Posts tagged as:

Politics

Climate Change and Food Updates

July 30, 2009 by Mike Soron

Subtropical crops such as dates, figs and rice could become staples of British agriculture within 20 years, according to government forecasts.
The forecasts highlight some of the unexpected benefits of a warmer climate. It means the British diet will in future be able to include produce currently imported from as far away as China and the [...]

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Labour Intensive Farming “No Longer Relevant” – Minister of Public Safety

Thumbnail image for Labour Intensive Farming “No Longer Relevant” – Minister of Public Safety July 29, 2009 by Jon Steinman

In February, startling news was leaked to Kingston, Ontario’s daily newspaper, The Whig-Standard. Minister of Public Safety, Peter Van Loan, was cutting Canada’s prison farm program located at six Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) institutions.
The program is part of CORCAN – the branch of CSC providing rehabilitative employment training to inmates.
The planned closures [...]

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Visa Requirements for Mexicans a Perverse Outcome of NAFTA

Thumbnail image for Visa Requirements for Mexicans a Perverse Outcome of NAFTA July 14, 2009 by National Farmers Union

Canadians need to understand the context of today’s announcement that Mexican citizens will require visas to visit Canada. We also need to understand the root cause of the rising number of Mexican refugees coming to Canada.
Food products—staples such as corn and beans—are flooding into Mexico. Since the 1995 implementation of NAFTA, US corn exports [...]

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Whose Interests Are Converging at Canada’s Agricultural Schools?

Thumbnail image for Whose Interests Are Converging at Canada’s Agricultural Schools? May 8, 2009 by Jon Steinman

On April 10, this column featured the latest from a dramatic story out of the University of Guelph.
Guelph is home to Canada’s largest agricultural school, among which, is the very small organic degree program. In late March, it was announced that because of budgetary challenges, the organic program would be cut among others displaying low [...]

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Food security is radical politics

March 6, 2009 by Ryan Slifka
Thumbnail image for Food security is radical politics

The trouble with a lot of local food advocacy is that food issues are either elitist in tone or divorced from political sentiments or movements. Some organizations seem to view local food as a niche that will find its way into the current market. Many Calgary area restaurants serve up local food as a delicacy, [...]

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