you add fermented foods to a healthy diet, you will receive more nutrients from the foods you eat. Fermented foods help the body produce acetylcholine, which is a neurotransmitter that helps to strengthen the colon and improve bowel elimination. Fermented foods also help to create an ideal balance of hydrochloric acid in the stomach – whether it’s too low or too high – helping to protect the stomach lining and produce enough gastric juices needed for proper digestion.

Fermented foods restore the proper balance of bacteria in the gut by introducing probiotics or healthy bacteria. Healthy bacteria are essential for a healthy body and digestive system, so probiotics are a primary treatment for any digestive concerns or inflammatory bowel disease. Yeast infections, Candida overgrowth, allergies, and asthma can also be caused by lack of healthy bacteria in the GI Tract. Probiotics are crucial for immunity, as 80% of the immune system resides in the gut. Fermented foods also support immunity because they contain other compounds besides probiotics that kill pathogens.

The Practical Benefits of Fermented Foods

In addition to its wonderful health benefits, fermented foods have many practical benefits. Making fermented foods and drinks is inexpensive and easy. They add flavor to usually bland foods, making for tastier snacks and meals. Fermentation is also an ideal way of preserving foods from the garden, like cabbage, cucumbers, beets, carrots, and greens. Fermented foods keep for months when stored in an airtight container and refrigerated or kept cool. They are nutrient-rich – as opposed to canned foods which lose much of their nutrients from the canning process.

The Tradition of Fermented Foods

There is evidence that fermentation has been practiced for over 8,000 of years. Humans diets used to naturally have far larger amounts of probiotics and enzymes. But, with the advent of antibiotics and pasteurization, many of us have a bacteria imbalance and the various health conditions that come with that imbalance. In today’s world we are more in need of probiotics in our diets and through supplementation. Now pasteurized, dairy no longer contains its natural probiotics. Most pickles and sauerkraut found in stores are also now quick “pickled” with vinegar, rather than lacto-fermented and contain no beneficial bacteria or enzymes.

It’s easy to implement fermented foods into your daily diet. In order to truly benefit from them long-term, it’s ideal to eat fermented foods (or drink fermented drinks) regularly one or two times per day. Make fermented foods and drinks at home. There are many easy recipes to follow online.

Here are some of the most common fermented foods and drinks:

Beverages:

Kefir
Kombucha (store bought Kombucha should not be a daily drink since it often contains sugar still because it hasn’t fermented for long enough)
Rejuvelac

Foods:

Sauerkraut
Pickles
Kimchi
Vinegar
Miso
Lacto Fermented Ketchup or Salsa

Conclusion

There’s good reason why fermented foods have been enjoyed since ancient times. They are not only practical for food preservation, but they are tasty, add a flair to any meal, and may just transform your health. I say it’s time to honor the tradition and make fermented food an essential part of eating again.

Source: naturalnews.com

Super Market Selling Food From It's Huge Organic Rooftop Garden Opening This Month

Images courtesy of Whole Foods

Kevin Lee | Inhabitat

Whole Foods has announced that it will be opening its long-awaited Gowanus store on December 17th this year. In addition to putting the usual organic and artisan products on it shelves, the new location at 214 3rd Street will bring the local food trend to new heights with a 20,000 square foot rooftop farm right on top of the building. It doesn’t get more local than that!



The rooftop farm was made possible thanks to a partnership with Gotham Greens, a Greenpoint-based rooftop farm. The two organizations are calling the endeavor the first commercial-scale greenhouse farm and say that it will help reduce the carbon emissions spent on transporting food from far away sources. The elevated greenhouse will grow high-quality, pesticide-free produce all year round to be sold at the bustling supermarket below.

Other attractions at the grocery store will include a bar with 16 different types of beer on tap. The store will also have its own ramen shop headed up by ramen master Yuji Hariguchi for eat-in and take-out options. It opens a little too late for Thanksgiving, but people in the Gowanus area will have a tasty and green treat to look forward to just a month later.

Images courtesy of Whole Foods

Source: inhabitat.com

The Front Lines of the Label GMO Food Fight Arrive in Oregon

March Against Monsanto in Portland Oregon in May. Image: demotix.com

IsupportOrganic.blogspot.com

After Prop 37's narrow defeat back in 2012 in California largely due to heavy negative ad campaigns funded by Monsanto and Co. and Washington State's close no vote on I 522 after a similar cast of characters used millions in ad spending to defeat the bill, the battle for genetically modified food labeling has now descended upon Oregon.

