sustainable agriculture

Sustainable agriculture produces abundant food and fiber without polluting the environment or natural resources while promoting vibrant rural communities. Essentially, sustainable agriculture applies the three basic tenets of sustainability - economic, environmental and social - to agriculture and farming communities.

The term "sustainable agriculture" was legally defined by U.S. Congress in the 1990 Farm Bill as "an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:

• satisfy human food and fiber needs;
• enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends;
• make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls;
• sustain the economic viability of farm operations; and
• enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole."

Online resources include the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (ATTRA, the acronym for its former name Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas), Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) and Center for Rural Affairs. A number of blogs address sustainable agriculture, including Tomorrow's Table, The Daily Table and U.S. Food Policy.

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Latest blogosphere posts tagged “sustainable agriculture”

 

• Agriculture, Livestock Remain Major GHG Sources

  
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  Global greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector totaled 4.69 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2010, the most recent year for which data are available — an increase of 13 percent over 1990 emissions, according to Worldwatch Institute. By comparison, global CO2 emissions from transport totaled ...
  2 weeks ago

• Detroit Urban Farming Enterprise, RecoveryPark, Poised to Revitalize East Side and Create 18,000

  
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  The east side of Detroit, like much of the rest of the city, is in dire need of recovery. The land is dotted with vacant and abandoned homes. The economy is in tatters. Unemployment, infant mortality, ... Read More
  2 weeks ago

• Urban Ag Organization Hopes to Get All Residents on Board to Keep Growing Detroit

  
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  Keep Growing Detroit, a nonprofit community gardening and urban agriculture support organization, has a mission to achieve nothing short of sovereignty for Detroiters. Food sovereignty, that is. The organization’s vision is one of a ... Read More
  2 weeks ago

• Seattle Neighborhood Transforms Patch of Grass into Community Orchard

  
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  “Wouldn’t it be great if we had a community orchard?” That question posed by Aviva Furman to her neighbor, Narcissa Nelson, was the beginning of the Community Orchard of West Seattle (COWS). This 1/8 acre demonstration garden showcases ... Read More
  2 weeks ago

• Jersey Cow Enjoying the Pasture

  
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  Originally published on Cooking Up a Story From one organic dairyman’s perspective, it all begins with the health of the soil. As Jon Bansen explains in this short video, by relying upon the manure from his cows, along with some additional inputs, he is able to keep his soil healthy, and by doing so, produce ...
  2 weeks ago

• Hospital Pledge May Mean New Income Source for Small Farmers

  
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  A nationwide initiative to encourage hospitals to provide patients and employees with healthier food choices may benefit independent growers. The Healthy Food in Health Care (HFHC) program encourages hospitals across the country to pledge to a more sustainable ... Read More
  2 weeks ago

• ATN’s Natural Pet Newsletter May 2013

  
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  Hello and Welcome to this month’s Animal Talk Naturally! newsletter, NATURAL PET This is Ms. Snookie, who lives with regular listener/friend/former guest, Paula Woods – Snookie is 15 1/2 years young! **************************************** In this issue of Animal Talk Naturally’s NATURAL PET Newsletter 1. FOUR ...
  3 weeks ago

• Part II: Larry Jacobs of Del Cabo Discusses Lessons Learned in Sustainable Farming

  
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  In Part II of a two-part interview with Seedstock.com , Larry Jacobs, NRDC’s 2013 Growing Green Award winner, offers his insights in what can be gained by working in tandem with nature. What larger lesson have ... Read More
  3 weeks ago

• Part I: Farming Change Agent Larry Jacobs Shares Vision on Sustainable and Organic Ag

  
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  Larry Jacobs, a visionary from California, pioneered a new form of agriculture three decades ago that demonstrated to skeptics food could be cultivated profitably without the use of farming chemicals and pesticides. He went on to found the ... Read More
  3 weeks ago

• Over 230 Assemble at Indoor Ag Conference in Vegas to Explore Solutions to Grow Industry in State & Beyond

  
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  Producing food in arid, desert climates requires resourcefulness, grit and, increasingly, innovative indoor growing technologies and solution. As cities and states across the country with less than ideal soil, water and weather conditions look to increase local food ... Read More
  3 weeks ago

• Standards & Compliance Briefing: RoHS Testing, Tim Hortons’ First LEED

  
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  Here’s the latest standards and compliance news affecting corporate environmental and energy executives. Today’s briefing includes 10 items. Canadian restaurant chain Tim Hortons has opened its first LEED-certified restaurant, in Hamilton, Ontario. Builders reused the site’s old parking surface as granular fill, ...
  4 weeks ago

• Washington State Food Hub Connects Small Growers to Large Buyers, Satisfying Demand for Local Food

  
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  The demand for local food continues to grow, often faster than small growers and infrastructure can keep up. That’s why the work of the Northwest Agriculture Business Center (NABC) is vital in connecting small farmers to big business ... Read More
  4 weeks ago

• It Ain’t Rocket Science – Show #457

  
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  This week your hosts, Dr. Kim and Dr. Jeannie will as always share more natural animal health news & events as well as the philosophy of animal naturopathy. This week, veterinarian Dr. Hugh Bassham joins us again to discuss the simple solution to our animal and human health problems – it ain’t rocket science! ...
  4 weeks ago

• ‘Next Urban Chef’ Program Stresses Importance of Local Food to Detroit Youth, Teams Students with Chefs

  
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  “The food system is literally killing people in communities like Detroit,” says Alison Heeres, 27, coordinator of a program designed to educate and engage youth in the local food movement in the City of Detroit. Heeres, ... Read More
  4 weeks ago

• Boulder-based Online Grocer Now Serving Nine States an Abundance of Organic

  
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  It’s 5 pm on Thursday, milk is running low, and the kids polished off the last of the peanut butter the night before. Working parents everywhere, stuck in traffic, are scrounging for a healthy dinner. Enter ... Read More
  4 weeks ago

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