Urea Price Spikes

As forewarned - fertiliser prices are jumping, and in this case urea, due to a further Chinese export tax of 100% (taking it to 135%). This is separate to price rises due to supply shortages. Sharp increases in prices between now and June could be $40/t to $100/t in Australia. It's definitely a good time to start considering alternative nitrogen sources such as Twin-N and Bio-N, Bio-P and Bio-Plex.

Fitting Agriculture into Emissions Trading

Farmer representatives say ministers appeared to acknowledge just how difficult emissions trading is going to be for the farm sector because of its emissions, different abatement options and the sheer number of farms which would need to be individually measured. And agriculture will have significant cost increases to contend with regardless of whether it is in the scheme or not, because abatement costs in areas like freight, energy, chemical, fuel and fertiliser will all have to be passed through the supply chain. Fortunately there is strong recognition by the new Government that agriculture is part of the solution to climate change and emissions reduction.

Agriculture on the Back Foot

But unfortunately agriculture is heavily on the back foot as it tries to deal with the immediacy of the Rudd Government's move towards a national emissions trading scheme (ETS). "It's very important that our industry doesn't stick its head in the sand on this one. We'll just get ourselves in a position where regulation will be imposed from above." says one spokesperson.

Organic Farms Store More Carbon

And in consolidation of the two previous articles - Queensland Conservation has aligned with Biological Farmers of Australia, to re-instate claims organic farm methods can contribute to lowering Australia's greenhouse emissions by locking up more carbon in soil. They also say organic production will become more competitive as oil and fertiliser prices climb.

Can Organics Be Done Factory Style?

The recent discovery that some organic pear juice on store shelves in Canada contained arsenic is a telling sign of how the industry has changed in recent years, and agricultural experts in Canada fear that some companies may be putting profit before dedication to the environmental principles of the organic food system.

Telling A Different Story

Saltbush is over-promoted by some as a wonder plant and completely under-valued by others. The truth is, it should be seen as part of a balanced landscape or a complete animal production system, and nothing more. It is true that saltbush is a unique plant in some ways, but that does not make it a better plant than others. What has to be utilised is this uniqueness that allows it to make specific contributions that other plants can not make, such as handling salt or low oxygen levels due to low carbon levels.

Rice in northern NSW?

With global rice shortages hitting the headlines, it is apt that new rice growing trials have begun on the NSW north coast, some 1500 kilometres from the State's traditional rice growing region, the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area.

New Pasture Fed Beef Standard

Pasture-fed, naturally raised beef will be developed as a new national standard to underpin the quality and integrity of beef that has been finished on pasture, says the AgForce Cattle board . "Consumers are focusing more attention on how farm animals are raised, therefore we believe there is an opportunity to differentiate more of our product."

Big Profits Made from Food Crisis

But of course....its not to do with food shortage, its a tangled web of economic considerations. Some of the world's richest food companies are making record profits. Monsanto last month reported that its net income for the three months up to the end of February this year had more than doubled. The benefits of the food price increases are being kept by the big companies - which is their prerogative with our current financial system (see Miscellaneous item below).

Following on from this theme, you will also be pleased to know that Incitec Pivot just announced a 197% increase on their net profit after tax this year...

No Culprit Found for Food Price Disparity

Meanwhile back in Australia the ACCC has found no "smoking gun" over grocery price gouging, which has left farmers and consumers bewildered. David Crombie of the NFF states "What we do know is what farmers are paid at the farm-gate and what families pay at the check-out are worlds apart. Our consistent plea to the ACCC has been to get on with investigating the entire supply chain, not just hold public meetings about prices.

This other article discusses the food price disparity between farm gate and consumer. Farmers pay the costs of production, including owning/renting land, all production costs over many months or years as well as the risks of crop failure, while those who handle the transport, storage, processing, wholesaling and retailing of agricultural products over a period of weeks are typically paid more than 75 per cent of the final retail value for their efforts. The fall out is land degradation, and the reason seems to be the need to accumulate surplus by those with power (also see Miscellaneous article below).

Ethanol, Biofuels or Meat Consumption?

"It's not food, it's not fuel, it's China," said Jim Lane, editor of Biofuels Digest commenting on the global grain shortage and China's increasing uptake of meat consumption. Shutting down the US ethanol industry would only extend the deadline of grain shortages until 2013 apparently. This is a sentiment seemingly held by Nationals leader Warren Truss too who supports the idea that it is not ethanol that is at the heart of the emerging food crisis problem, "... the global market price of rice has more than doubled recently, but ethanol is generally not made from rice."

No Room For Dissent

A Canadian think tank has distributed over 11,000 brochures and DVDs to schools in an effort to balance the debate on climate change. They admit to global warming, but not necessarily human responsibility for it - which admittedly is a view I share to a degree (I see the picture as being way bigger than just CO2, and instead related to man's wholesale tampering with natural biofeedback systems). What is extraordinary in this article though is the blocking of any form of debate - it is breathtakingly arrogant and self-righteous. Science advocates at their worst!