Activists face a long road ahead of them though, needing to get 87,213 valid signatures by the end of June in order to get the measure on the 2014 Ballot. GMO Free Oregon has taken up the task of spearheading the petitioning and will need all the help they can get. You can support them here: www.gmofreeoregon.org. The March Against Monsanto is leading the national GMO awareness campaign, you can support them here: www.march-against-monsanto.com

FoodDemocracyNow.org has set up a simple way to send an email to Oregon's government to encourage the state to label GMOs, you can do that here.

GM food labeling is important because an overwhelming majority of consumers want to know what's in their food. A recent study showed that babies, still in the womb, are already testing positive for pesticides in their bodies that come from GMO food. There's no telling the effects that these foods are having on us over the long haul, but recent research has shown a vast amount of illnesses, diseases and disorders are likely caused by GMO foods and the extra pesticides used in their production.

Labeling also helps local farmers and organic food companies as more an more consumers become aware of the dangers of the chemicals on their dinner tables. Companies with products labelled non-GMO have seen an explosion of sales once they began using the non-GMO Project's certified label, projected to account for roughly 30% of all foods sold by 2017. According to mnn.com:

"the sales of food with the Non-GMO Project Verified label have risen 21 percent in natural supermarkets over the past twelve weeks (2012). The sales of organic foods have risen 17 percent during the same time period."

The real question is: will the fight for food labeling finally be won by activists in Oregon, or will big money from Monsanto and the other food giants crush the opposition again? Only time will tell.

This article may be copied used freely in part or in whole with credit to IsupportOrganic.blogspot.com and a link to our Facebook page I Want To Be 100% Organic.

UN Report Says Small-Scale Organic Farming Only Way to Feed the World

Image: eatdrinkbetter.com

Nick Meyer | AltHealthWORKS

Even as the United States government continues to push for the use of more chemically-intensive and corporate-dominated farming methods such as GMOs and monoculture-based crops, the United Nations is once against sounding the alarm about the urgent need to return to (and develop) a more sustainable, natural and organic system.

That was the key point of a new publication from the UN Commission on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) titled“Trade and Environment Review 2013: Wake Up Before It’s Too Late,” which included contributions from more than 60 experts around the world.

The cover of the report looks like that of a blockbuster documentary or Hollywood movie, and the dramatic nature of the title cannot be understated: The time is now to switch back to our natural farming roots.

The New UN Farming Report "Wake Up Before It's Too Late."
The New UN Farming Report “Wake Up Before It’s Too Late.” Click here to read it.
The findings on the report seem to echo those of a December 2010 UN Report in many ways, one that essentially said organic and small-scale farming is the answer for “feeding the world,” not GMOs and monocultures.

According to the new UN report, major changes are needed in our food, agriculture and trade systems, with a shift toward local small-scale farmers and food systems recommended.

Diversity of farms, reducing the use of fertilizer and other changes are desperately needed according to the report, which was highlighted in this article from the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

It also said that global trade rules should be reformed in order to work toward these ends, which is unfortunately the opposite of what mega-trade deals like the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the U.S.-EU Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) are seeking to accomplish.

The Institute noted that these pending deals are “primarily designed to strengthen the hold of multinational corporate and financial firms on the global economy…” rather than the reflect the urgent need for a shift in agriculture described in the new report.

Even global security may be at stake according to the report, as food prices (and food price speculating) continue to rise.

“This implies a rapid and significant shift from conventional, monoculture-based and high-external-input-dependent industrial production toward mosaics of sustainable, regenerative production systems that also considerably improve the productivity of small-scale farmers,” the report concludes.

You can read more about the report from the Institute by visiting their website here.

Source: althealthworks.com

How to Make Long Lasting Organic Deodorant

Image: wellnessmama.com

Below is my favorite deodorant recipe. It is AMAZING!!! My husband can ride his bike 70 miles in the blazing summer and still no BO! I also love that it's a great alternative for my girls who are just reaching the age of needing deodorant. It's easy to use and you can add essential oils for a "pretty smell", if you want.

