"Honest food" (from Western Producer article)

[oneoff]

http://www.producer.com/2016/11/honest-food-new-buzzword-in-ag-sector/

[sumdumguy]

Odd concept," honest food". what, was it a lying, crooked, cheating SOB before?

[blackpowder]

Horsch said 70 percent of the world’s grain production comes from a narrow band 2,100 kilo-metres wide and extending from the U.S. west coast to the east coast of China and Russia. Human starvation will rise dramatically if modern agricultural technology is banned from that band of land, he added.

Sad that all the commentors missed the last paragraph completely.
I want to know who is profiting from the push to ban technology??

[Hamloc]

Farmers are kinda funny, including myself, finally took time to read the article. There is a lot there. First off food traceability. Good in theory bad in practice. It used to be farmers were trusted that the food we produced was good and consumers were happy to have it. Now they want everything we do to produce that food recorded and documented and on top of that they are going to tell us how to do it. Then they will take away the market for beef which is somewhat necessary for more diverse rotations. Think about how farming would change if we couldn't use glyphosate, GMO canola, neonicotinoid seed treatments on our canola. Could you make a living with a diverse 6 or 7 crop rotation instead of 2 or 3. The trend of people's beliefs and therefore of government policy is starting to affect us more everyday. This is a good article every farmer should read.

[farmaholic]

One phrase: "show me the money"!

[may-be]

Imho people have been pushing governments for gmo free labeling. I could see the big grocery chains not wanting to again make extra shelf space. If they could sway more people to not eat or move away from organics then they could take that off the shelves as well. This would not only free up more shelf space and have easier management but possibly buy more of the main foods in more bulk at a discounted price. Plus look like they really care about people.

I keep reading about organic food is only for the rich. I would say "not in our country". Its the poor people that usually smoke cigarettes, use drugs, overindulge in alcohol, overindulge in food/pop and have the most kids.

I do not see organic three times the price in the stores like the article said.

[oneoff]

It's just possible that grocery stores have found that stand alone "organic" stores of supermarket size don't make any sense.

In Minot ND; the MarketPlace chain touted their new "organic" store to be opened in the Dakota Square. It may be "coming soon" as they advertised up until last summer; but if it is open it is one of their best kept secrets.

Could be that grocery supermarkets have the plan B which is the traceability, no hormones added etc for everyone of the ir customers... and forget about the 1% fussy eaters who believe " only "organic" food is not poisoned propaganda."

[chuckChuck]

The trend towards local, traceable, fresher, tastier and organic are well established. Many consumers want high quality food. One of the qualities they want is food that tastes good and that makes them feel good. How big it will grow is unpredictable.

But as far as organic only being for the rich that is only partly true as the biggest consumers are young families concerned about feeding their children to avoid and reduce pesticide exposure. Low income people may steer away because of price, but organic food has come down a lot in price and is in every grocery store and consumption keeps increasing.

If your biggest objection to organic food is price and you think this is unfair to low income consumers fine. But you better include beef, dairy, fresh fruit, vegetables and ready made meals in the argument because they are all too expensive for low income people as well.

If you are serious and want to solve the issue of low income people not getting enough good quality food because of price then you need to raise the standard of living through higher education for everyone, good secure jobs, higher wages and good safety net social programs.

[farmaholic]

Whoa whoa whoa...... why is it that some of the poorest people make poor lifestyle choices....smoking, excessive drinking, drug use, gambling. "Choose" to eat at fast-food joints rather than buy groceries and cook...which in the long run is cheaper. "Sometimes" personal choices contribute to their own plight. Money better spent on nutritious foods gets spent on vices.

"Poor" people who smoke drive me nuts. There's examples in our own community. ....always scraping money together to do things but can "afford" to smoke. Makes no sense to me.

And if the trend to "healthier" food is so important to the general public maybe they need to start at home in front of the stove with raw ingredients instead of filling their grocery carts with over-processed "ready to eat" pre-packaged foods.