HortiTrends.com - Organics

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11 August 2014

DARD Management Notes: Horticulture

The market for fruit and vegetables

Earlier this year market research experts, Mintel, produced a review of the fruit and vegetables market for Northern Ireland (NI) and the Republic of Ireland (RoI). The following are some of the main findings:

08 August 2014

Commission Consults On Water Re-Use Measures

The European Commission's environment department is consulting on how best to encourage water re-use, including the introduction of EU-wide safety standards for re-used water and targets for water-stressed countries.

01 August 2014

National Organic Food Awards 2014

Back after a break in 2013, the 2014 awards will be open for entries from the end of July until Friday 5th September. Application forms can be downloaded directly from the Bord Bia website;

15 July 2014

New Food Waste Framework Points To A Fundamental Rethink of Food Practices

To solve the problem of food waste we need to radically rethink how our food is produced and consumed, researchers argue in a recent study. They propose a new framework that considers how to reduce wastage throughout the supply chain. Preventing excess levels of food production and consumption in the first place is its most important step.

30 June 2014

Organic Trust - Agroforestry Scheme

Organic Trust are particularly pleased to see that a scheme has been put in place by DAFM for the support of agroforestry. This is something that we called for in our submission on the RDP as agroforestry and organic farming go hand in hand.

16 June 2014

Organic Farming Scheme - Organic Trust

Although the details of the new Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) have yet to be worked out by DAFM, a broad outline of the new scheme has been announced along with other aspects of the RDP (Rural Development Plan 2015-2020).

05 June 2014

Thanks to Jim McNamara for Inspiring So Many to Grow Organically - Trevor Sargent

Back in 1991, Jim Mc Namara was the main driving force in establishing An tIonad Glas, the Organic College in Drumcollogher, Co. Limerick with the active co-operation of County Limerick VEC. Since then many hundreds of horticultural students have been trained both in the college and through distance learning in the various techniques and disciplines required to become a successful organic producer.

20 May 2014

Danish Organic Food Market Showing Continued Growth

A recent report compiled by Bord Bia on the organic market in Denmark has highlighted some key findings. In 2012, the total organic value market share was at 8.1%, the highest in the world, according to GfK ConsumerScan.

22 April 2014

Recent Research Confirms the Health Giving Properties of Fruit and Vegetables

A recent study carried out by researchers from University College London found that people who ate seven or more portions a day of fruit and vegetables had a 33% reduced risk of death compared with people who ate less than one portion. The study was published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health and can be downloaded from the journal's website.

08 April 2014

Feed Ourselves (Real) Food – It’s Time to Make Changes - Dee Sewell

How do you feel about large supermarkets these days? I've become increasingly frustrated with them and in particular since the pre-Christmas price wars that once again highlighted the fact that since their arrival in our slightly out-of-town shopping centres with their free parking, that village and town high streets have been slowly boarding up their windows and closing down.

01 April 2014

Organics: Commission Proposal for More and Better

The European Commission has published new proposals for a new Regulation on organic production and the labelling of organic products. Consumer and producer concerns are at the heart of this new proposal, which seeks to address shortcomings of the current system. The EU organic market has quadrupled in size over the last 10 years and rules need to be updated and adjusted so that the sector can further develop and respond to future challenges.

06 August 2014

Sensory Food Network Ireland

Sensory Food Network Ireland is a new national network of excellence, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, under the FIRM programme. The network is coordinated by Dr Eimear Gallagher and Dr Sinéad McCarthy from Teagasc, Ashtown, and also includes all leading institutions with expertise in sensory science from the island of Ireland.

Organic Food Sales are Increasing Which Is Good News for the Sector

Organic food sales are increasing which is good news for the sector. Read more detail in IOFGA's article in the Farming Independent click here.

Source: IOFGA - Organic Food Sales are Increasing Which Is Good News for the Sector

09 July 2014

IOFGA Summary of Organic Sports

Programme to EU Commission

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, today announced the final detail of Ireland's Rural Development Programme (RDP), 2014-2020, which will now be submitted to the European Commission for approval. The draft RDP outlines the range of supports and schemes in the coming years.

17 June 2014

Procuring Sustainability - Organic Trust

In a recent report entitled 'The Power of Procurement', Olivier de Schutter, UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food has urged governments to exploit the full potential of public food purchasing in order to make food systems fairer and more sustainable.

06 June 2014

Minister Announces €5M Allocated to Horticulture Sector Projects

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, with special responsibility for Horticulture, Tom Hayes TD, recently announced that €5 million in funding has been awarded to successful projects under the 2014 Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development of the Commercial Horticulture Sector.

27 May 2014

Applications Sought At Launch of Apprentice Scheme

Applications are now being sought for a new apprenticeship scheme – the Organic Farming Internship Programme in Horticulture – which will place six apprentices for six months on six host farms. Funded by the Department of Agriculture, the work placement involves a minimum of 30 hours a week and participants will receive a minimum wage during the placement.

23 April 2014

MEAT ATLAS Facts and Figures About the Animals We Eat

Food is a necessity. Food is personal. Food also has political and ethical dimensions that continually pose new questions about responsibility.

14 April 2014

T-Stór Subscription - Effect of Genotype and Environment on the Glycoalkaloid Content of Rare, Heritage, and Commercial Potato Varieties

Title: Effect of Genotype and Environment on the Glycoalkaloid Content of Rare, Heritage, and Commercial Potato Varieties
Authors: Valcarel, Jesus
Reilly, Kim
Gaffney, Michael
O'Brien, Nora

02 April 2014

Pesticides and Protected Crops – EFSA Presents Environmental Risk Assessment Guidance

New guidance from EFSA provides a framework for carrying out environmental risk assessment of pesticides emitted from protected crops – those grown in greenhouses and under cover. The document provides assistance on how and when to assess pesticide emissions into soil, surface water, groundwater and the air.

31 March 2014

Agri-Taxation Review Once-in-Generation Opportunity to Develop System that is Fit for Purpose - Downey

IFA President Eddie Downey has said that the review of farm taxation by the Departments of Finance and Agriculture presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to develop a taxation system that both recognises the unique challenges of Irish farming and supports its ambitious targets for growth.