The Soil Association today announced the appointment of Rob Haward, operations director at Riverford Organic Vegetables, as grower representative on its standards board, following an open recruitment process. This appointment completes the Soil Association’s new, independent standards board. Rob Haward, operations director of Riverford Organic Vegetables, said “I am delighted to have been appointed. I hope my input will be of value to the Soil Association in enabling them to continue to lead the way on standards development. This process is essential in order to protect consumers, while balancing the technical constraints of growers.” The Soil Association Standards Board is responsible for maintaining and developing all of the Association’s...

With just over one week until the start of the Organic World Congress in Modena, Italy, five finalists for the prestigious One World Award, which is sponsored by IFOAM, have been announced. The award aims to recognize people committed to permanently protecting and conserving the world we enjoy. The five finalists of the One World Award 2008 have all shown extraordinary commitment to protecting the viability of the planet for future generations. In doing so, they have demonstrated that the future of globalization is positive. The finalists are: Harald Schützeichel started the foundation for solar energy in Ethiopia in 2004 with the aim of supplying the rural population of Africa with energy. He is consistently trying “to help people...

Australian scientists have found that fish exposed to sub-lethal concentrations of endosulfan and chlorpyrifos showed significant reductions in the ability to survive in warmer waters. Both endosulfan and chlorpyrifos are commonly used in cotton, horticulture and sugar cane production. The study published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry predicts that global warming will make fish more susceptible to dying from pesticide-contaminated water. According to the study affected fish displayed “erratic swimming…, uncoordinated movement with body quivering, rolling over on sides or back” and loss of the ability to swim upright. Combine this with the strain already imposed on global fish stocks as a consequence of over-fishing...

The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) und the Foundation Ecology and Agriculture (SÖL) will present the latest statistics about organic agriculture worldwide at BioFach 2008. The results of this year’s study titled “The World of Organic Agriculture: Statistics and Emerging Trends 2008” will be presented at the world’s largest trade fair for organic products on Friday February 22nd 2008 at 10:00 in Room Shanghai. The study shows that 30.4 million hectares are currently certified according to organic standards (data as at the end of 2006). Australia continues to account for the largest certified organic surface area, with 12.3 million hectares, followed...

A recent Australian study has found higher than acceptable pesticide residues in strawberries from conventional farms (Choice magazine, February 2008). It has been pointed out that this highlights the potential for chemical abuse in all produce. ‘Chemical cocktail’ mixes are shown to be of particular concern for parents and growing healthy crop plants, warns Australia’s largest organic representative group, Biological Farmers of Australia (BFA). Soil health technician and BFA spokesperson, Mr Greg Paynter, says the mixed use of pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, rodenticides, and fungicides weaken crops in the long-term when applied in un-tested combinations at the discretion of farmers. “Excessive reside levels are a problem –...