Publication archives

Nov 9, 2011

The Story of Broke

by
Ben Lilliston
Led by the budget-slashing Super Committee, most eyes in Washington are focused on how to cut government programs. Right now, the Agriculture Committee Chairs are in the late stages of a secret negotiation on how much farm and food programs will be cut. With the rising budget deficit, what choice to we have? So, the Beltway story goes.
Nov 8, 2011

Will the G-20 learn to listen?

by
Karen Hansen-Kuhn
Since the first food crisis erupted in 2008, there have been a number of debates at the multilateral level about why our food system is failing and what needs to change. One important outcome is that a broader range of groups are weighing in on the issue, and finding the right forums to do so.
Nov 7, 2011

Raise more voices for effective farm policy—now!

by
Mark Muller
The projected course of action regarding the Farm Bill changed dramatically over the past two weeks. The general expectation was a spring 2012 Farm Bill, with the possibility that Presidential election politics would push things back to potentially 2013.
Nov 4, 2011

Stepping up: Will the G-20 allow the CFS to function? Will other countries allow the G-20 to stop them?

by
Sophia Murphy
Rome, October 2011 – Multilateralism is in crisis. It is perhaps most evident in the painful and truly frightening failure of governments to come to grips with the implications of climate change. But it was also evident on a much less well-publicized stage in mid-October in Rome, where governments were gathered at the U.N.
Nov 3, 2011

Congressional Chaos vs Local Foods

by
Ben Lilliston
Part of the collateral damage of the backroom Farm Bill being written in Congress is that new – and good – ideas get subsumed in the chaos.
Nov 1, 2011

Monsanto's Roundup-Ready crops increasing herbicide use

by
Dennis Keeney
Genetically engineering plants to be Roundup-Ready has been a contributor to large-scale industrial agriculture. This has also created the development of weed resistance, with Roundup resistance having grown into a big problem because it is overused, poorly managed and the risks were downplayed.
Oct 27, 2011

A hell of a way to write a Farm Bill

by
Ben Lilliston
If you want to see what political dysfunction looks like, take a look at how Congress is bungling the nation’s most important food and farm policy—the Farm Bill. The sprawling Farm Bill sets policy for the next five years and is directly relevant to our 2 million farmers, the 43 million people on food assistance and the more than 900 million acres in farmland.
A hell of a way to write a Farm Bill
Oct 25, 2011

WEBINAR: Commodity price volatility: U.S. and EU regulatory battles

by
Dr. Steve Suppan
Karen Hansen-Kuhn
Commodity price volatility driven by financial institution speculation continues to increase raw materials costs for businesses and the cost of consumer goods, particularly food and energy. U.S. commodity regulators are scheduled to vote on October 18 on an important rule to limit control of commodity contracts by financial speculators.