Organic news 14th April 2011

NEWS ****NEWS****NEWS****

Organic sales in Ireland return to stability:

"According to the latest Kantar data (52 wk ended 20th Feb 2011) the Irish organic market is valued at �97.8m. This represents a marginal decline on the previous year but signals a significant slowdown in the rate of decline from 14% a year earlier." according to Mary Morrissey of Bord Bia, who have access to Kantar's research (slightly wacky super slick site btw!)

Similar news came from the UK and the US recently, whereas the mainland of the EU never saw decline anyway.....more on this in the Examiner soon....

Organic Farming and Climate Change mitigation:

Two talks coming up soon:@ Dublin and Cloughjordan by Gundula Azeez, formerly of the British National Farmers Union, the Soil Association the EU Commission. Part of the FEASTA lecture series on Low External Input Agriculture - the only road to a sustainable food supply ,these talks will encompass farming, climate change, organic and biochar. Full weekend of events listed here

Shale Fail

Shale gas is widely touted as a "clean" fossil fuel that can serve as a bridge to renewable energy. But according to a new study by Cornell University researchers, it actually has a larger carbon footprint than coal, oil and conventional natural gas, at least over a 20-year period. That's largely because shale-gas wells leak large amounts of methane - a component of natural gas, but also a potent greenhouse gas, even more effective at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. When leaked methane is calculated with the greenhouse gases emitted by burning shale gas, the fuel loses much of its green luster, the study's authors argue.

"The large greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas undercuts the logic of its use as a bridging fuel over coming decades, if the goal is to reduce global warming, " lead author Robert Howarth tells the AFP. "The full footprint should be used in planning for alternative energy futures that adequately consider global climate change." Shale drilling already faces scrutiny for its use of hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," in which pressurized water, sand and chemicals are pumped deep underground to loosen rock and release more gas. While the EPA investigates claims that fracking poisons groundwater, however, Howarth says he's found an even bigger flaw with shale drilling - one that belies the very argument used to justify the current U.S. shale-gas boom. Plus, he points out that his team's calculations for methane leakage are based on "best practices" estimates, but that actual leakage rates could be much higher. "No one knows for sure to what extent industry uses best practices; and unfortunately, at least in the U.S., industry does not want government or the public to know," he says. "The [EPA] has proposed rules that would require industry to report methane emissions, but several companies have sued the EPA to try to prevent such reporting."

According to the U.S. Energy Department, the country's total natural gas output will grow by 20 percent in the next 25 years, at which point nearly half of all U.S. gas production will come from shale - up from just 16 percent in 2009. Shale gas is increasingly popular because vast deposits exist underneath the U.S., and because new drilling techniques like fracking make it more economical to extract. It has looked especially good to many ever since Japan's nuclear crisis began last month, too. But as Howarth argues, it's unwise to look at shale gas through green-colored glasses. "We should not proceed to view shale gas as a 'transitional fuel' to be used over the next few decades to replace other fossil fuels," he says, "but rather work harder to move toward truly green renewable fuels as quickly as possible, such as wind and solar."

(Sources: Mother Nature News Network, The Hill, BBC News, Agence France-Presse, e! Science News)

Supervalu & Organic Growers: partnering up

Is this, finally, a little bit of the farmers' market spirit right in the centre of the supermarket? Is this some sort of a solution to the imponderable of supermarket dominance and a lack of significantly penetrating alternatives, especially in the UK or Ireland (well, really the whole English speaking world, where supermarkets have a hegemony when compared to mainland Europe)

And does SuperValu's franchise structure actively allow for such a thing to develop?

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Organic vegetable sales up 150% for the retailer and twice the area planted for the grower. That, in straightforward terms, is what has happened in Glanmire thanks to the new arrangement SuperValu have with organic growers.

Walking into the Glanmire Supervalu, you cannot fail to be impressed by what is Ireland's largest Supervalu store. What's more impressive, from an organic perspective, is the dedicated island one organic vegetable grower, Colum O Regan, has all to himself.

Supervalu's fresh fruit and veg people have a direct, one-to-one relationship with organic growers all over Ireland, and it is, if you will, a growing phenomenon.

(Pic: Una Ni Broin of Beechlawn house, one of the Enterprises that initiated the SuperValu organic growers initiative)

Rather than centralised distribution and anonymous placement within the rows and rows of various vegetables, Colum O Regan's veg has its own display area out on its own, with dedicated blackboards, Specially commissioned photographs, and even regular appearances by the man himself at stacking time.

These islands act as a little organic oasis amid rows and rows of self-same produce.