Deodorant Recipe

Ingredients:

6-8 Tbsp Coconut oil (solid state)
1/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup arrowroot powder or cornstarch (arrowroot is preferred)

Directions:

Combine equal portions of baking soda & arrowroot powder.

Slowly add coconut oil and work it in with a spoon or hand blender until it maintains a firm but pliable texture. It should be about the same texture as commercial deodorant, solid but able to be applied easily. If it is too wet, add further arrowroot powder/cornstarch to thicken.

You can either scoop this recipe into your old deodorant dispensers or place in a small container with lid and apply with fingers with each use. Makes about 1 cup. This recipe lasts about 3 months for two people with regular daily use.

Source: Heal Thyself

How to Make Organic Baby Formula at Home

Image: nourishingourchildren.wordpress.com

There are plenty of reasons to avoid the store bought baby formula including the fact that most of them are made with GMOs and therefore pesticides. In this video we bring you through the ingredients and steps to make your own organic baby formula.



Here's a video explaining some of the dangers of using regular store bought baby formula:

Everything We've Been Told About GMOs Has Been a Lie

Tom Laskawy | Grist.org

Image: csglobe.com

What if the agricultural revolution has already happened and we didn’t realize it? Essentially, that’s the idea in this report from the Guardian about a group of poverty-stricken Indian rice and potato farmers who harvested confirmed world-record yields of rice and potatoes. Best of all: They did it completely sans-GMOs or even chemicals of any kind.

"[Sumant] Kumar, a shy young farmer in Nalanda district of India’s poorest state Bihar, had — using only farmyard manure and without any herbicides — grown an astonishing 22.4 tonnes of rice on one hectare [~2.5 acres] of land. This was a world record and with rice the staple food of more than half the world’s population of seven billion, big news.

It beat not just the 19.4 tonnes achieved by the “father of rice”, the Chinese agricultural scientist Yuan Longping, but the World Bank-funded scientists at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, and anything achieved by the biggest European and American seed and GM companies. And it was not just Sumant Kumar. Krishna, Nitish, Sanjay and Bijay, his friends and rivals in Darveshpura, all recorded over 17 tonnes, and many others in the villages around claimed to have more than doubled their usual yields."

Another Bihar farmer broke India’s wheat-growing record the same year. They accomplished all this without GMOs or advanced seed hybrids, artificial fertilizer or herbicide. Instead, they used a technique called System of Rice [or root] Intensification (SRI). It’s a technique developed in Madagascar in the 1980s by a French Jesuit and then identified and promulgated by Cornell political scientist and international development specialist Norman Uphoff.

RELATED: Here's Proof Monsanto's Claims That Their GMOs Increase Crop Yields is a Blatant Lie

SRI for rice involves starting with fewer, more widely spaced plants; using less water; actively aerating the soil; and applying lots of organic fertilizer. According to Uphoff’s SRI Institute website [PDF], the farmers who use synthetic fertilizer with the technique get lower yields than those who farm organically. How’s that for pleasant irony? Brothers Mohen Singh and Raj Narayin Singh in their wheat field in Bihar. Petr Kosina / CIMMYTBrothers Mohen Singh and Raj Narayin Singh in their wheat field in Bihar.

International Attention

The breadth of the results in Bihar have gotten international attention. The Guardian reports that economist Joseph Stieglitz, a Nobel laureate and international development aficionado, visited the area last month. After seeing their amazing results, he declared the farmers “better than scientists.”

High praise aside, the technique is not without its detractors. Most western governments and agricultural scientists remain skeptical of the practice: Many challenge that the reported yields aren’t verified, there’s insufficient science behind the technique, and they worry it can’t scale to larger farms.

Achim Dobermann, deputy director of worldwide standard-bearers the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), dismissed the technique in comments to the Guardian:

"SRI is a set of management practices and nothing else, many of which have been known for a long time and are best recommended practice … Scientifically speaking I don’t believe there is any miracle. When people independently have evaluated SRI principles then the result has usually been quite different from what has been reported on farm evaluations conducted by NGOs and others who are promoting it. Most scientists have had difficulty replicating the observations."

