Organic farms mapped

There are 10,159 organic farms in the US ((Or there were in 2007, the date of the most recent agricultural census.)) and, unlike farms in general, they are distributed around the country in a series of distinct hotspots. I know this because the NY Times did its usual wondeful graphics number on the USDA’s numbers. I wonder what Paul Krugman would have to say about these particular business clusters.

organic-map
LATER: Oops, too fast on the old “Publish” button. If I’d waited to go live with the above until after browsing through my feed reader, I could have added that Food & Water Watch have a complementary map of factory farms in the US. Which I found out about via a story in the Atlantic Food Channel that was actually about something different, the global provenance of food.

LATER STILL: Alas, the map of organic farm distribution bears more than a passing resemblance to that for greed. Kinda.

greed

A tale of two countries

Straight.com ((Vancouver’s Online Source, no less.)) had a longish piece about GMOs a few days back. Normally I wouldn’t bother noting such an occurrence here. I’m bored with the whole debate, frankly. But the article actually strives for balance, which is too unusual to let pass without mention.

Spring is in the air…

…and a young man’s thoughts naturally turn to gardens. Honduran gardens and their role in health. Cuban organic gardens. And via them, Around the World in 80 Gardens, a BBC documentary series that looks like it might be worth getting on DVD. And, finally, let us not forget Kew Gardens, 250 years old this year.

LATER: And there’s also an extensive discussion of the role of homegardens in providing nutrition for people living with HIV at the Solution Exchange for the Food and Nutrition Security Community in India. Thanks, Arwen.

LATER STILL: LEISA rounds up evidence of the worldwide gardening craze.