I asked Emma Rochford of Musgraves about this recent departure for their SuperValu stores. �To allow us to differentiate from other multiplies in the market, we have decided to work with local organic growers, bringing them into our stores and giving their product treatment in a different way.�

�We treat the local organic growers differently in that we guarantee them a particular space in the store in which to merchandise their product. This area or section will be dedicated to them. We then support them by providing the growers with complementary bespoke point of sale materials � blackboards on which to write their name and key offer, and personalised communications � so we have their image on the posters or shelf talkers, allowing locals to really identify the growers�

She continues �SuperValu recruits growers to come on board and helps to get them retail ready. The arrangements however are made solely between the individual stores and growers in question. We issue a number of guidelines or recommendations but between them the retailers and growers come to their own agreements on price, delivery dates, range of products supplied and so on. There is no fee or charge to the growers for supplying the stores.�

�They do really know what they are doing� according to Colum. �When they give you advice on how to sell more of this or that, through better use of your display area, it works�. He cites highlighting a round figure value offer on the blackboard as an example: �when you put the beetroot at a 2E deal, and put this on the blackboard, the customer really goes for it.�

It all began with Padraig Fahy and Una Ni Bhroin in east Galway in early 2009, who supplied 6 SuperValu stores in the region. Receiving various supports (e.g. grants for packaging and chilled delivery) and training, the couple initially road tested just two varieties. Now, they stock 15 seasonal lines.

According to Emma �Last year in 2010 we worked with 8 growers who supplied 20 of our stores. Our aim would be to have growers supplying 50 stores this summer. We currently expect to work with 14 growers over this summer season but are actively seeking more growers. Our aim would be to continue to grow the project year on year and to be in a position to have this initiative in 100 stores by 2013.�

According to Colum O 'Regan, the growers who supply Supervalu have started to �get together to swap knowledge informally�: �its very precise, even down to the pure agronomy of the whole thing. How do you supply a tonne of carrots every week? Two tonnes, ten tonnes, what ever it is. And at a good quality.�

Nevertheless, the numbers Supervalu are aiming for are ambitious. Already they are talking to growers who are in conversion about future opportunities.

�There are Supervalus in many towns in Ireland, and there might not be the grower there, yet, to supply to the required volume�. �But� he adds, �this sort of set-up might give them the confidence to start�.

Farm Diversification - piecemeal or significant?

Once seen as a diversion from 'real farming', increasingly, farmers are opting for one or more of the many diversification opportunities out there.

There are powerful drivers for this.

Off-farm employment has been a vital part of the rural economy in recent years. It accounted for 81% of household income on part-time farms and 38% on full-time farms according to the National Farm Survey 2009.

(pic: an apiary)

However, there has been a decline in the availability of off farm jobs since 2007 especially.

In 2009 �35% of farms, the main farm operator had off-farm jobs while on 51% of farms the farmer and/or the spouse had off-farm employment�. That's according to Teagasc economic geographer David Meredith, who also stated at a recent Jobs' conference:

�The level of off-farm employment dropped substantially from the peak in 2007 where on 41% of farms the main farm operator had off-farm employment, and the proportion of farms where the farmer and/or spouse had off-farm employment had reached 58%.�

While employment potential is still relatively high in some professional sectors, such as Science and ICT (Internet and Communications Technology), construction-related work and other manual and semi-skilled sectors have been are reducing their workforces.

Fast Forward to 2011, and the agricultural colleges are full of young potential farmers - a group to whom diversification appeals. With time on their side, better ICT skills, and sometimes a 3rd level education and some travel behind them, young farmers can be full of ideas for opportunities to generate novel sources of income.

Another significant driver of diversification is the new, central place agri-food takes up in plans for National Recovery. Harvest 2020 roadmaps growth in the agri-food sector from E8 billion to E12 billion by 2020, and diversified farm enterprises will be part of this drive.

According to preliminary findings from Teagasc's economic geographer David Meredith, 45% of farmers are interested in diversification. That his research was drawn from mainly larger dairy and drystock enterprises located in the Meath, Kildare and Wicklow area (with the remainder from Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo) makes this all the more significant: large, east coast farmers have not always been this interested in diversification.

He also points out that the rates of diversification in Ireland, though rising, are still very low. Less than 5%, or 5000 Irish farmers diversify, whereas in the UK, the figure is 51%.

However, in the UK, leasing space to businesses is a primary farm diversification, a factor which stems from the UK's dense population, and the proximity of most farmland to urban and industrial centres. So it is unlikely that anything like this level of diversification could happen in Ireland.

That said, farmers have certain advantages when it comes to diversification.

According to David Meredith, these include the fact that farmers, in general, have good business acumen; think long-term and strategically; are multi-skilled (from animal husbandry to administration); have access to personal supports -(i.e. family members' labour and skills); have access to community supports; understand regulatory frameworks; have valuable assets (for collateral, for storage, as workshop space) and low borrowings.

He cites the following as challenges: Raising capital to develop new businesses; raising sufficient capital to meet matched funding requirements; overcoming the risk attached to a new venture, particularly, the impact it could have on the continued viability of the farm enterprise; lack of information on available financial and other supports; uncertainty concerning impact of regulations; a lack of time to develop new enterprises.

There are other negatives too: its not just access to information on funding � the funding itself is under threat. The current LEADER embargo on on-farm food production, processing or preparation came as a bolt out of the blue for many applicants, and has seriously delayed many diversification plans. There is no guarantee it will be resolved in a way conducive to current applications.

Some of the first cuts of the recent recession were in agri-food, to REPS (Rural Environment Protection Scheme) and FEPS (Forest Environment Protection Scheme). Considering the length of the commitment and long term planning involved in forestry, the 8% FEPS premium cut in 2009 was especially severe. The scheme is also difficult to join now.

