Do I really need to comment on this?

"We contacted many kibbutzim in an effort to have Sudanese asylum seekers released for farm work," she said. "Despite the argument they desperately needed workers, most of the coordinators at the kibbutzim rejected my request after they learned they would have to pay the asylum seekers at least minimum wage, as provided by law, [and] could not make deductions from their salaries beyond what the law on foreign workers requires." (Thanks Yaz)

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126057.html

and please hit hard

"Hitting Israel where it hurts – its economy – is the best chance we have for breaking down the wall of Israeli intransigence. Diplomatic relations have failed, and the violence promoted by certain Palestinian factions is not the answer. In BDS we have the potential to build a truly international coalition through completely legal and ethical action – a nonviolent means to strike against a system of asymmetric power and high-tech violence. And the beauty of the strategy is that it’s a multipronged attack: It’s not only though large-scale institutional divestment and international litigation that we can bring real pressure to bear on Israel – we push back every day simply by paying attention to the products we consume and the companies we support. BDS has worked before, and it will work again. The key is inspiring people and showing them that through solidarity and perseverance, we can end the Israeli occupation of Palestine." (Thanks Rania)

https://www.adbusters.org/magazine/87/bds.html

What will food look like?

"Oglio, a third generation farmer eschews modern farming techniques -- chemicals, fertilizers, heavy machinery -- in favor of a purely natural approach. It is not just ecological, he says, but profitable, and he believes his system can be replicated in starving regions of the globe.

Nearly 5,000 miles away, in laboratories in St. Louis, Missouri, hundreds of scientists at the world's biggest seed company, Monsanto, also want to feed the world, only their tools of choice are laser beams and petri dishes.

Monsanto, a leader in agricultural biotechnology, spends about $2 million a day on scientific research that aims to improve on Mother Nature, and is positioning itself as a key player in the fight against hunger.

The Italian farmer and the U.S. multinational represent the two extremes in an increasingly acrimonious debate over the future of food." (Thanks Anna)

Old religion meets new religion

"The event, being organised by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), has been described as 'the biggest civil society movement on climate change in history,' by the UN.

Faith communities own between 7-8 per cent of the habitable land surface of the planet, run (or are involved in) half the world's schools and control more than 7 per cent of international financial investments." (Thanks Laila)

Free fall-but where to?

"The production of groundnuts, Senegal's third-largest export product after fishing and phosphates, is in freefall. The 2008 harvest fell by over 47 percent, according to the most recent report of the groundnut producers' association, the Cadre de concertation des producteurs des arachides.

According to the report, groundnut prices are increasingly tight in Europe, its main market. Drought and soil degradation – too severe to be corrected by applying fertiliser - are the root causes of Senegal's agricultural difficulties.

Samba Ka, regional head of the National Council for Dialogue and Cooperation of Rural People, says if the countryside is plagued by problems, the fault lies with farmers who expect government assistance for everything. "

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=49124

"Farmers in Senegal have failed to instill a love of the land and an appreciation of livestock in their children. The earth is not tilled, it is scratched at. Livestock is no longer looked after, it is merely used," he explains to IPS

And you thought poor countries had the monopoly on child labor?

"An ABC News investigation has exposed how one of the country’s largest blueberry growers uses child labor on its fields. Adkin Blue Ribbon Packing Company in South Haven, Michigan is at the center of this scandal. Wal-Mart and the Kroger supermarket chain were among Adkin’s high-profile customers that have now cut ties with the blueberry grower. We speak to ABC News chief investigative correspondent Brian Ross and Teresa Hendricks of Michigan Migrant Legal Aid. "

But hey, who cares now that we have democracy?

"BAGHDAD, 8 November 2009 (IRIN) - More and more people in Iraq are being affected by food insecurity, a senior official has said.

Reduced domestic agricultural production, inflation, unemployment and a crumbling system of subsidized food distributions have hit poor people the hardest.

“There is still a big percentage of Iraqi people who can’t secure enough food. With unemployment running at 18-20 percent they can’t buy what they need,” said Muna Turki Al-Mousawi, head of the state-run Centre for Market Research and Consumer Protection, adding that about 20 percent of Iraq’s 25 million people live below the poverty line.

Domestic agricultural production - already affected by reduced rainfall - has also been hit by a lack of government support and lax controls on cheap food imports, with which farmers cannot compete in some cases, she said.

