Home/Posts Tagged ‘farmers’
Posts Tagged ‘farmers’
Science & Technology, Videos & Documentaries, Sep 20th, 2010,
Multinational chocolate giant Mars, working with the US Department of Agriculture and IBM, have sequenced the genome of the cocoa tree. Rather than patenting the genome, it’s been released into the public domain. Unlocking the genetic secrets of chocolate, scientists say, could revolutionize cocoa farming in the developing world, especially in West African nations. Cocoa production is severely hampered by pests and fungal diseases, which regularly cause hundreds of millions of euros in losses in West African chocolate producing nations like Ghana and the Ivory Coast as well as Brazil, the world’s second largest producer. From an article in the…
Tags: Africa, African, cacao, chocolate, code, farmers, genetic, genome, Ghana, Mars, scientists, slavery, West
Wildlife & Flora, Sep 8th, 2010,
Are wild boars in Germany too much of a match for farmers and even hunters that the German military must be brought in to deal with the porcine problem? German hunting groups are dismissive of the idea, proposed by farmers. Sure, they like to shoot and eat the boars – they shot nearly 450,000 last year alone – but they don’t want to ‘wage war’ on the poor beasts. From an AFP article: The call for a military response comes from landowners in the wine and crop-growing western Rhineland-Palatinate region, where boar have destroyed hundreds of hectares of maize and…
Tags: boars, farmers, German, Germany, Military, pigs, wild
Climate Change, Conservation, Jul 23rd, 2010,
Much of the feed for British livestock comes from soybeans imported from South America – mainly Brazil and Argentina. According to an article in the Telegraph, 350,000 hectares of rainforest is being cut down to grow soy for UK animal feed. Environmental group Friends of the Earth (FoE) has published a report entitled ‘Pastures New’ detailing how the British meat and dairy industry indirectly causes rainforest destruction in South America. The report incorporates new research by the Royal Agricultural College stating that only 8% of the UK’s agricultural land is used to grow animal feed. FOE urged the government to…
Tags: amazon, animal, beans, Brazil, British, dairy, deforestation, Earth, farmers, feed, FoE, Friends, meat, rainforest, South America, soy, UK
Health, Nature, Science & Technology, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 27th, 2010,
How many of you have an outdoor garden? Okay, and how many of you use Roundup weed killer? Although Roundup has a reputation of being one of the top weed killers on the market and much safer than other chemical alternatives, there are still some stubborn weeds out there that are resistant to Roundup and have actually evolved over the past 34 years (since Roundup’s introduction). Unfortunately, this weed evolution has forced farmers (and others) to resort to some outdated and environmentally unsafe weed killing methods, particularly in the southern states. Right now, there are at least 10 weed species…
Tags: adapt, chemicals, crops, environmental, evolved, farmers, hazard, herbicides, Monsanto, resistant, Roundup, seeds, stubborn, threat, weed killer, weeds, wildlife
Climate Change, Politics, Apr 23rd, 2010,
The Gates Foundation is a philanthropic organization founded by Bill and Melinda Gates with the principal aims of improving healthcare, fighting poverty and improving education. It has an endowment of over $30 billion (€22.5bn/₤19.5bn). On Thursday the foundation announced that it would contribute $30 million (€22.5m/₤19.5m) to the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, an international fund set up to aid for farmers in the developing world. From an AFP report: The fund was first discussed at the G8 meeting in L’Aquila, Italy last year, where 14 wealthy nations committed to contributing some 22 billion dollars to invest in agriculture…
Tags: agriculture, bill, Canada, countries, farmers, foundation, fund, funding, G8, Gates, Korea, Melinda, philanthropists, poor
Politics, Apr 19th, 2010,
The Telegraph reports that the ash cloud from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano that lingers over much of Europe could continue to be blown over the UK until Friday, but specific conditions will depend on wind directions and the height of the ash plume. An article in the Guardian tells of how the UK government is attempting to find solutions for the massive amount of British tourists and travelers stuck overseas. Bus, ferry and train services have all increased their capacities, while an aircraft carrier and two assault ships have also been sent to the rescue: Three Royal Navy ships are on…
Tags: ash, Britons, farmers, flight, Guardian, Iceland, Kenya, Kenyan, Navy, Royal, UK, volcano
Climate Change, Green living, Health, Politics, Apr 11th, 2010,
Is American-style industrialized livestock farming coming to Europe? There are plans to open a massive ‘feedlot’ dairy farm in Lincolnshire, England where some 8,100 cows would be housed and fed a mix of alfalfa and maize instead of grazing on grass in open pastures as is customary in the UK. The industrial factory farm would be the first of its kind in Western Europe. It may seem like a surprising development at a time when food and environmental awareness is so strong. Intensive farming is generally seen as bad for both human and animal health as well as for the…
Tags: animal, dairy, England, environmental, Europe, factory, farm, farmers, farming, farms, intensive, Nocton, UK, welfare
Climate Change, Green living, Politics, Apr 5th, 2010,
I recently posted about daylight savings time – summer time in Europe – and the difference of opinions between some groups regarding the possible benefits and drawbacks of switching the clocks forward. The United States Department of Energy and some environmental groups see longer days as effective energy measures, while some doctors associate significant health and safety risks with the initial sleep disruption. Another researcher sees it as a bit of a greenwash. The US starting DST three weeks earlier sounds minor when compared to the UK’s widely supported political proposal to create a new time zone for the British…
Tags: British, clocks, dark, darkness, David Mitchell, energy, farmers, GMT, GMT+2, Greenwich, Mean, summer, Time, UK, winter, zone
