Home News & Events Alternative Agriculture News -- January '98

Headlines:
Proposed National Organic Standards -- Finally
Rosmann Featured in New Book on "Visionaries"
World Food Prize Awarded to IPM Researchers
Position
Consumer Reports Finds Two Good Reasons to Buy Organic
'Foreign' Wasps Effective Against Alfalfa Pests
North Central SARE Announces Calls for Proposals
Resources
Upcoming Events

Back Issues

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Subscription information for the hard-copy version is available at the Wallace Institute website.

In addition to this monthly newsletter, the Henry A. Wallace Institute for Alternative Agriculture publishes the American Journal of Alternative Agriculture, a quarterly, peer-reviewed journal of research on alternative agriculture. It is a scientific forum for disseminating technical, economic, and social research findings about the character and requirements of alternative agriculture systems.

The current issue (Volume 12, No. 2) features:

• An examination of flooding in cranberry beds to minimize insecticide and fungicide inputs.
• The Illinois Soil Quality Initiative's farmer-centered approach to developing information.
• A review of alternative production systems' effects on the soil erodibility factor of the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation, suppression of VAM fungi and micronutrient uptake by low-level phosphorus fertilization in wheat rotations.
• Abstracts from the International Conference on Agricultural Production and Nutrition.

Subscriptions to AJAA are $44 for libraries; $24 for individuals; and $12 for students. Find more information about AJAA at he Wallace Institute website.

Proposed National Organic Standards -- Finally

The USDA last month released proposed rules for organic production which spell out an agency-run accreditation program for state and private organic certification agents, and the first-ever national standards for organically grown food.

The proposed rules "take a step in the right direction, but several deal breaker issues remain, and we need to tell USDA how to fix the proposal," according to Kathleen Merrigan, the Wallace Institute's Senior Analyst and a member of the National Organic Standards Board. She praised the USDA for ending its historic opposition to organic agriculture, saying "the willingness of this Administration to embrace organic agriculture indicates real progress. Strict national standards and qualified inspectors will bolster consumer confidence and lead to market growth. The likely outcome is that more farmers will go organic and our soil, water, and wildlife will be better off."

"Organic growers will soon see their market get a jump start," predicted the Kiplinger Agriculture Letter. "New standards will boost demand by raising consumer confidence in the organic label and creating a wider selection of organic products."

A recent poll by the Food Marketing Institute found that 54 percent of consumers would be more likely to purchase organic produce if it carried a national organic certification seal; 51 percent would buy certified organic meat and poultry, and 43 percent would buy certified processed foods.

The proposed standards, which took seven years to develop and release, define "organic" as agricultural products produced through a natural versus synthetic process. They also address the methods, practices, and substances used in producing and handling crops, livestock, and their processed products, including:

• producing and handling organic agricultural products.
• labeling of organic products.
• certification of organic operations.
• accreditation of state and private certifying agents.
• compliance testing.
• equivalency of foreign organic certification programs.
• approval of state organic programs.
• user fees.

The proposal drew criticism from environmentalists and organic farmers who "worried that the rules could permit use of germ-killing irradiation, growth of genetically altered crops, and spreading of sewage sludge as fertilizer," according to the Associated Press. The National Organic Standards Board rejected all three practices, about which the USDA put off a final decision, calling for public comment on them.

An editorial in The New York Times referred to this USDA action as one of several "troubling signs of vacillation and, perhaps, of industry or political pressure....Whatever the value of these technologies and practices may be, none are part of accepted organic practice, and each offers a beachhead within the program for major non-organic agricultural corporations."

According to Merrigan, "Our major concern with the USDA program is the attempt by the Secretary to usurp the role of the National Organic Standards Board in determining which synthetic substances may be used in organic production. It is appalling to see synthetic materials in the proposed rule that the Board rejected for environmental and health reasons. Hopefully, USDA will listen carefully to public comment and make important changes before the rule becomes final."

The proposed organic standards rules are available for public comment until March 16. Written comment may be sent to Eileen S. Stommes, Deputy Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA, Room 4007-S, Ag Stop 0275, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, D.C. 20090-6456; fax, (202) 690-4632.

They can also be sent via the Internet through the National Organic Program home page at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop, where the rules are posted.

Rosmann Featured in New Book on "Visionaries"

Ron Rosmann, a member of the Wallace Institute's President's Council, is featured in Eco-Pioneers: Practical Visionaries Solving Today's Environmental Problems, a 462-page book recently published by MIT Press at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The book by Steve Lerner devotes one chapter to each of 25 "ecological innovators" who are "modeling ways to log forests, grow food, raise livestock, manufacture goods, construct houses, build transportation systems, generate power, reuse materials, reduce waste, and design sustainable communities while minimizing damage to the web of life." The chapter about Rosmann is entitled "Sustainable Agriculture Takes Root Among Family Farmers in Iowa."

