Please read comment & links after this story. Manitoba C0-Operator 7/31/2009- An independent British review of organic foods compared to conventionally-grown foods has found "no important differences" in the nutritive content, or in any additional health benefits for organics. Photo by the Telegraph ============ COMMENT; Johanne said... Not everyone agrees that the FSA is so neutral in its study about organic food. The french coverage on Canada's national radio, Radio-Canada, left no doubt about the validity of this study. A little more reading from people who know better is very revealing: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-1203343/JOANNA-BLYTHMAN-A-cancerous-conspiracy-poison-faith-organic-food.html http://www.theecologist.co.uk/News/news_analysis/295416/organic_food_fsa_study_leaves_bad_taste_in_the_mouth.html http://www.examiner.com/x-3975-Knoxville-Green-Living-Examiner~y2009m7d31-FSA-organic-food-report-is-misleading http://www.tele

[cban e-News] - Wednesday, July 29, 2009 Today CBAN revealed (see below press release) that Health Canada has not conducted a food safety assessment for Monsanto's... Click headline to read. Editor's note - once again our "guardians" of public health & safety demonstrate their criminal negligence. How do they sleep at night? l.p.

FRIDAY, JULY 24, 2009 For over three years, Ecojustice has been assisting a coalition of 11 groups seeking to protect.... Read full story by clicking headline.

ecojusticecanada Canadians finally have the right to know whether mines are threatening their water with arsenic, mercury & other dangerous pollutants! All mines - including mines & Alberta's tarsands - must now tell Canadians about the pollution they cause, thanks to a lawsuit by Ecojustice on behalf of MiningWatch & Great Lakes United. The free "reveal-nothing" pass these industries enjoyed is finally over, & citizens will now have a powerful tool to hold mining companies accountable. "This is an incredible win that empowers people in every corner of the country," says lawyer Marlene Cachin. "Knowing where pollution occurs is absolutely key in planning for possible mining & tailings pond disasters. Without it, decision-makers, along with those who will suffer the consequences of these incidents, are left in the dark." When information is published later this year, the public can learn exactly which chemicals are being left

Staff - Manitoba Co-Operator - 7/27/2009 Any Canadian hog herds that come down with the pandemic strain of H1N1 won't face the same quarantines as one of the few herds in the world known to have caught the virus. Click headline for full story. Kichiro Sato

Science News ScienceDaily (July 22, 2009) — Winter chill, a vital climatic trigger for many tree crops, is likely to decrease by more than 50 percent during this century as global climate warms, making California no longer suitable for growing... Click headline here.

by George Monbiot, the Guardian, UK The US Environmental Protection Agency wants to boost the ethanol blend in fuels in a misguided bid to cut emissions. Click headline for more. Also read "Bursting the Ethanol Bubble" here. A field of wheat, a main feedstock for ethanol in Canada.Photo by L.P.

By Arun Gupta, AlterNet. Posted July 23, 2009. The confluence of factory farming, the boom in fast food and manipulation of consumer taste created processed foods that can hook us like drugs. Click headline for more.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2009 - by James Beddome, Leader, Green Party of Manitoba. Winnipeg, and the surrounding communities, are presently beholden to the same old game of staged ideological political chicken between the city and the province, and unfortunately our water supply (imagine a barrel of water) is set to collide in between. James speaks at a pro-water rally on the steps of city hall on the eve of the disastrous council vote. More pics, below .

by Alice McKeown/ July 23, 2009 - Worldwatch Institute Click headline for full story.

Jul 22, '09 - By ERNEST SCHEYDER - AP Energy Writer. Click headline for more ====== Eds. Note - World hunger grows as the Dows of the world scurry off into the night with ever bigger bags full of money, l.p.

By: Bartley Kives - Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION Decision doesn't come easy during gruelling session. Read related article here.

CHICAGO, July 20, 2009 (AFP) - Fish have lost half their average body mass and smaller species are making up a larger proportion of European fish stocks as a result of global warming, a study published Monday has found. Rendering by FotoSearch.