Marketing Natural Product Woes

Frustratingly, conversations about this problem only occur behind closed doors because of fear of retaliation. Natural products are required to fit the chemical/toxic laboratory testing protocols before any statement about their function can be made. The trouble is, natural products are not pure homogeneous chemicals, and cannot be readily patented to help recoup exorbitant laboratory costs.

Neem presents a classic case where no-one can publicly state what it does because it has not been 'scientifically' validated, even though it has been used for thousands of years. Passing chemicals through laboratory-based tests is prohibitively expensive and time consuming for most companies, especially when the chemical profile of a substance can be made up of 100s of active ingredients interacting with each other and the product consistency can change from season to season - afterall it is natural. And being natural, it can not be readily owned or patented because anyone can readily supply it. Natural neem has therefore remained essentially unmarketable.

In the meantime some 'scientists' have learned to extract a pure form of one of the active ingredients in neem, making it readily patentable so that costs can be recouped, making it a worthwhile exercise for them. Unfortunately this pure form does not work as well as the natural form, yet can be marketed with the full gambit of claims. Curiously and quite out-of-the-blue, the natural form has since been deemed an S8 (top shelf) poison....a natural product that has been used for thousands of years both externally and internally!

It appears that our bureaucratic watchdogs have gone beyond monitoring product toxicities to protect the public (their original mandate), and are now actively judging product function. Its no longer an issue about whether a product can hurt, maim or kill, rather is it about whether a product performs a certain way.

The reason for raising this issue publicly is that I am witnessing the near systematic persecution of small biological businesses whose product toxicity is not questioned so much as their product claims. The only winners in the current system are the multinationals who can continue to purify and patent all lifeforms via artificial laboratories and reap the profits from patented products that not only often prove more toxic, but don't perform as well.

In the meantime small businesses are gagged, unable to state what their natural products can and always have been able to do.

CMA Contract Warning

I think it is too important not broadcast this warning. It came to my attention a few months ago that a number of CMAs in NSW (not all) are including a clause in their contracts that effectively makes any carbon credits generated by the proposed project the property of the CMA. Personally I find this extraordinary for many many reasons, not the least that soil carbon in particular is yet to be officially recognised and supported in Australia. Please check any contracts carefully before signing.

Rodale Newsletter Comment

I was quite taken with this comment made in a recent Rodale Institute newsletter: "Watch for the signs showing the end of the illusion that we can profit in any true sense by using more energy to produce food than we get from eating it. Cleverness has not served us well in the absence of a profound humility as to the limits of how much we can take from the natural world." - Greg Bowman for the Rodale Institute editorial team.

Adding Up Energy

So what energy do we derive from food...did you know that the amount of energy in a litre of fuel is roughly equivalent to the amount of energy used by one man working 8 hours a day for 3.3 days, and a litre of fuel will power the transport of 450 kg cargo over the following distances:170 km by rail via freight train; 17 km by road via freight truck; 0.4 km by air via plane...also find out more about what Sydney consumes in a day.

Bats Dying Off

Three of the world's greatest pollinators - the creatures that are actually responsible for spreading pollen so plants can grow - are slowly disappearing right before your eyes. First it was the bees. Then the birds. Now the bats.

MMS Revolution

This is starting to pop up everywhere and I am now meeting people who are using it to great effect. The story of its discovery is marvelous, though could do with a lot of editorial improvement! While Jim Humble's focus has been on malaria, its use has anecdotally been linked to the alleviation of a multitude of health challenges - cancer to allergies. The book explains how it works and why. A start up kit can be purchased for $32, which can last up to 2 years. Unsurprisingly Jim fears for his life and has moved to Mexico - a scenario that seems to happen over and over again when alternative ideas conflict with conventional methods.

Greenwashing Going to Court

A long-simmering dispute over the definition of organic personal care products boiled over into court Monday, when Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps filed a lawsuit charging many of its competitors with deceptively marketing their soaps and lotions. "This is the corrosive marketing of the cosmetics industry that hollowed out the meaning of 'natural' and now is doing the same with 'organic'," said David Bronner, president of the 60-year-old company.

Desert Sun to Fuel the World

A tiny fraction of the sun's energy that shines upon the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East could meet all of Europe's electricity demands. The technology to harness the energy already exists. A network of scientists and politicians from various countries have taken it upon themselves to solve Europe's energy problem with a vision, which they call Desertec, to turn desert sun into electricity, thereby harnessing inexhaustible, clean and affordable energy.

