Waiter, There’s a Newfangled Technology in My Soup

The U.S. food system has a new bedfellow, and it may already be on your plate. Increasingly, the coatings that keep supermarket produce fresh-looking and the chemicals used in pesticide-intensive farming are incorporating nanotechnology — a technology still in...
Casino Crops

Casino Crops

Thanks to decades of deregulated agriculture, markets for corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, and other farm commodities have become high-stakes casinos. If family farmers are to be stewards of the land and safe, nutritious local supplies of food are what we want, then we...

America Shouldn’t Scrimp on Food Safety

Americans are becoming too familiar with imported foodborne illnesses. Remember the tainted dog food from China and those salmonella-laced hot peppers shipped from Mexico? Now a virulent strain of E. coli is racing across Europe, possibly heading toward our shores....

Stay Healthy

Republicans have hatched a health care plan that will bring down costs dramatically. It’s called “Die Young.” It mainly targets the poor. Democrats have a plan, too. It’s called “Appoint a Commission of Experts; They’ll Know What to...
A Volatile Agenda on Agriculture

A Volatile Agenda on Agriculture

Barack Obama’s trade policy, as embodied by the pending U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement, sadly resembles George W. Bush’s blueprint. It promotes export growth and investment at the expense of local economies and resilient food systems. This is...