An update - by Larry Powell   Public meetings in Swan River, Manitoba later this month, will revisit the explosive issue of pollution controls at a big wood products plant in the Swan Valley. Just as they were in the mid-'90s, battle lines are drawn between citizens, environmentalists, the US-based Louisiana Pacific Corporation (LP) and the Government of Manitoba. That's because LP wants to permanently shut down the devices which control most toxic emissions from its plant, called "regenerative thermal oxidizers" or RTOs. LP emissions, as seen from the nearby countryside.  (Photos by PinP ) Manitoba's Minister of Conservation, Stan Struthers, quietly gave it permission to do so, temporarily, last January. Struthers has since instructed the Clean Environment Commission (CEC), an arms-length advisory agency, to determine whether a permanent shutdown is justified. Whether temporary or permanent, members of the environmental group, "Concerned Citizens of th

Research Meteorologists See More Severe Storms Ahead: The Culprit -- Global Warming ScienceDaily - January 1, 2009 — Research Meteorologists found that the temperature changes brought on by global warming are significant enough to cause an increase in the occurrence of severe storms. Click headline for details.

July 15, 2009 - By Jay Whetter - FarmForum.ca Canadian Bioenergy is working with Archer Daniels Midland to integrate a biodiesel production plant in with ADM’s canola crush plant at Lloydminster, Alta. Click headline for more. ================= Editors' note - And the beat goes on. It matters not that, at least this "current generation" of fuels made from food, fails society in so many ways: Not to mention its tendency to make the world food crisis even worse. As long as giant corporations like ADM can continue to profit mightily from government grants and government "mandates" which require us to buy their products whether we like it or not, that seems to be all that matters. Read related article here. =============

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION - By: Laura Rance - 11/07/2009 Pork council angles for government help to ease transition... Click headline for more. Kichiro Sato

By Ari LeVaux, AlterNet. Posted July 9, 2009. Since Dean Foods acquired Silk it has ditched support of domestic organic farms. Click here for full story. ======= Editor's Note - I have been chided in past for suggesting that certifying bodies ought to deal harshly with large corporations when they step out of line. Please read this story and let me know if I am wrong. Let's boycott Silk! L.P.

Argentina Considers Ban Dr. Mae-Wan Ho - Institute of Science in Society. Glyphosate herbicide causes malformations in amphibian embryos, scientists in Argentina reveal in their as yet unpublished study. Click headline for full story. Read related story here.

What If... 18 June, 2009 | William E. Rees - Alternatives Journal LET'S FACE IT – the really inconvenient truth is that the age of unconstrained exuberance is over. Click headline for more.

Here's your weekly Science Matters column by David Suzuki with Faisal Moola. Are your vegetables green enough? Monsanto doesn't think so! Click headline for more. Click here for related story.

July 8, 2009 Washington, D.C.-The Worldwatch Institute is launching a two-year project to point the world toward innovations in agriculture that can nourish people as well as the planet, supported by a $1.3 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Click headline for more.

By Larry Powell Sadly, politicians are again placing the interests of a failing industry ahead of science, the public interest and possibly even human health. 
Manitoba and Ottawa are doling out another 37 million dollars -good money after bad - to factory hog producers in this province. 
Both the Manitoba government and the "Feds" have swallowed, hook, line and sinker the siren song of the industry; that it is being unjustly connected to the current outbreak of swine flu and is suffering financial hardship as a result. 
In announcing this latest welfare payment, the Minister of Agriculture, Rosann Wowchuk, cites what she calls "the false connection to H1N1 flu" as one of the factors hurting the industry today. 
This rush to judgement and readiness to be a cheerleader rather than an even-handed lawmaker, does a disservice to Manitobans. 
In contrast, the Green Party of Manitoba has taken a position based on reality and science, as opposed to political ex

Winnipeg Free Press - By: Bartley Kives 8/07/2009 City mulls three partnership options In what amounts to a $1-billion leap of faith, city councillors are being asked to wind down Winnipeg's water and waste department before senior city officials figure out precisely what role private engineering firms will play in a proposed city-owned utility. Click headline for more.

