Previous Food, Farming and Agriculture News 2021
There’s a major gap in the new methane pledge: Agriculture 09-27-21
The Global Methane Pledge gives farmers and ranchers a ‘free pass,’ environmental groups say. Read more
Turning Hog Waste into Biogas: Green Solution or Greenwashing? 09-09-21
North Carolina’s industrial-scale hog farms have long been a major source of pollution. Smithfield Foods now plans to turn some hog waste into biogas, but critics say the project does nothing about the larger problem of waste being stored in lagoons and sprayed on fields. Read more
House passes Farm Act, which will fast-track controversial biogas projects 06-25-21
Rep. Jimmy Dixon calls agriculture “a whipping boy,” says opposition is unfair. Read more
The red meat issue Biden won’t touch 05-23-21
The administration wants to dramatically shrink farmers’ climate footprint. But Biden’s top officials aren’t talking about serious changes to America’s meat industry. Read more
Environmentalists continue battle with lawmakers, pork industry over biogas from hog waste 05-21-21
Smithfield Foods and Dominion Energy want to proceed with plans to turn hog waste into natural gas at 19 farms in southeastern North Carolina. Environmentalists are trying to block the N.C. Farm Act bill of 2021, which would speed the farms’ progress. Read more
Farms, feathers, and fins share water in California 03-24-21
A coalition of conservation non-profits is creating innovative ways to put farmland to work supporting wildlife. Read more at Grist
Two Biden Priorities, Climate and Inequality, Meet on Black-Owned Farms 01-31-21
The administration has pledged to make agriculture a cornerstone of its plan to fight warming, but also to tackle a legacy of discrimination that has pushed Black farmers off the land. Read more at The New York Times
Questions Remain about Big Food’s Influence on the New Dietary Guidelines 01-28-21
Advocates and experts point to a long-standing pattern of corporate influence on the nation’s ‘go-to source of nutrition advice.’ Read more at Civil Eats