Likewise, the supports available under the AEOS scheme are nowhere near the REPS supports levels.

On the individual level, ICT skills are increasingly important, and this is not an area all farmers are comfortable with, though upskilling is available, and family members can be drawn on.

It is also the case that with cuts pending in the next sequence of budgets, and with the overall effect of the recession, there are demand problems too - potential customers have less money. Add to this what are considered especially strict interpretations of EU rules and regulations in Ireland when compared to elsewhere in the EU, for one of the key areas of diversification � artisan food processing (cheese, ice cream etc).

Farmers also have options other than diversification coming downstream, in particular upscaling and intensifying, with the end of dairy quota in 2015.

There are positives too. Certain areas in diversification are genuine growth areas. Sales of organic food on the mainland of the EU, where the recession has not been as difficult, are stable and rising. Indeed the organic market in Austria, Denmark, France, Germany and Switzerland continued to grow even in 2009-2010. All have increased growth rates for 2011.

In organics and elsewhere, it is also the case that forming a group - producer group, co-op or limited company - can pool resources and allow for economies of scale to develop, as the success the Leitrim Organic Co-op has in finding premiums for its members suggests.

Thinking more as a business person than just as a farmer can be beneficial too: Utilizing ICT is affordable in set-up terms. Selling on ebay or other similar sites has become more and more popular, whilst web-based sales are a real growth area in general.

In the UK, on-line sales in January 2011 were at the highest level for any January. There, according to the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, online retailers accrued �5.1bn sales for January this year, a massive 21% increase on last January.

According to Paul McCarthy of Teagasc, many areas in the green economy offer up significant potential. He lists �renewables, biomass, crops or services on the green side, wood chip, anaerobic digestion, wind, retrofitting houses even, miscanthus or willow�. McCarthy points out that there are also options to scale these up to a national level � as an example, a wood chip or a retro fit/insulation company can move from being a single farm nixer into a regional and then nationwide industry.

And while he is hopeful that supports in this area will grow, Ireland has stiff competition from elsewhere in terms or supports and returns. �For energy, to take one example, the odds are stacked against farmers here, compared to Northern Ireland. They have better paybacks from the National Grid, and their incentives are lined up� says McCarthy.

Innovation and planning are vital. Before you start, you may want to consider availing of background household budgeting supports.

Teagasc's Options programme is one such support. David Meredith: �Options works with farm households to assess their current status and evaluates what steps might be undertaken to sustain the farm business into the future. The programme takes a realistic look at the household's financial situation by first establishing the level of income generated from farm activities and off-farm employment�.

He continues: �the costs of running the farm enterprise and household living expenses are then assessed with regard to, firstly, the income situation and, secondly, future income needs which might revolve around making allowance for pension savings or sending children to college�.

Teagasc have developed a �Household Budget Calculator� which is available through their website. This calculator lets farm households track where the money goes every month, which is the first step in assessing their current status.

V. D. Kaviraj comes to Ireland

A very interesting character, V. D. Kaviraj, is visiting Ireland to give a weekend workshop on homoeopathy & the garden.

Its on 16th & 17th April in The Community Gardens in Scariff Co. Clare. If you have an interest in the area, its not to be missed.

(Do google this guys life story - it doesn't get more epic really - we're talking a healer on the planetary scale fighting the good fight, often in very unusual circumstances!)

Forming Co-ops and groups for organic farmers

More than other types of farming, organic farming can be isolating. This is because organic farmers are spread out, diffusely, around Ireland.

Whereas a conventional beef, sheep or dairy farmer may have neighbours with similar enterprises, organic farmers can be some distance from other organic farmers.

In more mature organic sectors abroad, this effect diminishes as organic farms cluster in regions over time (See for e.g. Dr. Matt Reed's work on spatial dynamics and organic farming in Devon)

Of course, organic and conventional farmers can and do interact with each other in a variety of ways � however there are undoubted benefits to organic farmers working together too.

While local organic producer groups would be difficult to sustain numerically, regional organic producer groups have perhaps more potential.

One such group is meeting in Ballyvourney, Cork, on the 27th of this month, at 3PM. Tom Murray of Earth Angel Organics has been central to the formation of the group, which has met twice already.

Earth Angel Organics run a small but very diverse holding near Watercress Hill in the Glanmire part of Cork. Market gardening and direct selling a range of organic vegetables is Tom and Carol Murray's core business, but they also produces an array of other foods � eggs, chicken, pork, lamb, as well as jams, pickles, sauces more.

(For a detailed feature on Earth Angel Organics, see the upcoming edition of Organic Matters Magazine)

I spoke to Tom about the formation of the group.

�Really, people were crying out for working together� he tells me. �We are getting organic farmers and growers from across Munster, from Cork, Kerry and Limerick�.

He continues �our first meeting in November had 20 people, the next in December in Mills Inn had more, and we're hoping for more again for our February meeting�.

There are significant benefits to forming a group: �There's shared purchasing power for a start. For example, a lorryload of feed from the UK can work out far cheaper than buying it as individuals in Ireland�.