On 31 August, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Iraq had its worst cereal harvest in a decade and that its wheat harvest was set to fall to one million tonnes, from an average of 3.5 million tonnes per annum over the past decade. Domestic rice production also fell from an average 500,000 tons a year to an estimated 250,000 tons this year. " (Thanks Marcy and Bessma)

http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=86926

...and that's from a country that used to be self sufficient in food. The invasion and occupation will not be forgotten.

Badael-Alternatives

Badael in Al Akhbar: Free trade agreements, Arak in Akkar and Labaniyyeh in the south.

http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/taxonomy/term/16833,18208

Syria

Syria in the National Geographic Magazine. This does not constitute an endorsement.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/11/syria/belt-text/1

Standing still

"We stand there in the rain like cattle… what are they waiting for – someone to die from the cold?"

Feeding the Qat

"For millenniums, Yemen preserved traditions of careful water use. Farmers depended mostly on rainwater collection and shallow wells. In some areas they built dams, including the great Marib dam in northern Yemen, which lasted for more than 1,000 years until it collapsed in the sixth century A.D.

But traditional agriculture began to fall apart in the 1960s after Yemen was flooded with cheap foreign grain, which put many farmers out of business. Qat began replacing food crops, and in the late 1960s, motorized drills began to proliferate, allowing farmers and villagers to pump water from underground aquifers much faster than it could be replaced through natural processes. The number of drills has only grown since they were outlawed in 2002." (Thanks D.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/world/middleeast/01yemen.html?_r=1&emc=eta1

Needed: rain

"Rain thoughout Iraq’s semi-autonomous northern Kurdistan region, which has been absent for two years, is prompting the return of farmers who had abandoned their land, according to officials. “The drought that hit the region over the past two seasons has affected our main irrigation sources, surface and well water, and that has had a negative impact on all our crops - mainly wheat and barley,” Paldar Mohammed Amin, head of the Arbil Agriculture Directorate, said. “We are optimistic this season as the beginning is good so far," Amin told IRIN. “Farmers can cultivate their land and start planting this month, while others will do so in January and February.”" (Thanks Rania)

http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=86835

Urbanites

"Wangari is one of thousands of urban workers in Kenya – and one of hundreds of thousands, even millions, across Africa – who are increasing their incomes through absentee agriculture. With prices for basic foodstuffs at their highest levels in decades, many urbanites feel well rewarded by farming.

Absentee agriculture also bolsters national pride – and pride in traditional diets – by specialising in vegetables specific to the region. "For too long our country has been flooded with imported food and westernised foods," Wangari says. "This is our time to fight back – and grow our own."" (Thanks Laila)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cif-green/2009/nov/02/africa-urban-farmers

Global oppressor

"Migrant workers in Israel’s agriculture sector are among the most exploited, according to a 28 October report by Kav LaOved, an Israeli NGO campaigning for the rights of disadvantaged workers in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. "

http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=86808

Wealth creation is a violent process

"A worker's minimum monthly wage is $23, but labour rights organisations and unions say many factories do not meet that standard."

Egypt rice

"The amendments were made to regulate a market in light of the existence of large rice stocks still available from the last harvest -- around 500,000 tonnes -- in addition to this year's crop. The government hopes the new regulations will help push up prices for farmers by LE800 and LE1,200 per tonne, while the increase in the price to the consumer is expected to be minimal.

The decision comes after much debate over issues pertaining to rice exports, the securing of supply for local demand -- whether for Egyptian consumers or for the national subsidy programme -- and the cost versus selling price to farmers." (Thanks Marcy)

http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2009/970/ec3.htm

Saudi commit to sustainable agriculture

السعودية تسعى الى زراعة مستدامة: الأراضي المتاحة كافية ولا داعي للمزيد

الأحد, 01 نوفمبر 2009

الرياض - زياد الزيادي

أكد وزير الزراعة السعودي فهد بالغنيم أمس ان الأراضي المتاحة للاستثمار الزراعي في الوقت الحالي كافية ولا داعي لأن توزع الدولة أراضي زراعية جديدة. وأوضح: «يجب ان تكون لدينا عقلانية في استخدام مصادر المياه، خصوصاً أننا نسعى إلى زراعة مستدامة، لا زراعة تنهار بعد سنوات قليلة».

