EFITA Newsletter / 678

Châtenay-Malabry (FR - 92290), 12 January 2015

EFITA newsletter / 678 - European Federation for Information Technology in Agriculture, Food and the Environment

To correspond with me (GW), please use this address: guy.waksman(a)laposte.net

Who owns agriculture data and knowledge?
See: http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/precision-ag/who-owns-agriculture-data-and-knowledge

Why climate deniers?
My science brain is just plain confused. And I can’t wrap my head around the recent farmer survey that shows 31% of 4,778 farmers surveyed believe there isn’t sufficient evidence that climate change is occurring.
See: http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/blog/why-climate-deniers

My remark (GW): It seems to me that the debate over climate changes is more about politics than about science. I understand that farmers are used to observe "high frequency" climate changes, and that a large majority of specialists thinks that human activities are responsible for the present "low frequency" climate change. Furthermore I believe that we should spare fossil energy resources. Thus I do not see why we could not agree that it is important to take care of these resources whatever opinion that each of all of us may have about climate change.

Start-Ups Rise to Close a Gap for Farmers
Small businesses are stepping in to help farmers connect with their local markets with marketing, transportation, logistics and other services.
See: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/31/business/start-ups-rise-to-close-a-gap-for-farmers.html?_r=0

Agriculture in 2015
2015 will bring farm program sign up, as well as continued uncertainty about renewable fuels. There are also crop production costs to consider, and the hope that land values continue to moderate.
See: http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/blog/agriculture-2015-farm-program-sign-renewable-fuels-crop-production-and-land-values

Why Farmers in India Are Committing Suicide—and How a New App Is Poised to Change That
SourceTrace aims to help small farmers get paid quickly and connect directly to buyers.
From 1995 to 2005, India saw a historic number of farmer suicides: more than 30,000. This year, in just the state of Telangana, there have been 350 farmer suicides.
Small family-run farms are plagued with debt and financial problems brought on by insensitive and demanding money lenders—to the point where it’s driving them to sacrifice their lives, said Venkat Maroju. However, he says he has the solution: a new mobile-based application that can help small farmers get paid quickly, track their produce, and connect directly to clients.
See: http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/12/29/Indian-farmers-suicide-mobile-app

Is Africa using its potential?
The continent where 7 out of 10 people in the workforce are employed in agriculture continues to import food. Can this situation be changed in the foreseeable future, for the benefit of the national economies of African countries? Africa’s potential..
See: http://blog.pulawy.com/en/is-africa-using-its-potential/

Unlocking valuable crop residue
Agricen has developed Accomplish LM, a biochemical fertilizer catalyst designed to accelerate the breakdown and release of nutrients in residue and improve mineralization. It is not as temperature-sensitive as microbes and is compatible with a number of liquid fertilizers, herbicides and fungicides, Cornelious says
See: http://farmindustrynews.com/bioenergy/unlocking-valuable-crop-residue

Glyphosate makes some people a little bit crazy! (link already proposed in the last issue, see answers hereafter)
See: http://healthimpactnews.com/2014/mit-researcher-glyphosate-herbicide-will-cause-half-of-all-children-to-have-autism-by-2025/

Oh, no! GMOs are going to make everyone autistic!
See: http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2014/12/31/oh-no-gmos-are-going-to-make-everyone-autistic/

Glyphosate – The New Bogeyman (funny correlations)
See: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/glyphosate-the-new-bogeyman/

Jeffrey Smith’s claim of rampant GMO/gluten allergies rebuked by Celiac Disease Foundation
See: http://www.geneticliteracyproject.org/2013/12/05/jeffery-smiths-claim-of-rampant-gmogluten-allergies-rebuked-by-celiac-disease-foundation/

USDA Looks to Fund the Future of Agriculture
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) today announced the availability of more than $15 million for fellowships to train and develop the next generation of scientists who will lead agriculture into the future by solving current and future challenges facing society. NIFA will support pre- and post-doctoral fellowships, and for the first time, undergraduate fellowships.

NIFA funds the Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Human Sciences Education and Literacy Initiative through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The goal of the program is to support the intellectual talent needed to meet the challenges facing the nation’s agriculture, natural resource and food systems, which require innovative approaches in research, education and extension.
See: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/newsroom/news/2014news/12221_afri_fellowships.html

Ron Chester, 89 years of age, was stopped by the police around 2 a.m. and was asked where he was going at that time of night

Ron replied, "I'm on my way to a lecture about alcohol abuse and the effects it has on the human body, as well as smoking and staying out late."

The officer asked, "Really? Who's giving that lecture at this time of night?"

Ron replied, "That would be my wife."

The archives of this newsletter
See: http://www.informatique-agricole.org/category/gazette-efita/

Jokes, Quotes and Anecdotes... an Anatomy of Wit
Mick Harkin, ex Secretary of EFITA, who has kept us amused with his Friday Jokes over the years, has published a book on Amazon entitled "Jokes, Quotes and Anecdotes... an Anatomy of Wit".
See: http://www.jokesquotesandanecdotes.com
Contact: Mick HARKIN
E-mail: harkin(a)iol.ie

About the EFITA mailing list
You can use the efita moderated list (> 3800 subscribers) to announce any event / product / web site / joke (!) related to IT in agriculture, environment, food industry and rural areas.
If you want to subscribe a friend, please fill in his form.
If you do not wish to receive our messages, please fill in the following form...