California, U.S.A. - Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF) announced the release of the first Organic Land Grant Assessment Report, measuring research, education and outreach in the federally funded Land Grant system. The system, initiated by President Abraham Lincoln’s visionary Land Grant Law, includes universities, research stations and Cooperative Extension.

In the past decade, the organic food industry has more than quadrupled in growth, and OFRF sheds light on America’s ability to meet growing consumer demand with trained organic farmers and useful research. Conducting the first and only national assessment of the Land Grant system’s organic activity, OFRF scored each institution on 8 points including maintaining organic research land, cultivating student organic farm, offering an organic minor, major or certificate, and employing a dedicated organic faculty or staff member.

The Top Six campuses scoring a perfect ’8′ include: Colorado State University, University of Florida, Michigan State University, University of Minnesota, University of Tennessee (the newest addition to organic), and Washington State University. Five years ago, Washington State University was the first in the country to offer students a major in organic agriculture. Today, eight Land Grant Universities provide students this opportunity.

“We look to the Land Grant system to be responsive to public needs, economic growth, rural communities, and ultimately, access to healthy, safe food,” said Maureen Wilmot, Executive Director of OFRF. “While land dedicated to organic research has nearly doubled from 2003 to 2011, and universities providing organic programs have grown from zero to eight, public universities must do a great deal more in order to meet the growing needs of organic demand.”

Rich in data, OFRF’s Organic Land Grant Assessment illuminates the need for public investment in organic research and education in order to prepare the U.S. for future organic food production challenges. The quantitative data provides tools to drill deeper into answering questions including: What elements of organic research are most relevant to the urgent needs of organic farmers? What programs best train future organic farmers? To what degree do student organic farms build organic awareness and consumption?

The information gathered for this report yielded a vast amount of state-specific data on organic programs. Daily, OFRF experiences demand for this information from farmers, scientists, students, organic advocates, policy makers, industry representatives, funders, and citizens. OFRF plans to organize and present state-specific information and make it accessible to all interested parties.

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Monsanto, the world’s largest genetically engineered seed corporation, does not just want to dominate America’s food chain, but the world’s as well. The U.S. federal government has been pursuing Monsanto’s agenda by pressing Europe to support genetically modified (GM) foods.

In efforts to weaken the EU’s ban on GM crops, the Atlantic reported that Monsanto requested “renewed U.S. government support of Spain’s science-based agricultural biotechnology position through high-level U.S. government intervention.” Spain has always been a pro-GM member of the EU. Thus, with its increased support, Spain may be able to influence Europe’s steadfast opposition to GM foods. A  cable from the U.S. embassy in Madrid stated, “If Spain falls, the rest of Europe will follow.”

According to Natural Society, the United States will go against any nation who opposes the GM crops produced by Monsanto. Several nations, including France, that have decided to ban one of Monsanto’s GM corn varieties were said to have been penalized by the United States for their opposition.

This allegation can also by confirmed by the Guardian, which stated that Craig Stapleton, a business partner of former U.S. president George Bush, requested that Washington penalize, not just the EU, but all the countries which did not approve of GM crops consumption.

A Senior Farm Policy Analyst at The Cornucopia Institute, Mark A. Kastel, stated, “President Obama and Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack just sent a clear message to the American public that they do not care about our concerns with genetically engineered food and their questionable safety, adverse environmental impacts, and detrimental effects on farmers, especially organic farmers.”

Fox News reported that, Monsanto is selling “posilac”, a growth hormone, to farmers in order to make them inject it into their cows, with the perception that their cows would be able to produce more milk. However, when the cows did not respond to the posilac as the corporation hoped, Monsanto supplied farmers with antibiotics in order to save the sick cows from dying.

Currently, the U.S. is the only country where posilac is being used, despite knowing that 27 nations have banned its usage due to potential health hazards, such as accelerated puberty in children and increased cancer risks. Recently, a new study was released that shows how GM foods might be linked to organ damage in lab animals.

Monsanto spends millions of dollars each year in lobbying political figures and has spent around $200,000 on political donations in 2007 and 2008. The corporation is focused on expanding and strengthening its GM seed business, without acknowledging the health risks many are taking.

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