HortiTrends.com - Organics

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10 February 2015

Over ½ Million Meals Donated to Charities by Tesco Using Surplus Food

Over 500,000 meals or 230 tonnes of surplus food from Tesco stores has been donated to charities across the country since the launch of its partnership with FoodCloud last July. Over 250 charities are receiving food donations from their local Tesco store on a weekly basis to help support their community causes which includes helping the homeless, meals on wheels delivery services or weekly socialising dinners for the elderly.

26 January 2015

UN International Year of Soils and Black Gold

In 1862 Friedrich Albert Fallou, a German lawyer and soil scientist wrote:

"There is nothing in the whole of nature which is more important than or deserves as much attention as the soil. Truly it is the soil which makes the world a friendly environment for mankind. It is the soil which nourishes and provides for the whole of nature; the whole of creation depends upon the soil which is the ultimate foundation of our existence."

15 December 2014

Irish Consumers and Local Food

A preference for local food is a growing trend amongst consumers in the UK and Ireland, according to Bord Bia's Periscope report. In Ireland, 7 out of 10 adults consider buying local produce to be important when shopping for food – as a comparison; just over half of adults in the UK feel the same.

02 December 2014

Consumers Unwilling to Pay Premium Create Challenges for Food Companies

Food companies face the challenge of consumers not willing to pay a premium for high standards, a new report The Long and the Short of It has found. Produced by the Sustainable Food Supply Chain Commission, which included academics from the University of Warwick, The Long and the Short of It argues: "Companies that aspire to promoting social and environmental sustainability in their supply chains are competing with other companies that may not share those aspirations".

20 November 2014

NOTS Information Evenings - Organic Options

NOTS (National Organic Training Skillnet) are organising a series of information evenings on organics and the new CAP. If you are an existing organic farmer or thinking of converting to organic farming, then these information sessions will provide you with clear and concise information on your options: The agenda on the night will cover the following topics:

19 November 2014

Lessons in Green Public Procurement - Organic Trust

"The kitchens in our public institutions need to move from a culture of feeding, to a culture of eating". This was according to Anya Hultberg, a Danish expert on Green Public Procurement who was speaking at the AGM of Organic Trust on October 19th. "In Copenhagen, we wanted to put sustainability to the forefront in our public kitchens and using organic food was a key part of this, but it also required some fundamental changes to how these kitchens operated.

01 October 2014

The Global Promotion of Fruit & Vegetables to Increase Consumption

The daily intake of fruits and vegetables is still below recommended levels worldwide according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). This is despite numerous policy interventions to promote fruit and vegetable consumption.

22 September 2014

IFOAM 8th European Organic Congress, Bari, Italy

Gillian Westbrook IOFGA's General Manager (Right hand side) taking part in discussions in Rural Development at the IFOAM 8th European Organic Congress, 10-12 September, Bari, Italy.

Source: IOFGA - IFOAM 8th European Organic Congress, Bari, Italy

12 September 2014

Fruitful Endeavours - Grow Apples. Harvest Festival and Apple Day 28th Sept.11-5pm

Gardener and author Bob Flowerdew from England says: "Planting a few fruit trees or bushes is not so hard to do, doesn't take a lot of maintenance, will give you a good yield and children love fruit" and he has a point!

03 September 2014

IOFGA’s Member Robin’s Glen

Richard and Eleanor Murphy farm in Glenmore, Co Kilkenny. Their farm achieved full organic status with the IOFGA in 2011. This year they were one of the Teagasc organic demonstration farms illustrating how well the conversion to organics has gone for them. They farm 73 hectares, 35 of which is grassland with the remainder in tillage.

Read more: IOFGA’s Member Robin’s Glen

18 August 2014

New Clients to Organic Farming and Production

The pdf document link below provides a simple chart of the certification process for new applicants. IMPORTANT Notice on the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS). Please be aware that if you want to avail of the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) financial support from the Department of Agriculture (DAFM) you are required to do the organic farming training course. These will be run by both Teagasc and IOFGA (Mary Lynch), dates and venues will be available in autumn 2014 on IOFGA and Teagasc websites.

02 January 2015

Minister Coveney Announces Plans For A New 2025 Agri-Food Strategy

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney, TD announced his plans for a new Agri-Food Strategy up to 2025. "This Strategy will be developed by a Committee of leading figures from the agri-food sector and will set out the key actions required to maximise the contribution of the sector to economic growth, job creation and environmental sustainability over the next decade". The Minister said that he expected the new Strategy to be published in July 2015.

08 December 2014

Growing Demand for Organic Food in Sweden

The sale of organic food in Sweden has grown rapidly over the past year, and has spread throughout all food categories in the main supermarket chains. Analysis from Ekoweb forecasts that organic food sales will grow by 30% in 2014.

01 December 2014

Irish Consumers Would Like Labelling On ‘Country of Origin’ When Buying Food and Drink Products

95% of consumers in Ireland would like to see 'Country of Origin' labelling on all grocery food and drink products. Only 11% of shoppers surveyed believe that country of origin on food is very clear. The research by Love Irish Food, was conducted by Ignite Research among 1,000 respondents across Ireland, in October. Respondents were wholly or partially responsible for their households grocery shopping.

19 November 2014

The Rungis Market Looks to the Future with Organic

The Rungis wholesale market has solid credentials to merit the claim of being the world largest food market, with 18 million consumers within its reach. It has access to transport by road, rail and air with over 1.4 million tons of food delivered to the physical market in 2013, and over 1,000 companies working in the market, employing 11,770 people.

06 October 2014

Gillian Westbrook Meets Minister Coveney at the National Ploughing Championships

Gillian Westbrook discusses organic farming supports with Minister Coveney at the National Ploughing Championships.

Source: IOFGA - Gillian Westbrook Meets Minister Coveney at the National Ploughing Championships

29 September 2014

Humble Clover Is Main Driver In Organic Farming

Clover is a small plant with a big function. Red clover is becoming increasingly popular in organic farming but is not widely used outside of the organic sector. It is a relatively cheap source of fertility and something that should not be ignored by the conventional sector.

16 September 2014

Let Herbs Be Your Medicine...

Winter remedies, advice & tips to survive the Winter is the topic of a one day course with Naturopath and Herbalist Gaby Wieland and Liz Longworth. This practical course will introduce you to recipes to make your own remedies to combat coughs, fevers, aches and pains and boost your immune system:

08 September 2014

Branding Fresh Produce

Fresh produce branding can be divided into a number of areas. One model is where vertical integration takes place: For example, with a brand like Chiquita, where the company that owns the brand owns farms, produces the crop and also carries out the distribution and marketing. With annual revenue of $3.07 billion USD for Chiquita, the company has the financial clout to create and maintain a memorable consumer brand.

Sister Paula Buckley - The Organic College

Late this evening we heard the tragic news of the death of Sister Paula Buckley, our sympathies sr-paula-buckley-431x500and thoughts go to her family and friends. Sister Paula was a great friend of our College and and inspiration to everyone.

15 August 2014

Organic College - Arrival of our Queen Bee

Exciting news arrived in the post recently, the delivery of our new Queen Bee, she is a Native Irish Black Bee. Many thanks to Aoife Mac Giolla Coda from Galtee Bee Breeding Group. The Native Irish Honey Bee is often called the 'Black Bee' as it is generally dark in colour – although the colour can vary. It is a strain of the Dark European Honey Bee (Apis mellifera mellifera) which is indigenous to Ireland, Britain, Scandinavia, parts of northern and central mainland Europe.