The monopolistic situation in Ireland with regard to organic feed makes price competition especially difficult to generate.

�A 25 kg bag of organic feed can cost E15.50, and some have been paying to E17 for the same bag. Buying a tonne from the UK means that it works out at more like E12.50 for 25 kg�.

There are other positive feed effects too: �4 tonnes of oats were traded at the first meeting� he tells me �I knew we were onto something good once I saw that�.

There are other ways to save time and money too, when operating as a group: �You could spend an age looking up something on line, when someone else has already looked into it.�

Their upcoming meeting will feature John Brennan of the Leitrim Organic Farmers' Co-op and Sean McGloin of NOTS- the National Organic Training Skillsnet. The Leitrim Co-op are a good example of how and why farmers should try to work together where it suits them.

According to Sean McGloin, organic farmers in North West can achieve better prices that those in the South West.

This is in part because, along with IOFGA, the Leitrim Co-op run numerous organic cattle marts in Drumshanbo. They also work on some of the ancillary elements to the marts, such as transport to and from the location.

In general, with the work of the co-op, through beef contracts, advice on finishing animals, farmer to farmer linkages, farm visits, breed advice and strong sales promotion, organic farmers in the north west are more likely to achieve a price premium at the various stages.

This also means that the organics retains its cattle and sheep � a fact which maintains overall organic sector buoyancy.

The Ballyvourney Organic Producer's Group: Contact Tom Murray on 087 6237859

Leitrim coop are here

Learning about Butterflies and Moths

Why should we care about butterflies and moths? Thanks to butterflies, bees, birds, and other animal pollinators, the world's flowering plants are able to reproduce and bear fruit. That very basic capability is at the root of many of the foods we eat. And, not least, pollination adds to the beauty we see around us.

Yet today, there is evidence of alarming pollinator population declines worldwide. Fortunately, science investigators of this crucial issue can use data collected and organized in the Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) database to monitor the health of our butterfly and moth population.

Backed by more than 287,000 verified sighting records and 3,239 images that describe 4,638 species, BAMONA is committed to collecting and providing access to quality-controlled data about butterflies and moths of North America. Dedicated volunteer coordinators, including national and internationally recognized Lepidoptera experts, verify each record. The goal is to fill the needs of scientists and nature observers by bringing verified occurrence and life history data into one accessible location.

To serve its broad range of users even better, BAMONA recently launched its re-tooled website. The site was developed at Montana State University (MSU) under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) Network.

BAMONA's latest innovations are aimed at improving technologies for both data collection and data dissemination. Users can now submit records � which typically include a photograph � via the site's new user submission form, replacing an outdated submission process that required multiple e-mails with spreadsheet attachments. As for data dissemination, verified records are now immediately available on the site's home page. New, interactive Google-based maps enable the display of any verified sighting, including Canadian locations. Visitors can now zoom in or out and click on dots pin-pointing sighting locations on interactive maps, and see the details of each sighting record. All these features were not available previously.

For more information, go to www.butterfliesandmoths.org

Sean McGloin's take on the state of the Organic Sector in Ireland.

The state of play for organic farming and food were laid out by Sean McGloin of NOTS, the National Organic Training Skillsnet at a rural jobs conference in February.

Along with Sean McGloin, Orla Clancy and JP Crowe spoke about their experiences of being organic farmers and food businesses. There was a specific focus on the development of jobs in the sector.

(Pic: Clancy's mobile unit: see also here for a feature on Clancy's in Organic Matters)

Attendees were also asked to identify including important factors shaping the sector; implications of these drivers; future direction of the sector; how we get there.

McGloin is well positioned to give an opinion on the state of the organic sector in Ireland, as he works with organic farmers every day.

His presentation dealt with organic farming's outlook, market drivers, opportunities for employment, barriers to expansion and future needs.

The organic outlook was described as generally good � he cited livestock as strong, with demand outstripping supply. Other areas have a positive outlook too: demand from Flahavans is leading to a good cereal market, much needed horticultural refocusing has helped with growth and finally value adding is increasingly important.

A number of sectoral drivers were listed for both producers and consumers. For producers he pointed to an ambitious mindset; their faith in the product; significant demand; the method of farming; job satisfaction; quality of life; financial and soft supports; and finally producer groups.

What were emphasised most during the presentation were lifestyle issues. These are often overlooked in crude macro economic analysis of farming � organic or otherwise.

In fact, the end of family farming was first predicted in the 1890s by political economist Karl Kautsky. For a variety of non-strictly economic reasons, this hasn't happened.

As an example, changes in the Single Farm Payment were predicted to make much conventional beef farming un-viable, and yet it, like other types of farming, have persisted.

In straightforward terms, farmers enjoy farming and adapt other aspects of their lives to accommodate this. As an example, they may take on a part-time job to keep part-time farming, rather than leave farming altogether.

A similar situation holds for organic farmers � as a way of life, with lower stocking rates and higher biodiversity surrounding you, its could for some be less stressful and intense than other types of farming.

As consumer drivers, McGloin listed: health; children; illness recovery; being more food aware; being interested in local food; lower cost differential; a feelgood feeling; nostalgia; and better access to organic food sources.

