2018 was a great year for Food Tank, but 2019 will be even better! Check out the 119 organizations we’re excited to grow alongside in the coming year.
Agriculture
Let’s Make More Without Doing Harm to Environment Says Pretty
On Food Talk, author and sustainability advocate Jules Pretty talks about combining efficient food production with care for the planet in sustainable intensification.
Future Family Farmers Help Communities Grow
Niman Ranch farmers Chris and Joan Scheer of Lowden, IA are revamping generations of farming tradition: switching to sustainable practices for the sake of future generations.
UN Backs Seed Sovereignty in Landmark Peasants’ Rights Declaration
The Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and other People Working in Rural Areas, which was the product of some 17 years of diplomatic work led by the international peasant alliance La Via Campesina, formally extends human rights protections to farmers whose “seed sovereignty” is threatened by government and corporate practices.
“We All Have to Be Open to Innovations in Food,” Says Sam Kass
“We need a pretty broad and ongoing shift in cultural norms around what we’re eating for our health and for environmental sustainability,” says Sam Kass on this week’s Food Talk.
Ways Forward to Step Up Soil Carbon and Meet Paris Pledges
One-third of carbon emissions are absorbed by the earth’s biosphere. After forests, agricultural lands and wetlands have the most potential to do this. A panel of experts convened at COP24 last week to discuss ways in which this potential can be realized.
Training Youth Key to Growing African Agriculture
For CORAF, training youth is not just a matter of preparing for the rising age of researchers or increasing unemployment, but a matter of enhancing the food system as a whole.
Reckless Soy Expansion Engulfs Tropical Savanna
Nearly three million hectares of natural vegetation in the Cerrado have been stripped for soy production since 2000. Beyond disrupting water systems and threatening the soy business, habitat destruction is destroying life in the most biodiverse tropical savanna region in the world.
A Conversation About Artificial Intelligence and Technology in Food Systems
Experts in agriculture, artificial intelligence, and technology sit down to discuss the current and future role of tech in agriculture. Former Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack opens the discussion.
Through Regenerative Agriculture, Dr. Bronner’s Is Setting a New Example
“We want to make sure that everyone who is involved in the production of our raw materials… that those lives are being respected and that labor is not being exploited,” says David Bronner on Food Talk.
2018 Food Tank San Diego Summit: Science–Ag–Tech Connect
At the 2018 San Diego Food Tank Summit, Michelle Lerach, Josh Henretig, Ryland Engelhart, and more talk about the possibilities of science, agriculture, and technology for the future of sustainability.
Alfalfa, Queen of Forages: Reconquering the Grasslands of Inner Mongolia
Alfalfa, “queen of forages,” a high-yielding crop with high nutritional quality, could make a big difference in the lives of the rural folk that carve out a living in Inner Mongolia.
Wisconsin Nonprofit Re-Imagines Traditional CSAs
“[Our] goal is to grow a resilient local food community for organic farms,” says Layne Cozzolino, Executive Director of Farmshed, the nonprofit putting a spin on Wisconsin CSAs.
The Growing Case for Returning to Cover Crops and Small Grains in the Midwest
While baby steps such as cover cropping are getting the Midwest closer to protecting their water and soil, more needs to be done to revive soil and water health.
A Woman’s Place: Voices from the Field
When the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC) surveyed more than 3,500 farmers under 40 in 2017, 60 percent of the farmer respondents were women. And in 2012, the USDA Census of Agriculture found that 14 percent of principal farm operators were women, a nearly 300 percent increase since 1978, when it began counting women as farmers.
The Fate of a USDA Program That Helps Small Farms Survive Is Uncertain
A USDA study found businesses that received VAPG grants were significantly more likely to succeed compared to similar businesses that did not, and created more jobs. As U.S. farmers face unique economic challenges, the VAPG program may be discontinued.
“Know That We’re Interconnected” In Fighting Farmer Poverty, Says Theyer
On “Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg,” Executive Director of Fairtrade America Hans Theyer talks about what it takes to support the faces behind the world’s food.
Large Companies Are “More Open Than I’ve Ever Seen Before” to Food System Change
On Food Talk, Executive Director of the Global Harvest Initiative Margaret Zeigler talks about the private sector’s energy to address sustainability and food productivity.
“Farming Is Who I Am”
Niman Ranch Farmer Tim Roseland is welcoming the next generation back to his farm, spreading his family’s tradition for sustainable and humane farming practices.
Can Measuring Evaporation Help Farmers Save Water?
Farmers often rely on rainfall estimates from radar stations to effectively manage their crops. But what if those estimates are wrong? Scientists from the University of Missouri are developing new weather models that account for evaporation in order to improve rainfall measurements.
