Corporate Farmer Calls Upon Sen. Feinstein to Influence Environmental Dispute

Staff / Truthdig Dec 7, 2009 Wealthy corporate farmer Stewart Resnick (shown above with wife Lynda) has written check after check to U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein's campaigns, and when he needed her help, he got quick results.When wealthy donor Stewart Resnick asked for Dianne Feinstein's help, he got quick results. Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )

Monsanto Dominance Prompts Antitrust Inquiry

Staff / Truthdig Nov 29, 2009 Some 93 percent of soybeans and 80 percent of corn: Those numbers reflect how much of each crop is grown with seeds genetically altered under the patents of agro-giant Monsanto. An antitrust investigation is at hand, as questions about a monopoly status seem not too far off. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

United Nations: 1 Billion Going Hungry Worldwide

Staff / Truthdig Oct 15, 2009 Global hunger is a "world emergency" now, if it wasn't before, with the number of hungry people rising to a record 1 billion, according to the United Nations. Given this scary statistic, it's not looking good for a goal, set in 2000, to reduce the number of people going hungry worldwide by half by 2015. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

We’ll Need 70 Percent More Food

Staff / Truthdig Oct 13, 2009 Global population is expected to hit 9.1 billion in the next 40 years, causing demand for food to double. The U.N. says we will need to produce 70 percent more food by 2050 or risk starving hundreds of millions of people. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

‘Rural Brain Drain’ Turns Small Towns Into Ghost Towns

Staff / Truthdig Sep 22, 2009 For those die-hard bicoastal types who view much of America's heartland as flyover territory, the phenomenon of "rural brain drain," as The Chronicle of Higher Education calls the ongoing migration of younger generations from the country's small towns, probably doesn't seem terribly troubling -- but the Chronicle makes the case for why this mass exodus may constitute a national crisis. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

In Dry Times, India Will Import Food

Staff / Truthdig Aug 21, 2009 A dry spell in India's usual monsoon season has had a dramatic effect on food prices and availability, affecting more than 700 million people in the world's second most populous country. With its farmers hit hard by the drought, India is forced to begin importing food to make up for the shortages. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Jane Ciabattari on the Delights of the Rural Life

BLANK Jul 10, 2009 Is the pastoral arcadia of the country life far from derivatives and emissions and the other excreta of our modern cities all that it's cracked up to be? Two new memoirs give readers who don't want to stir from their armchairs to take up farming an insider's look. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

We Are Breeding Ourselves to Extinction

Chris Hedges / Truthdig Mar 9, 2009 All efforts to save the planet will be useless if we do not cut population growth. By 2050, the planet will have between 8 billion and 10 billion people, according to a recent U.N. forecast. And yet studies, books and documentaries that deal with various crises fail to discuss the danger of all those billions of hungry people looking for a better life. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

Old MacDonald Had a Farm

Staff / Truthdig Feb 5, 2009 The key word being had: The new secretary of energy, Nobel Prize-winning Steven Chu, is making waves in the policy community with his daunting comments about climate change. Chu warns that the farms of California, the nation's leading agricultural producer, could vanish by the end of this century if steps to slow global warming are not taken. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Cabinet Confirmations: 7 and Counting

Staff / Truthdig Jan 21, 2009 Well, Hillary Clinton will have to wait a little longer, but seven others whom President Barack Obama tapped to join his Cabinet had gotten the all-clear from the Senate as of Tuesday afternoon. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Is This Heaven? No, It’s Team Obama

Staff / Truthdig Dec 17, 2008 Doing little to slough the stereotype that Midwestern governors are automatically good at farming, Barack Obama has announced the next nominee to his presidential inner circle: former Iowa governor and presidential candidate Tom Vilsack as agriculture secretary. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Second Wind for WTO Talks?

Staff / Truthdig Jul 25, 2008 While supporters of the much troubled Doha Round of the World Trade Organization believe talks may have found their second wind, only the world's largest economies seem to be breathing. The form of capitalism supported by these countries is resisted by poorer nations, which rightly fear WTO deregulations would disproportionately benefit the wealthy. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )