The EU authorities’ assumption that glyphosate does not spread through the air has been disproven. The results of a German study on pesticide pollution of the air prove that glyphosate and dozens of other pesticides are travelling through the air for miles into national parks and cities. The analysis was initially published in 2019 and has now been peer-reviewed by … [Read more...]
When will Africa embrace ecological agriculture?
As COVID-19 threatens farming communities across Africa already struggling with climate change, the continent is at a crossroads. Will its people and their governments continue trying to replicate industrial farming models promoted by developed countries? Or will they move boldly into the uncertain future, embracing ecological agriculture? It is time to choose. Africa is … [Read more...]
Will the UK House of Lords protect rural residents from toxic pesticides?
Despite the fact that we are in the midst of the biggest public health crisis for a century with the Covid-19 pandemic - and all the mass deaths and horrifying devastation it is causing - the UK government is forging ahead trying to force through various crucial pieces of legislation. One of those pieces of legislation is the Agriculture Bill which was debated and voted on … [Read more...]
World Environment Day calls for an end to nature’s destruction
One million plant and animal species risk extinction, largely due to human activities. These are issues the world cannot lose sight of even as we tackle the coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing climate crisis. The theme for World Environment Day, 5 June 2020, is biodiversity — a call to action to combat the accelerating species loss and degradation of the natural … [Read more...]
Ecological reflections on the coronavirus
The coronavirus health crisis is connected to the emergency of extinction, the disappearance of species and the climate emergency. All emergencies are rooted in a mechanistic, militaristic, anthropocentric world view of humans as separate from, and superior to other beings who we can own, manipulate and control. It is also rooted in an economic model based on the illusion … [Read more...]
Help take care of nature’s gifts this Earth Day
Earth Day is a global event each year, and we believe that more than 1 billion people in 192 countries now take part in what is the largest civic-focused day of action in the world. Nature’s gifts to our planet are the millions of species that we know and love, and many more that remain to be discovered. Unfortunately, human beings have irrevocably upset the balance of … [Read more...]
Japanese government stops testing pesticides on dogs
The Japanese government has announced that it will no longer conduct year-long poisoning tests for pesticides on dogs. The one-year program was developed in order to test the toxicity of agrochemicals. According to Humane Society International (HSI), the tests subjugate groups of beagles to daily doses of pesticides in order to gauge the toxicity to humans. Dogs involved are … [Read more...]
Pesticides and human health: the UK government’s ‘elephant in the room’
The UK Government currently has a consultation running until 8th May entitled ‘Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit.’ A promising title I thought! That was until I read the various consultation documents - produced by DEFRA - where it became abundantly clear that, despite the title, there is a glaring omission of anything human … [Read more...]
Insects – an organic food gardener’s best friend
The idea that insects are a good thing for a food garden might seem contradictory. After all, most food gardeners have battled against caterpillars chomping leaves into lace, aphids sucking the life out of plants, or cutworms decapitating newly planted seedlings. But there is a whole host of beneficial insects out there and encouraging these into your garden is vital if you … [Read more...]
Time for the UK to ban residential spraying of poisonous pesticides
Here is an important UK petition which we need to support, as well as duplicate in SA: I have lived in the locality of pesticide sprayed crop fields for over 30 years and have suffered both acute and chronic adverse health effects from exposure to the innumerable mixtures of pesticides sprayed on crops near to my home. In 2001, I started my campaign, the UK Pesticides … [Read more...]
Autism study shows links to pesticides and other toxic chemicals
The cause of autism is still unknown, but we are definitely closer to figuring it out. A new study published in the journalPLOS Computational Biology, from researchers at the University of Chicago revealed that autism and intellectual disability (ID) rates are linked with exposure to harmful environmental factors during congenital development. “Essentially what happens is … [Read more...]
Spray drift in Eastern Cape: fifty shades of green
During the week people outside of our community realized that the SAPS were spraying cannabis crops using helicopters. Marijuana, dagga, weed, pot, ganja, Mary Jane, call it what you want but the ‘green grass’ were suddenly not so green anymore. The entire incident managed to achieve what weed allegedly didn’t do – it energized and aggravated everyone all at once. This is … [Read more...]
Sustainably farmed food good for health and planet
Gillian O’Shea started Terra Madre in October 2012 because she was frustrated with not being able to purchase clean food. “As a Specialised Kinesiologist, I was also learning more and more the about the impact of our bad diet on our health, never mind the impact of our farming methods on the planet.” It’s my opinion that consumers and large retailers are also at fault … [Read more...]