Again, lots of interesting elements to these divers. Health and illness recovery do reflect a precautionary approach from consumers, whatever about official positions from State agencies.

Certainly, the availability and cost of organic food have improved from a consumer perspective � the main Discounters offer budget-style organic lines in field scale vegetables, dairy and meat products especially.

With a focus on rural job creation at the event, he then went on to discuss the job opportunities organic farming offers. Adding Value on farm can, he suggested, return farmers to full time on-farm employment. It can also be good for local employment, through the utilization of local services by said farmers.

Organic farming has become attractive due to the downturn � small landowners are returning to farming as a realistic option with fewer options elsewhere in the economy. Organic is benefiting from this, as farming in general is.

However, organic may be more attractive to some because of their travel, education, work or consumption experiences of recent years. Horticulture was cited as a specific area for returnees.

Tourism and quality of life factors also featured as an organic farming employment area: Organic farms have a significant potential to double up as ecotourism locations, so they offer a diversification option. Quality of life referred again in part to diversification - working from home on an organic food business is attractive to a family unit with young children. (His own childcare bill made the point, at E16,000 per annum!)

There are however, both barriers and solutions to the further growth of the organic farming and food sector, which McGloin also dealt with. More on these next posting.

The Cooperative Development Foundation is accepting contributions to aid in the recovery from the tsunami that struck Japan on March 10, 2011 and has potentially done major damage in Japan and throughout Southeast Asia. Japan is home to the Japanese Consumers Cooperative Union and to many other cooperatives, including student housing cooperatives. It was the Japanese Consumers Cooperative Union that donated the seed money for the Cooperative Development Foundation�s Kagawa Fund, which has made over $800,000 in loans to expand student housing co-ops across the

United States, enabling many students to afford college while teaching them leadership, financial, and management skills.

If you would like to make a contribution to assist in the cooperatives throughout the affected area recover from this devastating tsunami, you can do so through the Cooperative Development Foundation. Please visit www.CDF.coop and use the Google Checkout Cart on the right-hand column. You may also send your donation to the Cooperative Development Foundation at 2011 Crystal Drive, Suite 800, Arlington, VA 22202 (please make sure to note that it is for Tsunami Recovery in Japan). 100% of your donation will go toward recovery. Thanks to a generous grant given to the Cooperative Development Foundation by Google, Inc, all donations made through Google Checkout are Fee Free.

We thank you for your support and cooperation during these difficult times.

The Cooperative Development Foundation

Holy Pistachio!

Pistachios are a naturally cholesterol-free snack that contains just 1.5 grams of saturated fat and 13 grams of fat, the majority of which comes from monounsaturated fat. A one-ounce serving of pistachios equals 49 nuts, which is more nuts per serving than any other snack nut. One serving of pistachios has as much potassium (300mg, 8%) as an orange (250mg, 7 %), making it a nutritious snack choice or ingredient to incorporate into daily diets.

Nutty Tip:

For a vitamin and mineral-rich snack, skip the greasy popcorn next time you go to the movies; instead, bring along a small bags of pistachios. Vary the flavor? Why not! Try toasting pistachios for a deeper flavor. Place your pistachios in a 350 degree oven or a dry skillet over medium heat and toast until they brown. They will continue to cook when removed from the stove.

Welfare Ranching

Assessing the Real Cost of a Hamburger

by George Wuerthner

Do you know what a Big Mac costs? If you say $2.50 or whatever the current price posted at the McDonald's restaurant may be, you are vastly under-estimating the real price. That's because $2.50 does not reflect the genuine cost of production. Every hamburger price tag should include a calculation of animal suffering, human health costs, economic and ecological subsidies. None of these bona fide costs is included in the price one pays for a hamburger (or other meats eaten by consumers for that matter).

Unfortunately, assessing the real price of a hamburger is difficult because much of the overhead is hidden from view or simply ignored. Most people do not see the pain of the animals as they are branded, castrated, and slaughtered. Nor are most people fully aware of the multiple hormones and chemicals dumped into feed or directly injected into the animals. Nor have they considered how these high rates of hormone and chemical use may pose risks for humans through the creation of resistance germs and bacteria. While there is a growing awareness of the health costs - including high rates of heart attack, colon cancer, and high blood pressure, resulting from a heavy meat diet - even the best assessments of the health risks are far from complete.

But these costs, while real and significant, pale by comparison to the ecological cost of livestock production. There is no other single human activity that has degraded and destroyed more of the American landscape and perhaps the global landscape as well as our love affair with the cow and the meat-dominated diet. Welfare Ranching - the Subsidized Destruction of the American West, a book I edited along with Mollie Matteson and published by Island Press, attempts to innumerate these costs.

To read more of this article, please click here

ORGANIC FARMING SCHEME REOPENS

Quick posting today everybody, but yes, the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) has reopened for 2011. Later than usual, and in the political limbo that's out there at present, it hasn't even been press released (apparently u need a minister to issue a press release)

Here is the form that you'll need to start the process of joining the OFS for 2011.