وأضاف في لقاء صحافي عقب مشاركته في ورشة عمل بعنوان «الاستخدام الآمن للمبيدات» نظمتها «غرفة الرياض»: «ان الحيازات الزراعية الموجودة، سواء المملوكة بحجج أو مبنية على قرارات توزيع، تبلغ نحو أربعة ملايين هكتار، أما المستغل منها فيساوي فقط مليون هكتار، لذلك لا داعي الآن لأن توزع الدولة أراضي مجانية».

ولفت بالغنيم إلى ان العمل جار على تكوين مجلس إدارة لشركة الاستثمار الزراعي الخارجي التي تأسست أخيراً بقرار من مجلس الوزراء. وأعرب عن «فخر شديد» بالمستثمرين الزراعيين في الخارج.

وعن قمة الغذاء لـ «منظمة الأغذية والزراعة» (فاو) التي ستُعقد بين 16 و18 تشرين الثاني (نوفمبر) بمشاركة السعودية، أشار إلى ان خادم الحرمين الشريفين الملك عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز لن يتمكن من الحضور شخصياً. وقال: «ستناقش القمة موضوع الفقر والجوع في ظل تقارير عن بلوغ عدد الجياع بليون شخص عام 2015، والهدف الذي وُضع عام 1996 في مؤتمر الغذاء الأول في روما أيضاً، قرر خفض هذا الرقم إلى النصف بحلول عام 2015، وثمة توجه الآن لتمديد المدة من عام 2015 إلى عام 2025».

وشدد على حرص المملكة على الإنتاج الغذائي «لكن امكاناتنا المائية في الداخل لا تساعدنا أبداً» على زيادة الإنتاج الزراعي، لذلك أطلق خادم الحرمين «مبادرة الملك عبدالله للاستثمار الزراعي في الخارج» لزيادة الإنتاج الزراعي، «واستجاب لها عدد كبير من المستثمرين السعوديين، وبدأ الاستثمار في الدول التي تضم موارد جيدة من المياه والتربة واليد العاملة والمدخلات الرئيسة، ونتمنى ان تزداد كمية الإنتاج الزراعي في العالم، وهي النتيجة النهائية المطلوبة لإتاحة كمية أكبر من الغذاء».

وعن العقوبات التي تُفرض على شركات الدواجن قال بالغنيم: «نحن مستمرون في فرض عقوبات على شركات الدواجن المخالفة للقواعد، ما سيحسن مستوى مزارع الدواجن، ومن هذه المخالفات رمي المخلفات في الخارج، وعدم تطبيق تدابير وقائية».

وحول التنسيق بين وزارتي الزراعة والشؤون البلدية والقروية حول تجارة المبيدات، قال: «هناك تنسيق دائم بينهما حول هذا الموضوع، وهناك لجنة أنهت اجتماعتها بين الطرفين لتنسيق العمل لئلا تحصل ازدواجية بين الجانبين». وشدد على أهمية الدور الذي تقوم به الجهات المختصة في وزارة الزراعة في مراقبة الاتجار المحلي بالمبيدات، مؤكداً ان حملات منتظمة على محال بيع المبيدات أسهمت في ضبط عدد من الأصناف غير المسجلة، ما أدى إلى تطبيق العقوبات المنصوص عليها بحق أصحاب تلك المحال وتضمنت فرض غرامات مالية

http://international.daralhayat.com/internationalarticle/71701

Badael-Alternatives

Badael in Al Akhbar: Hummus, tabbouleh, zaatar and Ardi

http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/taxonomy/term/16833,18187

Mouvement des Indigènes de la République

"Yes, in the first place with respect to the Palestinian tragedy. In this drama, Westerners are making Palestinians bear the weight of their own demons. The negation of the Palestinian national fact is a crime. The genocide of Jews does not justify this denial of rights. The cause of these people is at the heart of our fight. We live in a world where representations are inverted: Israel is always painted the victim whereas it is a colonial state, violent and despoiling. One notices that the foreign policy of Westerners aims always to impose this state on the Arab peoples and on the international community. Look at the UPM [Union for the Mediterranean]; the entire world clearly sees that it is a question of admitting the Israeli wolf in the Mediterranean sheepfold." (Thanks Marcy)

http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/bouteldja281009.html

Cross fingers

"A report by Standard Chartered, The End of Cheap Food, said North Africa and the Middle East have already hit the buffers. The region imports 71pc of its rice and 58pc of its corn. It lacks water to boost output. The population is growing fast. It will have to import, and cross fingers."