tom vilsack

Cartoons on Snacks Appeal to Children
FarmPlate Jun 22, 2010 Tom Vilsack 1 comments
A new study published by Pediatrics concluded that children would rather eat snacks that are packaged with images of familiar cartoon characters, like Dora the Explorer and Shrek. The study is noteworthy in a time where childhood obesity has become an epidemic; one in three children is overweight. Advocates for childhood nutrition often criticize food companies for adding to the problem of childhood obesity by marketing fattening snack foods and desserts to appeal to children. The study was done by Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. The researchers polled 40 children ages 4 to 8 years old. Two-thirds of the children chose the snack with the cartoon character on the...
Vilsack Works to Boost Rural Economies
FarmPlate Jun 08, 2010 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack spoke on the continuing need for an economic rehabilitation of the nation's rural communities at last week's National Summit of Rural America held in Hillsboro, Missouri. At the summit, Vilsack announced $22.5 million in USDA funding for small farmers through the Value-Added Agricultural Producer Grant program, which was added in the 2008 Farm Bill. Said Vilsack, "This new program will help provide access to capital, business-based training and technical assistance to the smallest of small businesses. We need to embrace new strategies to help create a thriving rural economy.” The grants can be used for enhancing business plans, executing feasibility...
Feds Investigate Possible BigAg Antitrust Violations
FarmPlate Mar 16, 2010 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
The U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are joining forces to investigate potential violations of antitrust laws in the agriculture industry. Attorney General Eric Holder and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack traveled to Iowa last week speak to farmers, ranchers and industry leaders at a public meeting. The first of five workshops on competition and consolidation in the agriculture industry took place on Friday in front of a crowd of about 700 people. The central question to tackle is, Holder said, “Is today’s agriculture industry suffering from a lack of free and fair competition in the marketplace.” Public relations executives from Monsanto Company were also at the...
USDA Releases New Guidelines for Organic Milk
FarmPlate Feb 16, 2010 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
Organic dairy standards have gotten a makeover from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The new guidelines, which will require that dairy producers meet more stringent criteria in order for their milk to be certified organic, will go into effect on June 17, 2010. The amendments to the National Organic Program state that animals must be pastured for at least four months of the year to be approved as organic milk producers. During the four-month grazing season, 30 percent of their diet must come from pasture grass. Dairy farms in temperate climates will be expected to pasture their cows for more than the four months specified in the guidelines. USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan stated...
Mark Your Calendar! Register Now!
FarmPlate Feb 04, 2010 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
From February 13 to 15, join fellow farmers, homesteaders, activists, consumers and even kids at next week's Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont's 28th Annual Winter Conference. With the theme "Celebrating the Heart of the Organic," the event will be held in a newly expanded conference site at the University of Vermont in Burlington. Keynote speakers include LaDonna Redmond, founder of the Institute for Community Resource Development, and organic farmer Jack Lazor of Vermont's Butterworks Farm, with a special appearance by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. Check out the 70+ workshops, special children's conference, farmers' market, ice cream social, Young Farmer Mixer...
Major Chain Moves to Sell Only Wild Salmon
FarmPlate Feb 02, 2010 Tom Vilsack 2 comments
Target will no longer sell farm-raised salmon in any of its stores nationwide. Instead of sourcing from salmon farms, Target will stock only Alaskan, wild-caught salmon in its fresh, frozen and smoked seafood sections. The company cited environmental reasons behind the decision, which was announced last week. Target consulted conservationists with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch to determine how to make their seafood offerings more environmentally conscious. Farmed salmon, Target argues, can increase pollution, chemicals and parasites and hurt native salmon in surrounding areas. Julie Packard, executive director of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, said “Target's decision to source...
USDA Invests in Local Food System
FarmPlate Nov 24, 2009 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
The Community Food Project will fund “food policy council training, urban agriculture, new farmers on preservation farmland, promotion of native food sovereignty, youth, urban and rural food production projects and community food assessments” in an effort to achieve four specific goals: Meet the food needs of low-income individuals Increase the food self-reliance of low-income communities Promote comprehensive responses to local food, farm and nutrition issues Meet specific state, local or neighborhood food and agricultural needs, including needs relating to infrastructure improvement and development, planning for long-term solutions and the creation of...
Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food
FarmPlate Oct 21, 2009 Tom Vilsack 0 comments
Regional News Oct. 15: The Flack Family Farm in Enosburg Falls, Vermont, has been producing a Vermont-grown version of kimchi, the traditional Korean food made of pickled vegetables. Burlington Free Press Oct. 17: Pete's Greens, one of FarmPlate's cultivators, is supplying produce to a new market in Somerville, Mass. Sherman Market sells only organic and farm-fresh foods. Somerville News Oct. 18: FarmPlate cultivators Sugarsnap Farm and Pitchfork Farm coexist with a bio-plant in Burlington, Vermont. The Republican Oct. 19: The Brattleboro, Vermont, YMCA will attempt to influence policymakers to encourage healthy behaviors through environmental and policy change. Brattleboro Reformer