E.B. Solomont with the Mother Nature Network recently published an article titled, Dairy Farmers Launch Organic Brand, in The Olympian in Washington state. This is an exciting new brand of organic milk products featured by several dairy farmers in the state of Maine. Check it out! In the annals of rural farming, 10 organic dairy farmers in Maine are showing … Read More
Organic Dairy Producers Planning Rally During Vilsack Visit
The Wisconsin Ag Connection recently reported about an upcoming rally to call attention to the struggles of the organic dairy farmer. Whether it be protests, dumping milk on the ground, debates, letters or phone calls, dairy farmers have been vocal in the last couple of months to try to communicate with government leaders and the media about the struggles of … Read More
Organic Dairy Rules to be Revised
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued draft rules for organic milk that would require that the cows be on pasture at least half the year and get plenty of fresh grass. The proposals are meant to close a loophole that has allowed some huge feedlots to sell their milk as organic, even though their cows rarely grazed on fresh … Read More
Pa. Introduces Path to Organic Program
Pennsylvania producers working to transition their conventional operations to certified organic farms may be eligible for help offsetting the costs of making the change, said Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff today. The Path to Organic Program provides grants to farmers switching to certified organic production practices. The application deadline is July 31. “The Path to Organic grants are a significant investment … Read More
Hood Cuts Organic Producers
Dairy processor H.P. Hood has reduced its organic milk supply since late February by not renewing several Maine dairy producers contracts. Hood maintains that with the declining economy, the demand for organic milk has just not caught up with production, according to Hood spokeswoman Lynn Bohan. “Due to a softening in organic milk sales triggered by the recent economic downturn, … Read More
U.S. and Canada to Standardize Organic Rules
The U.S. and Canada have agreed to finalize negotiations on organic equivalency standards between the countries by this summer, according to the Organic Trade Association. Until now, Canada has had a hotchpotch of different voluntary and mandatory organic certification in place in different provinces across the country. The new Organic Products Regulations, due to be implemented on June 30, will … Read More
Perry's Ice Cream Introduces Organic Line
Perry’s Ice Cream, based in Akron, N.Y. is going green with the introduction of Perry’s Organic Ice Cream line. Starting this month, vanilla and chocolate organic ice cream will be available in retail stores across western N.Y. Perry’s organic ice creams are carefully crafted, one batch at a time to give consumers all the creaminess and taste you would expect … Read More
USDA Proposes New Grazing Standards
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has proposed stricter grazing standards for cows certified to produce organic dairy products, increasing grazing days to at 120 days a year. Also, thirty percent of the cows’ feed must be from such grazing, rather than being fed organically produced food in a feedlot or an indoor facility. The change, eight years in the … Read More
Stremick's Number 1 Organic
Stremicks Heritage Foods has been named the recipient of the #1 Tasting Organic Milk in America award, bestowed by the prestigious American Masters of Taste. Headquartered in Santa Ana, Calif., the company operates in Santa Ana and Riverside, Calif.; Cedar City, Utah; Joplin, Missouri and Mexicali, Mexico. Judged against other national organic milk products, Heritage Foods Organic Milk was selected … Read More
New Paper Questions Organic Superiority
Joseph D. Rosen, Ph.D., emeritus professor of Food Toxicology at Rutgers University and a scientific advisor to the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) has released a new paper that he claims has debunked attempts by organic agriculture to prove that organically grown crops are nutritionally superior to conventional ones. His research can be found here. Dr. Rosen analyzed … Read More