Community Supported Agriculture provides a great way for people from local communities to invest in and share the benefits and risks associated of small scale organic farming. When you invest in CSA you are partnering with your local farmer. How does it work? Basically, you pay a portion of your local farmers operating costs during the winter months. This entitles you to enjoy a portion of the produce when it is harvested. This interesting video provides a tour of Zestful Gardens, a 30-acre farm situated in the heart of the Puyallup Valley in Tacoma, Washington. They produce some wonderfully fresh organic vegetables, including a number of heirloom varieties. If you’re a local, why not get in touch with them by checking out their website.

How about this for a great idea - GROFUN. What does it stand for? Growing Real Organic Food in Urban Neighborhoods. This grass-roots project, which started in Bristol, brings together neighbors and locals with the aim of growing organic produce for everyone to consume and enjoy. It’s a simple idea, but it’s the sort of community involvement and shared sense of responsibility that really makes a place livable. It’s nice to see so many people come together for a common goal. And the range of skills brought to bear certainly makes projects such as this entirely more manageable. One of the things that strikes me in this video is the capacity for projects such as this to bring together all manner of people. Great stuff GROFUN!

With the global demand for organic food continuing to outstrip supply, it comes as no surprise that India is emerging as an important supplier of staple and commodity-based organic food items. However, with the dramatic increase in the number of farms coming under organic management in India, the country’s training systems are being stretched to the limit. This video looks at the increasingly important role India is playing in global organic markets and how, through the formation of large family-based partnerships, it intends to continue its growth. The video also addresses the often-overlooked reasons regarding why chemical intensive agriculture was becoming untenable (and unsustainable) in many regions within India.

Andrew Moore is an organic farmer from Balladoole on the Isle of Man. Concerned with the quality of food available, Andrew switched to organic farming several years ago. In this video he explains why he made the switch from conventional to organic farming, what the switch entailed for him, as well as the traditional seven year crop rotation cycle he now uses to maintain soil fertility. We’re also introduced to the beautiful Belted Galloways he rears on his farm. I think this video will make you wish you lived on the Isle of Man. At the very least, I’m sure you’ll be left wishing you could routinely access the wonderful fresh produce (spuds, beetroots, cabbages, and turnips) Andrew sells at the local farmers’ markets....

Europe is not immune from Monsanto’s political and bureaucratic influence. Part 3 of this series explores the pressure exerted by U.S. GM companies in Europe. It also looks at claims made by these biotech companies that GM soy would require lower doses of herbicides and contrasts this claim with the Argentinean experience. Argentina’s soy farmers, who were among the first to adopt GM technology 10 years ago, are now faced with having to use increasingly large quantities of chemical herbicides to control herbicide resistant super weeds.