You must have joined by 16th May 2011. Applications now sent to Johnstown Castle directly (to speed processing up)

Get a healthy tan this spring and summer

New research reveals that eating vegetables gives you a healthy tan. The study, led by Dr. Ian Stephen at The University of Nottingham, showed that eating a healthy diet rich in fruit and vegetables gives you a more healthy golden glow than the sun.

Dr. Stephen and his team in the Perception Lab found that people who eat more portions of fruit and vegetables per day have a more golden skin color, thanks to substances called carotenoids. Carotenoids are antioxidants that help soak up damaging compounds produced by the stresses and strains of everyday living. Responsible for the red coloring in fruit and vegetables such as carrots and tomatoes, carotenoids are important for our immune and reproductive systems.

Dr. Stephen said: "We found that, given the choice between skin color caused by suntan and skin color caused by carotenoids, people preferred the carotenoid skin color, so if you want a healthier and more attractive skin, you are better off eating a healthy diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables than lying in the sun."

(Source: FARM)

Peak Phosphosus: between (another) rock and a hard place

Part 2 on Peak Phosphorus. (Again, the North African element makes this all the more pertinent than it was when I wrote this piece, due to the uprisings going on in that part of the world. Appears here exclusively.

For part one see here

Farming supplies of phosphorus come mostly from one part of the world - Morocco. They are also finite. A new Soil Association report suggests a peak in availability by 2033, as well as significant environmental concerns with current use in agriculture.

How could and should farming adapt to the finite nature of its inputs, in particular phosphorus? According to the Soil Association, there are three distinct action areas.

The first is changing how we farm. They point out that �different farming systems vary enormously in their reliance on mined phosphate. Organic farms are more resilient to the coming phosphorus rock �shock�, as it can only be used as a supplement to nutrient recycling (including crop rotations, green manures, and composting), and not as a replacement.�

They continue: �Organic crops generally have a lower fertiliser requirement than non-organic crops, with a greater capacity to scavenge for nutrients through denser and deeper root systems.�

They also suggest the need for a change in consumption patterns: �Eating less meat can reduce the demand for mined phosphate. This is because vegetable-based production is more efficient in its use of phosphorus than livestock production.�

However not all meat is the same: �Meat from livestock grazed on grassland that has not been fertilised with artificial fertilisers, will perform much better than meat from livestock grazed on fields that have been, or livestock fed on grain grown using artificial fertilisers.�

The third is novel but in terms of global nutrient cycles something of an unpalatable inevitability. Its changing how we deal with human excreta. The report recommends �a radical change in the way we treat human ex[c]reta and the need to abandon our current �flush-and-forget� toilet systems in favour of Ecological Sanitation.

�The report also calls for a change to EU organic regulations to allow the use of human sewage � rich in �natural� phosphate - on agricultural land to ensure phosphate levels are maintained. Globally only 10% of human waste is returned to agricultural soils. Urine alone contains more than 50% of the phosphorus excreted by humans.�

The use of these �Biosolids� (treated municipal/human sewage sludge) is already allowed in conventional agriculture.

I spoke to the report author Isobel Tomlinson (Soil Association) to explore these issues further.

Last one first: excreta. �in the longer term we recognise that there are problems with the current sanitation system: high water use, phosphorus water pollution, high energy-use as well as the continuing risk of contaminants - because industrial waste is added to the sewage system you get a risk from heavy metal contamination.�

Separating waste or, equally, nutrient, streams seems to be key: that's industrial from human, as mentioned, but also urine from solids:

�We think that we should move towards ecological sanitation which is a term that incorporates a range of different systems for solving these problems. We particularly mention urine-diverting systems as urine contains half of phosphorus excreted, is generally sterile and there are already examples of it being used in agriculture - for example Sweden. We would also like composting systems � the "humanure" approach - to be considered where appropriate.�

She also expands on the changing consumption and farming. Indeed, the two are connected, as what's produced is also consumed � either by animals or people.

According to Tomilson, along with changing production over to organic methods, what's needed is �An overall cut in dairy consumption, and dairy products to be sourced from grass-fed cows from extensive farming systems; More cereals and root crops and more seasonal fruit and vegetables; Less meat overall, but more grass-fed beef and lamb and less energy intensive, grain-fed and industrially-reared chickens and pigs.�

Ireland is well positioned to produce meat and milk extensively. We may, however, have to convince others to produce less and for us to be �The Producers� - i.e. the main suppliers for many parts of the world due to our extensive grazing. We may however, also have to make our grazing even more low input and grass-based - and do so not just for for phosphorus supply, but for many other environmental reasons too.

the Soil Association report is here

Local and Organic Food and Farming: The Gold Standard

Local and Organic Food and Farming: The Gold Standard

WHAT DO THE MAIN POLITICAL PARTIES SAY ABOUT ORGANIC FARMING AND GM?

Ella's blog has a handy guide to the Elections and agri-food policy for the main parties.

Its' here

Did a quick organic farming and food food scan through the docs, and here's what I found.

FG mentions of Organic in their agri-food document: 0

(strong mention of GM and moving beyond 'idealogical posturing' on page 17)

Labour: 3 (though two are the exact same words placed into two separate locations!)

