Agriculture

Can Congress Stand Up to Agribusiness Inc?

Next week, the U.S. Senate will have an important opportunity to level the playing field for farmers and ranchers in the marketplace. The Farm Bill coming out of the Senate Agriculture Committee includes important provisions to restore fair markets (see discussion of Livestock Title here).

After "Lessons from NAFTA"

Day two of our "Lessons from NAFTA" conference hit hard on one of the most powerful themes of the meeting - the role of trade in forced migration.

Biofuels and Global Water Challenges

The growth of the biofuel industry poses a number of challenges to water quantity and quality around the world.

Lessons from NAFTA - Day 1

Today was the first day of "Lessons from NAFTA: Building a New Fair Trade Agenda" - a conference that has brought together an amazing collection of civil society leaders, academics and government representatives from the U.S., Mexico and Canada.

Lessons From NAFTA: Building a New Fair Trade Agenda

In 2007 IATP organized the conference "Lessons from NAFTA: Building a New Fair Trade Agenda" which took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota. With 45 groups signed on as co-sponsors, the conference was attended by over 250 people, including representatives from the media; the Minnesota state government; the Mexican and Canadian embassies; representatives from the Canadian, Mexican and U.S.

No Free Lunch?

An important report that has received surprisingly little attention from the media and Members of Congress writing a new Farm Bill comes from the Organic Center and Brian Halweil of Worldwatch Institute. Still No Free Lunch: Nutrient Levels in U.S.

Patents Could Play Major Role in Global Biofuels Market

As the fast-growing biofuel market goes global, national and international rules governing patents will play an increasingly important role in how the industry develops and who benefits, finds a new paper by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

Patents: Taken for Granted in Plans for a Global Biofuels Market

This paper looks at the effect of patents by multinational corporations on the growth of the biofuels sector.

ACP Proposal on Preferen Erosion, October 2007

Proposal from the ACP group presented by Jamaica on the issue of preference erosion, October 2007.

Al Krebs - Fighter for Family Farms

Agriculture journalist, family farm advocate and IATP friend Al Krebs died last week. This is a big loss for family farmers. Several IATPers have known Al since the 1970s. I first met Al in 1990 as an awkward intern right out of college at Ralph Nader's Center for the Study of Responsive Law in Washington, D.C.