Rosmann "moved through a number of stages" on his family farm: "he started out as a conventional farmer who used both pesticides and chemical fertilizers; subsequently he took to farming with a minimum of agrochemicals; and more recently he adopted strictly organic methods."

There are two main reasons Rosmann switched to organic farming: first, "he found that by using ridge tillage, crop rotation, and integrated pest management, he simply didn't need herbicides or pesticides." The second reason "was purely economic. Times are hard for small family farms in the Midwest, Rosmann notes, and economies of scale are forcing farmers to either become bigger or specialize. Rosmann found that by going organic he could access a niche market and command a significantly higher price for his produce."

Other people involved in sustainable agriculture who are featured in the book are:

• Sally Fox, a pioneer cotton grower who breeds naturally colored cotton.
• Jack Turnell, a cattle rancher who "experiments with sustainable techniques."
• Kenny Ausubel, who provides gardeners with organically grown seeds and protects seeds from extinction.

World Food Prize Awarded to IPM Researchers

The 1997 World Food Prize has been awarded to Dr. Ray F. Smith and Dr. Perry L. Adkisson, "whose leadership in developing and implementing new approaches to agricultural pest control has sparked a worldwide environmental revolution," according to the World Food Prize Foundation, sponsor of the $250,000 award. Dr. Smith is credited with the pioneering work that laid the foundation of IPM ideas; Dr. Adkisson applied Dr. Smith's ideas in the field.

"In the early 1970s, Dr. Smith and Dr. Adkisson led massive research projects involving hundreds of scientists from many of the country's land-grant universities. Through these projects, IPM programs were developed for a wide variety of crops, including many fruits and vegetables, alfalfa, soybeans, sorghum, peanuts and rice. ... The growth and adoption of IPM programs have cut insecticide applications on U.S. crops by half. In the cotton industry alone, U.S. farmers save $1 billion annually in reduced pesticide costs."

The World Food Prize is given annually in recognition of those who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity, or availability of the world's food supply. For more information, contact the Foundation, 601 Locust St., #350, Des Moines, IA 50309; (515) 245-3783; e-mail wfp@netins.net; on the Internet, http://www.wfpf.org.

Position

Minnesota Project seeks an Executive Director; application deadline is February 1; send resume with three references to Minnesota Project, 1885 University Ave. W, #315, St. Paul, MN 55104; for full job description, call (612) 645-6159; e-mail water007@gold.tc.umn.edu

Consumer Reports Finds Two Good Reasons to Buy Organic

There are "two good reasons to seek out organic food, one personal and one societal," according to an article entitled "Greener Greens? The Truth About Organic Food" in Consumer Reports (January, 1998).

"Organic food guarantees you a diet as low in pesticide residues as possible," the article concludes. "On a public scale, organic agricultural practices are much less harmful to the environment than conventional chemical agriculture."

The article tested a thousand pounds of produce from across the country for pesticide residues and taste, but did not test it for nutritional value. It concluded that

• "organic foods had consistently minimal or nonexistent pesticide residue."
• "organic fruits and vegetables [are] as attractive and tasty as their conventional counterparts."
• "buying organic food promotes farming practices that really are more sustainable and better for the environment -- less likely to degrade soil, impair ecosystems, foul drinking water, or poison farmworkers."

'Foreign' Wasps Effective Against Alfalfa Pests

Two "foreign" wasps called P. digoneutis and P. conradi are being investigated for their ability to be effective biological controls against three plant bugs: the alfalfa plant bug, tarnished plant bug, and lygus bug, according to an article in Agricultural Research (December, 1997).

Researchers at the USDA's ARS Beneficial Insects Research Laboratory in Newark, DE, are importing and testing beneficial insects from other countries, and have found that P. digoneutis "has the potential to control the two lygus bugs on alfalfa forage and seed crops over wide areas of the northern United States." P. conradi attacks the alfalfa plant bug, they found.

"Using biological controls is better than chemicals for controlling pests in northeastern alfalfa," said ARS researcher William Day. "Chemical insecticides add to crop production costs and...kill parasites previously established by our lab that now control three other pests of alfalfa."