Winnipeg Free Press - By: Bartley Kives - Jul 7 - '09 The water utility corporation proposed for the City of Winnipeg is trouble, says the head of Canada's largest union. Click headline for full story.

Submitted by Kori Brus — Jun 29, 2009 Tens of billions of litres of untreated sewage are entering Ontario's waterways because of outdated infrastructure and poor oversight by the provincial government. Get full report by clicking headline .

Ashley Seager Guardian Co UK, Saturday 4 July 2009 Latin American nation tops index ranking countries by ecological footprint and happiness of their citizens. Click headline for full story.

Winnipeg Free Press - By: Bob Weber - C.P. A major international report says the increasingly rapid loss of Arctic sea ice is already taking a toll on polar bears and Canada should reconsider its Pic. Courtesy of Dreamstime decision not to include the mighty predators on its list of endangered species. Click headline for more.

Manitoba Co-Operator - Staff - 6/30/2009 Ducks Unlimited Canada has picked up almost $380,000 in federal funds to see how isolated wetlands can help keep watersheds free of excess nutrients and sediment. Click headline for details. Above & r. One of Manitoba's algae-clogged rivers. Photos by L.P.

Wed Jul 1, 2009 11:55am EDT - By Daniel Flynn ROME (Reuters): With only five months to go until a new global pact on climate change, none of the Group of Eight nations is doing enough to curb global warming. Shamefully, Canada and the US are at the bottom. Click headline for more.

Published on Tuesday, June 30, 2009 by The Associated Press by H. Josef Herbert WASHINGTON (AP) - The Environmental Protection Agency gave the go-ahead Tuesday for California to impose stringent regulations on greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles, setting the stage for a national requirement expected to mirror the state's effort. Click on headline for full story.

"I've seen riparian areas managed well where cattle are allowed in for brief periods, usually during the late fall and winter months. They can graze the tall grasses and do a bit of breaking up of soil (but not too much) that can help seeds germinate for greater biodiversity. But the rest of the year they were excluded from the riparian area - it is too sensitive, and cattle can easily overwhelm the ecosystem due to their size and numbers and tendency to congregate where access to water is easiest. "As a general policy, exclusion may well be the best course, as it can be quite difficult to assess all the factors that need to be considered to do a proper job of managing short-term seasonal grazing in riparian areas. In other words, err on the side of caution." Cathy Holtslander - Beyond Factory Farming. "BFF" is a national organization promoting socially responsible livestock production in Canada. Cathy has been involved in environmental advocacy with a

Ottawa - June 4, 2009 "Friends of the Earth Canada" releases First Annual Score Card on Environmental Rights. (Alberta fails, Manitoba gets a dubious "C.") Click headline for full report. Alberta's tar sands http://www.beautifuldestruction.ca/index.html

By Cindy Chan - Epoch Times Staff Jul 1, 2009 Decades-long concerns over energy and mining development proposals near a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Canada-U.S. border have prompted the agency to launch a fact-finding mission to investigate potential threats to the region. Click headline for more. In 1932 Waterton Lakes National Park (Alberta, Canada) was combined with the Glacier National Park (Montana, US) to form the world's first International Peace Park.

July 2nd - 2009 Canadian Biotechnology Action Network Monsanto’s Plans in Canada Likely Delayed! Click on headline for details.

The Co-Operator - submitted by Dave Bedard - 6/23/2009 Broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce and spinach breeding will soon include a new player as U.S. seed and agriculture chemical firm Monsanto hooks up with Dole Fresh Vegetables for a five-year collaboration deal. Photo courtesy of Getty Images. Plant breeding will be used to improve the "nutrition, flavour, colour, texture, taste and aroma of these vegetables," the two companies said in a joint release Tuesday. The program will focus on those four specific vegetables, the companies said, and "any new products realized from this collaboration could be commercialized by Dole in North America." "The consumer wins because Dole's market knowledge combined with our research and development capabilities will help bring new healthy and flavourful products to consumers," said David Stark, vice-president of consumer traits at St. Louis-based Monsanto, in the release. Monsanto said its "agric