Given the paucity — or total absence — of independent testing done on GMOs and pesticides developed by companies like Monsanto and Syngenta, it’s galling to read of scientists complaining “there is not enough peer-reviewed evidence around SRI” and that “it is impossible to get such returns.”

Here’s where the potential conflicts of interest crop up: The IRRI is currently involved in developing GMO rice as a core component of a campaign to increase yields worldwide. This doesn’t entirely invalidate its position on SRI, but it points to the ideological divide in agriculture between those who believe in technology as the only solution to “feeding the world” and those who put faith in non-technological, agro-ecological techniques to accomplish the same.

(It’s also worth noting that the regions in India that invested heavily in Monsanto’s GMO RoundUp Ready cotton seeds are seeing yields collapse; Monsanto blames the crop failure on farmers. Grist reported recently on the even deeper tragedy many of these farmers are experiencing.)

Much of this divide comes from a belief among many scientists and most western governments that the developing world must adopt western-style industrial ag techniques in order to produce enough food. But that view is a fantasy: Even today, as the Guardian article observes, 93 percent of Bihar’s 100 million residents are subsistence farmers.

It’s delusional to expect that Bihar and the vast populations of Africa, Indonesia, and China will transform into western-style economies with western-style population distributions. Billions of people across the globe will remain subsistence farmers far into the future; what they require are farming techniques that can improve yields even modestly. Forcing regions that don’t have passable roads (much less electrification) to rely on the grace of multinational organizations to supply seeds, fertilizers, and chemicals seems borderline criminal.

SRI As An Alternative

SRI appears to offer an acceptable alternative for a variety of crops, including rice, potatoes, wheat, corn, beans, eggplant, onions, carrots, sugar cane, and even tomatoes.
For many westerners, including many western journalists, it’s difficult to separate the concept of “progress” from its inevitable modifier, “technological.” SRI may not be technology-based, but it’s science-based and sophisticated. It’s also continually field tested and improved through farmers’ own feedback. It’s exactly the kind of flexible, responsive system you’d demand from any truly sustainable agriculture — as opposed to the regimented, top-down application of chemical- and biotech-based approaches.

Plain old western snobbery shouldn’t be discounted, either. As agronomist Anil Verma put it in the Guardian article:

"If any scientist or a company came up with a technology that almost guaranteed a 50% increase in yields at no extra cost they would get a Nobel prize. But when young Biharian farmers do that they get nothing."

Does SRI need more research? Absolutely. Can it be adapted to large-scale monocrop agriculture? Probably not. But that’s exactly the kind of agriculture that’s failing us and needs to be reassessed entirely.

Where does SRI go from here? In India, at least, Bihar alone is investing $50 million in expanding adoption. However, the Guardian reports that “Western governments and foundations are holding back, preferring to invest in hi-tech research.”

Meanwhile, Monsanto shows no signs of slowing down: Indications are that it will win its patent case before the Supreme Court and gain virtual total control of its seeds. This will enable it to continue charging inflated prices for a technology that provides modest yield increases, if any, and certainly nothing close to the 30-percent increase many agronomists are praying for.

It’s always possible we’ll wake up to the successes being pioneered by the unlikeliest of subjects — subsistence farmers in the far east. Until then, Monsanto’s technology-driven vision of agriculture is winning here in the west.

Sources:

grist.org
theguardian.com

What a Raw Food Diet has Done to this 70 Year Old Will Make You Rethink Everything

Image: annettelarkins.com

(NaturalNews) When Annette Larkins goes out with her husband, people often speculate that he had become involved with a younger woman. Other times, they ask him how his granddaughter is doing, referring to Larkins. Little do they know that Larkins, a size 4 fireball of energy, is a 70-year-old woman. Dubbed by many as an "ageless woman" who discovered the fountain of youth, her secret is right in her own backyard. How does she do it? Simple: she's been eating completely raw foods for 27 years.

Raw foods the key to a youthful appearance, more energy

The Miami-Dade County, Florida, resident mainly eats the foods that she grows in her own indoor and outdoor gardens. "I'm very vibrant, I have lots of energy," Larkins says. "I'm up at no later than 5:30 in the morning... I'm ready to go."

What started as a quest to achieve increased energy and feel healthier turned into a vegetarian lifestyle and, eventually, a raw vegan way of life. Despite her husband's meat-eating habits, she remains loyal to raw foods. "My diet consists of fruits, nuts, vegetables and seeds," she says. "I do a lot of sprouting of seeds."