Soil Foodweb Institute Newsletter

This newsletter includes an overview of the upcoming university course on soil health with Dr Elaine Ingham and Graham Lancaster, but also some impressive trial results using compost teas on pastures near Dubbo and compost and compost tea on crops near Coonamble, as well as other interesting insights into soil and carbon. SFI Autumn 2008 05/05/2008,16:48 141.72 Kb

(Note on Page 2 in the article ‘ Compost Tea trials at Geurie, NSW'. ‘Total Bacteria' after tea application should read ‘879', not ‘87.9' and the ‘Calcium/Magnesium ratio' prior to tea application should read 2.16)

Grazing Management for Better Profitability

Gwymac Landcare is running a bus from Inverell to Uralla on 30th May to visit Tim & Karen Wright's property Lana. Tim and Karen have been recognised for their excellent management of the property, being named last year as NSW Primary Producers of the Year.

Australian Regional Women Leader's Convention

This inaugural 3-day event has generous subsidies available to attract more women from 17-19 November in Melbourne. Whether you are a business, community or public sector leader or even representing a group of friends or your own family The Australian Regional Women Leaders Convention is for you. The event covers a range of powerful sessions designed to enhance leadership capacity and address issues key to the on-going development of regional Australia. Additionally, participants will hear from an inspiring line up of Australia's most successful and passionate regional advocates.

Sofenica - Part 42

During the recent school holidays we ended up in Brisbane and made an on-the-spot decision to visit WK Marble in Nerang who are one of the major suppliers of granite and marble stone slabs.

I felt like a child in a lolly shop....it was nearly overwhelming! A huge warehouse full of the most gorgeous polished rock slabs you could imagine. Just look at these photos I took - a mere fraction of what was on display, and no where near capturing their full colour and beauty.

During the tour we discovered one exceptional slab that caught our eyes and changed our original selection.

Verde Cotto (below) has a wonderful mix of cool calming green and off-whites colours, layered in the most amazing strata pattern - much like the cross-section of a slab of wood. We are hooked!

Health

New Food Additive

Kraft, Nestle, Coca Cola, and Campbell Soup are putting a chemical in foods that masks bitter flavors by turning off bitter flavor receptors on your tongue. The companies can then reduce sugar and sodium levels by approximately half without affecting the flavor. All of the companies declined to identify which foods and beverages the chemical additives have been or will be added to and are not listed separately on food labels. The chemical got FDA approval in less than a year and a half, based on a safety study of rats conducted for just 3 months!! The chemical does not appear to be have been publicly identified or described.

Alzheimer's the Third Form of Diabetes

Impaired insulin response appears to be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease, according to a long-term population-based study, and important methods recommended to prevent Alzheimer's disease are identical to those recommended to prevent diabetes.

Drugmakers Want More Lenient Regulations

The pharmaceutical industry is pressing the FDA for greater freedom to give doctors copies of scientific studies about experimental uses of their drugs - that is, to treat diseases not already included on the drug's FDA label. And the FDA is considering these lighter restrictions. All up it opens the way for a new drug use to be adopted by the medical community without FDA approval. The critics see that this would warp prescribing patterns, undermine the authority of the FDA, and corrupt the biomedical research enterprise.

Probiotic Health Labels

Probiotics are no longer only discussed and used among fringe health advocates - they are becoming mainstream fare internationally. But along with that status, they are also being put under the microscope - what health claims can be made, are they dietary supplements, GRAS (generally recognized as safe) ingredients, food additives, or even drugs...humans and their need to label and control!

Stevia Acceptance?

Cargill have signed a major agreement with a Chinese company for their stevia to use in one of Cargill's products (rebiana) - could this be the start of something bigger? Interestingly, stevia is still not allowed to be labeled a sweetener in many countries - I wonder if this deal with help to bring it into mainstream.

Measles Hype

A new outbreak of measles in the US has authorities pointing the finger directly at non-vaccinated children - but the information is incredibly flawed and the big picture is not even considered. The misinformation and fear peddling is awe inspiring!

Miscellaneous

It is difficult to imagine any other financial system other than the one we seemed to have inherited from birth - but there are other ways which have already been used to brilliant success and this wonderful essay outlines one of them which involves creating money that only has value over a certain time frame. This encourages quick spending in a similar cyclical way that nature works. This system redefines money as a medium of exchange instead of being a store of value. This is really really worth a read - it is too easy to acquiesce into what already exists if you cannot see beyond the current boundaries...

Events

For all May events

For all June events

* Grazing Management for Better Profitability - Uralla NSW 30th May 2008.

* 2008 Mudgee Soil Symposium - Mudgee NSW 10th - 11th June 2008.

* True Fertility Seminar - Gippsland Vic 14th - 15th June 2008.

* True Fertility Day for Past Graduates - Gippsland 16th June 2008.

* Compost Making Day - Gippsland Vic 17th June 2008.

* Compost Tea Making Day - Gippsland Vic 18th June 2008.

* Soil Foodweb Interactions and Benefits to Plant Production - Lismore NSW 23rd June - 4th July 2008.

* 2008 Launceston Soil Symposium - Launceston Tas 9th - 10th July 2008.

* Australian Regional Women Leader's Convention - Melbourne Vic 17th - 18th November 2008.

Postscript

How to Keep Men from Missing the Toilet

And for the ladies - check out this awesome tree in South Africa.