(No mention of GM in agriculture/food)

Sinn Fein: 6 mentions; incl 2nd para; A standalone heading called - A funding initiative to promote organic farming in Ireland. They also have a stated anti-GM in agriculture/food position in the doc (not done page by page, just placed on site)

FF: 0 (and No mention of GM in agriculture/food)

GP: 0 (anti-GM in agriculture/food position has a category. pg 32)

Peak Phosphorus: Between a Rock and a Hard Place

This EXCLUSIVE feature (with part 2 next time) deals with phosphorus availability to farming. While the primary thing that's going on in North Africa right now is a fight for democracy, in the context of this article, North Africa takes on a new significance...Especially Morocco .

Read on to see why....

(pic: phosphorus mining, from tree hugger)

Sometimes, it seems, its not that it rains but it pours. Just as the economy nosedives, a whole range of agri-food peaks seem to be emerging in tandem.

There's an impending peak in global oil availability. There is the peak of 350 parts per million in atmospheric carbon, which we have passed but hope to drop back to. Without doing so, we are over what scientists consider to be the safe limit and may trigger runaway climate change.

And now, there's peak phosphorus.

Of the farmers' Holy Trinity of N, P and K in the stalwart bag of 10-10-20, its the K that's most at risk.

While mined potassium will be available for centuries, and while nitrogen can be fixed from the air, mined phosphorus may only have decades left. What's more, a peak in supply may, according to a new report issued by the UK's Soil Association, come as soon as 2033.

This report, �A rock and a hard place: Peak phosphorus and the threat to our food security� points out that once we come close to and reach this peak, prices will inevitably start to rise.

Crucially, agriculture will have to adapt to this or face the possibility of failing to feed even more than the 8-900 million it currently fails to feed.

What has been called by the Scientific American �a geostrategic time bomb� colours the situation significantly: there are just three main global sources of phosphorus - the US, China and Morocco/Western Sahara.

According to the Soil Association report, �In 2009, 158 million metric tonnes of phosphate

rock was mined worldwide. 67% of this resource was mined in just three countries - China (35%), the USA (17%) and Morocco and Western Sahara (15%). China has now restricted, and the USA has stopped, exports of phosphate�.

So that basically leaves the rest of the world depending on Morocco.

The report claims that phosphate availability �is missing from the global policy agenda - we are completely unprepared to deal with the shortages in phosphorus inputs, the drop in production and the hike in food prices that will follow. Without fertilisation from phosphorus it has been estimated that wheat yields could more then halve in coming decades, falling from nine tonnes a hectare to four tonnes a hectare.�

Research released in 2008 by the pan-European QLIF (Quality Low Input Food) project reported found even more stark figures. It suggested that without phosphorus, non-organic wheat yields could fall from an average of eight to just 2.5 tonnes per hectare, while organic yields (of six tonnes per hectare) would also decline, though not as starkly. This is because organic farming encourages a wider number of sources of phosphate input.

According to Professor Carlo Leifert, one of the scientists at the University of Newcastle working on the project, �If you look at textbooks from 30 years ago, they estimate that we had about 500 years of phosphorus left. Now we are using about 125 million tonnes each year. Even optimists � and we are optimists � estimate that there is no more than about 60 years of phosphorus left now. And you can�t substitute one mineral fertiliser with another.�

The 2010 Soil Association report points out that �the current price of phosphate rock is approximately twice that of 2006. When demand for phosphate fertiliser outstripped supply in 2007/08, the price of rock phosphate rose 800%.�

It continues �A radical rethink of how we farm, what we eat and how we deal with human excreta, so that adequate phosphorus levels can be maintained without reliance on mined phosphate, is crucial for ensuring our future food supplies.�

The Red Wine Diet: the holy grail of health options?

Well worth watching, whilst sipping a glass of wine.

Actually.......

Red wine, about 11-12%, probably from south west France, with regionally specific grapes (especially tannat), long fermentation times, grown on a bit of a slope, on a vineyard with reasonably low yields. Phew.

U could also munch away on a bit of dark chocolate too......

Can Organic farming deliver multiple public policy goods? Yes it can!

Catchy title, eh? (!)

�The most interesting and important result of the CAP Reform to date has been that the public consultation and communication showed that people want agriculture to deliver on public goods, people want good quality food produced in a manner which does not compromise the environment.�

That's according to Christopher Stopes, current President of IFOAM, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements.

He points out that there is some recognition of this fact at European Commission level. Their recent communication The CAP towards 2020, he states, �recognises the special quality organic farm products offer to consumers, and stresses the need to further strengthen the organic quality scheme as a policy tool�.

�If implemented in an ambitious way, this will be an asset for the future of the CAP, as organic

farming does not only provide consumers with high-quality food, but is also a comprehensive approach to deliver solutions for the challenges the Commission has so clearly lined out, including climate change, biodiversity loss, depletion of natural resources such as soil, water and nutrients, while also promoting enhanced animal welfare standards.�

Stopes was in Ireland recently, speaking in Tullamore at the rescheduled IOFGA AGM. He expanded upon these and other related points as keynote speaker at the event.

Pointing out the basic inconsistencies and failings of agriculture and food policies, he described a recent meeting with a financier who �made �150 million in speculation on grain in January this year�.