North Central SARE Announces Calls for Proposals

The North Central Region of the SARE program is calling for proposals for professional development projects (PDP) in sustainable agriculture, and proposals for a Professional Development Program coordinator and region-wide training project. Applications for the PDP grant competition must be received by February 13; applications for the PDP coordinator and project are due February 20.

Applications are available from the North Central SARE office, (402) 472-7081; e-mail sare001@unlvm.unl.edu; on the Internet, http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/ncrsare. For more information, contact Dr. George Bird, PDP Coordinator, North Central SARE Region, (517) 353-3890; e-mail bird@msue.msu.edu.

Resources

• "Paddock Shift: Changing Views on Grassland Farming" is $25.95 from Stockman Grass Farmer, P.O. Box 9607, Jackson, MS 39286; 1-800-748-9808.
• "The Control of Internal Parasites in Cattle and Sheep," EAP Publication #70, $7.95 plus $2 postage; "Cover Cropping in Potato Production," EAP Publication #71, $4.95 plus $2 postage; "Mechanical Weed Control In Cereals," EAP Publication #72, $4.95 plus $2 postage; and "Treating Mastitis Without Antibiotics," EAP Publication #69, $7.95 plus $2 postage; all are available from Ecological Agriculture Projects, Macdonald Campus, McGill University, 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X3V9; (514) 398-7771; e-mail info@eap.mcgill.ca; on the Internet, http://www.eap.mcgill.ca.
• "Public Programs for Private Forestry: A Reader on Programs and Options" is $20 from American Forests, 1-800-368-5748; findings are available on the Internet at http://www.amfor.org.
• "Time for a Change: Pesticides and Wine Grapes in Sonoma and Napa Counties, California" is $5 plus $2 shipping from Californians for Alternatives to Toxics, P.O. Box 1195, Arcata, CA 95518; (707) 822-8497; e-mail cats@igc.org.

Upcoming Events

For additional listings, see the Sustainable Agriculture Network's Calendar of Events.

• February 2, Northeast Farmers Direct Marketing Conference and Trade Show will be held in Sturbridge, MA; contact Charlie Touchette, Federation of Massachusetts Farmers' Markets and conference chairman, (413) 527-6572.
• February 9-13, "Take Your Farm to School with the Biodynamic Method," Part 2, will be held at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, W2493 County Road ES, East Troy, WI 53120; call (414) 642-3303.
• February 10, "Managing Manure in Harmony with the Environment and Society" will be held in Ames, IA; contact Paul Miller, Soil and Water Conservation Society/North Central Region, (515) 284-4370; e-mail paul.miller@ia.nrcs.usda.gov.
• February 13-15, Midwest Sustainable Agriculture Working Group's Annual Gathering will be held in Rochester, MN; contact Duane Hovorka, MSAWG organizer, 409 310th St., Elmwood, NE 68349; (402) 994-2021; e-mail dh43048@navix.net.
• February 21, "Farming and Communities: Building a Sustainable Food System," the annual winter conference of the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, will be held in Randolph, VT; contact NOFA-VT, P.O. Box 697, Richmond, VT 05477; (802) 434-4122.
• February 24, "North American Farmers' Direct Marketing Conference" will be held in Victoria, BC, Canada; contact Brent Warner, Southern Vancouver Island Direct Farm Marketing Association, (250) 656-0941; e-mail BWARNER@galaxy.gov.bc.ca.
• February 24-28, "Advanced Organic-Biodynamic Vegetable Production Workshop" will be held at the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, East Troy, WI; contact Gail Kahovic at MFAI, (414) 642-3303.
• February 26-27, Ethanol Policy and Marketing Conference, sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association, will be held in Albuquerque, N.M.; contact Bryan & Bryan at (719) 942-4353.
• February 26-March 1, Biofach, the World Trade Fair for Organic Food and Natural Products, will be held in Frankfurt, Germany; contact OKOWELT Veranstaltungs-GmbH, Industriestr.12, D- 91186 Buchenbach, Germany; phone +49 (0) 91-71-96-10-0; e-mail info@biofach.de.
• February 28, "Wise Choices, Bright Futures: 1998 Annual Meeting of the Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Society" will be held in Aurora, NE; contact Cris Carusi, NSAS, (402) 254-2289; e- mail cecarusi@hartel.net.
• February 28 is the deadline for paper abstracts for "Organic Agriculture: Credibility for the XXI Century," IFOAM '98; contact IFOAM 98, MAPO, Av. Santa Fe 873, (1059) Buenos Aires Argentina; phone +54-1-314-0928; e-mail ifoam-98@satlink.com.

Home News & Events Alternative Agriculture News -- November '97