In addition to internal benefits, many raw foods' ingredients help improve the skin's overall appearance, resulting in a more youthful look. Carrots, listed by the Mayo Clinic as a "healthy skin" food, contain beta-carotene, which is responsible for removing toxins in the body and creating better looking skin. Blueberries, tomatoes and lentils are also healthy skin suggestions from the Mayo Clinic. Cucumbers, too, are filled with cell-regenerating vitamins and minerals and are known for their anti-aging benefits.

According to dermatologists reporting for the Mayo Clinic, "research suggests that a diet high in processed or refined carbohydrates and unhealthy fats promotes skin aging." This, of course, is in line with Larkins' lifestyle, which includes not eating any animal products and only enjoying unprocessed, uncooked plant-based meals.

Larkins, who also enjoys juicing and wrote the book Journey to Health, has appeared in numerous videos and media outlets.

Sources:
naturalnews.com
youtube.com
annettelarkins.com
mayoclinic.com
science.naturalnews.com

NFL Linebacker Quitting Football to Start an Organic Garden

Image: rawforbeauty.com

Playing lineman in the NFL is probably one of the most taxing jobs physically on the planet, and it’s
something that John Moffitt has gotten quite used to over the past 2½ years as an offensive guard.

But today, the 319-pound, 27-year-old former Wisconsin Badger is walking away with his health intact, and reportedly has his heart set on living a healthier and more balanced lifestyle.

“I would like to grow my own food for a while, lose a ton of weight, feel great. And spend time with people I love and be happy,” he was quoted as saying in this article.

Moffitt also had reportedly lost his passion for the game and didn’t want to fool his teammates any longer. Denver is considered one of the front-runners, if not the front-runner for the Super Bowl title this year, but Moffitt said that he really didn’t care much about winning it all and had other aspirations.

He also said he had no regrets about playing football and that he has full respect for those who play it, but added that he has plenty of money and didn’t want to risk his health in what he called a “dangerous” sport that is tough on families due to all the travel.

Moffitt has a girlfriend and a 5-year-old daughter in Seattle. He reportedly plans to host a podcast on topics such as philosophy and politics now.

‘So, it’s a smoother transition and I’m still young enough to start a career and my body’s healthy and I’m good. I look at it as a great start to life, you know?’ he said.

NFL Player’s Departure Part of a Growing Trend

While life in the NFL and other professional sports is oftentimes mostly about getting bigger, tougher, and stronger and faster, many players and teams are now approaching things for a more holistic point of view.
Recently, NFL superstars Tony Gonzalez and Arian Foster both revealed that they had gone vegan or are at least mostly vegan, only eating a little meat or fish when they felt they absolutely had to in order to bulk up or if their body seemed to be really craving it.

In addition, many teams have embraced yoga as part of a mind-body-spirit (and flexibility)-focused lifestyle for their players, including the Seattle Seahawks, a team that has recently vaulted near the top of the league.
For many players, the hyper-competitive and intense demands of modern professional sports are now leading them to look to alternative ways to take care of themselves and to reconnect with a more spiritual side (for instance, here’s an amazing longform story from Sports Illustrated about former NBA player Bison Dele’s decision to walk away from even more money to travel the world and play music).

In this case, it’s hard to fault Moffitt for walking away, considering he’s already made almost $2 million during his time in the NFL so far (before taxes).

Going up against monsters in the trenches of an NFL football game is hazardous enough, but perhaps the biggest demand on Moffitt and others is maintaining their hulking, unnatural physiques and weights, which require a ton of maintenance, overindulging on food calories, and absurdly intense workouts year-round that have to be difficult on the heart and other major organs.

Given Moffitt’s noble aspirations for the next phase of his life, it’s hard not to be impressed by his decision to follow his heart. His teammates might be a little disappointed, but Moffitt has the right to do what’s best for himself, ultimately, and his health.

Now, if more people in the working world decide to follow his example (when they feel it’s the right thing to do in their heart, of course), especially on Wall Street and in similar professional areas, we just might be on our way to creating the type of world we want to see.

Source: margotbworldnews.com via rawforbeatuy.com