Who said there was no money in farming?

Meanwhile, 150 million more people have been pushed into hunger in the last three years than were previously.

In essence, the deregulation of markets has allowed food to be speculated upon and hoarded, even while people starve. Indeed, bumper crops in African countries can ironically and tragically lead to famine in the very country that produces the crop, through market reactions to said crop.

Exposing a lack of joined up thinking, Stopes also noted that food-related ill-health spending is the equivalent of �1/3 of the CAP budget anyway.�

Noting a kind of environmental future-proofing in the functioning of organic farms, he made an analogy: because hedges on farms allow for rotations, reduce parasites levels and increase biodiversity, Stopes describes organic farmers as �the real hedge fund managers�

Industry, he pointed out, has always been slow to warn about its own negative effects: �where have the warnings been from industry? The manufacturers didn't take it upon themselves to tell us. They stood by while the Rachael Carsons of the world actually said something�.

Comparing the organic farming and food sectors in the UK and Ireland, he pointed out that state support is stronger here than in the UK.

�In Harvest 2020, it states that organic supports should continue � organic is not even mentioned in the UK's equivalent document�

Bord Bia, he suggested, are far more supportive of organic food than their UK equivalents, the Food Standards Authority.

And the UK's DEFRA, unlike the Irish Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, do not organise a delegation to the trade show BioFach.

He hopes, however, for something of a leap of faith from organic being seen as a quality marker, as it is described in the recent CAP document, towards it being seen as a multifunctional deliverer of stated public policy goals.

While expanding Pillar 2 of the CAP offers the most hope for developing the organic sector, there are issues.

Not only does Pillar 2 receive less financial support from the overall CAP budget, �the big problem is that Pillar 2 requires co-financing by member states�. So there is �patchy support for organic policy� across the EU 27 as a result, he suggested.

The 'elephant in the living room', as it were, is the greening of Pillar 1. Traditional the domain of production only, he suggested that the greening of Pillar 1 would tie a far more significant number of public policy aims together.

For more, see IFOAM

How does your grass grow? Ask Gareth Jones

While there is plenty of advice on organic farming practices available in Ireland, there are accessible options across the water too.

Welshman Gareth Jones is one such option. Jones is part of Abacus Organic, a consultancy specialising in all aspects of organic farming and food business development.

Abacus Organic offer assistance in organic farm business management advice, food production, processing product development and procurement; all aspects of cropping, horticulture and livestock; health and safety, retail supply chain management, financial analysis, continuity programming, product development, food hygiene, food safety and more.

Many types of clients avail of these services, including clients in Ireland. Jones, one of Abacus Organic's Directors, was in Ireland last Summer visiting farms with the National Organic Training Skillsnet. (www.nots.ie)

He has also helped Ralph Haslam of Mossfield Cheese in Offaly reseed some of his fields in recent years. Having walked these fields on a couple of occasions in recent months, I have seen first hand the difference between the old and new fields.

In biodiversity terms, these new reseeded fields are incredible, with a great variety of plants and because of this, insects � dragonflies, crickets, ladybirds. And then, with the insects, there are many more birds due to the increase in bird food these insects provide.

But in pure farming terms - what about the productivity of the sward?

While he works mainly with organic farmers, Jones reckons that every farmer could benefit from a bespoke sward. �why not use grasses, clovers and herbs, and tailor these to your land and conditions?� he asks in his inquisitive, lilting tone.

�You'll save in fertility and in the time and effort involved in doing a job: the plants can last 15 years at least, which saves on fuel, compaction of soil and other considerations. Some of them can even last 25 years. Farmers are running around like headless chickens, they have no time, they are constantly watching grasses � crop watching. They could just change the sward.�

So what does Gareth Jones do in his own version of operation transformation? The starting point is fertility building and a soil sample. �We start with soil and soil type, take a sample, do a standard analysis for N, P and K�.

If there's a problem, if there are patches where crops aren't growing properly, or if there is a physical problem like waterlogging, we do a more comprehensive analysis. That's done once, and it gives answers that address a multitude of possible concerns. While its more expensive, it only has to be done once and not only does it tell you what you need to do, it tells you what you don't need to do. Sometimes farmers are applying lime and there's no need for lime. So it can save you time and money�.

I asked him about specific swards for specific purposes, and there was, literally, no stopping him. Great and intricate detail on every possible livestock and crop combination, and the plants to help with each of these. The relative merits of merviot versus milvous red clovers, rotations, peas or barley � Jones was in his comfort zone.

One thing he was especially keen to reiterate was the uniqueness of each farm, and what that should mean for the grasses grown: �It doesn't make sense really, I think, to just buy the standard mix of whatever it is. Seed companies have a mixture for a job � its the same for all regions, but the weather conditions are different everywhere�.

Moreover, �Soil type, overall altitude, topography within the field � is it flat or undulating � and if its undulating does that mean its peat at bottom and stone on top?� He's on a roll now, though always softly spoken and assured; �climate and moisture levels, direction - is it north facing? So I recommend making your own mix that suits not just your farm, but specific fields and specific soil types.�

Abacus Organics can be contacted here or 00 44 7855 484204 (Gareth Jones directly)