New York Times*: 2006 was the year Americans discovered “we are what we eat,” and what we eat is kind of nasty. No news here for food soldiers, but it’s a handy recap of the major food-politics news and events for the year.
Seattle P-I: A West Coast round-up of major food trends during 2006. Denn notes that food issues were too serious in 2006 for a light approach. Some might call 2006 a turning point in food awareness.
New York Times*: In a smart twist on a usually contentious relationship, environmentalists are renting land from Skagit River, WA, farmers to provide wetlands habitats for migrating birds.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: A four-part series explores the future of Midwestern farming.
Building A Mega-Dairy - Dairy farmers have seen the future, and it is large.
Growing Organically - A peek at a few of the farmers in the Wisconsin-headquartered co-op Organic Valley.
The Ethanol Boom - Corn-based ethanol means money for some farmers, costs for others.
The Main Street Rebirth - Small-retailer victories.
San Francisco Chronicle*: A fun feature on cheddar cheese — orange vs. white, “sharp” is a useless term — reveals that only a handful of American producers make it the old-fashioned, Slow Food-sanctioned way. Bring on the Fiscalini Bandaged Cheddar!
New York Times: An editorial warns of the dangers of overpopulation — of the world’s farm animals, which contribute greatly to global warming.
Star Telegram (TX): Reporter Amy Culbertson astutely observes that a 2006 trend to watch has emerged as the No. 1 issue for 2007 — eating with a conscience. “Organic,” “sustainable” and “local” continue to be the biggest buzzwords on the food agenda.
CattleNetwork.com: Interested parties are gearing up for a big fight over maintaining or extending subsidies for the 2007 Farm Bill — but first the Congressional Budget Office has to allocate the funds. Concern is widespread that there won’t be nearly as much money budgeted for agricultural spending next year. The San Francisco Chronicle had an editorial yesterday on Farm Bill priorities.
Hearlad Tribune (FL): Bizarre-o, feel-good holiday story. A goat in a “living nativity” gave birth to twins during the Christmas Eve service in Englewood, FL. The freaky part? The church and the farmer colluded every year for something like this to happen. Baaaah humbug, we say.
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