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The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy promotes resilient family farms, rural communities and ecosystems around the world through research and education, science and technology, and advocacy.
3/5: Minn Post. Minnesota Should Move Boldly Toward Greener Biofuels 3/4: Agrinews. Organic Conference Attracts 2,400 People to LaCrosse 2/28: The Economist. Don't Mix 2/28: Finance and Commerce. Investment Needed to Meet Demand for Local Food 2/28: Hastings Star Gazette. Group Seeks Pesticide, Toy Chemical Changes 2/27: Star Tribune. Pesticide Right-to-Know Act Would Give More Information 2/19: Agrinews. Americans Will Have to Wait for a New Energy System 2/9: Financial Express.Sixty Years of Multilateral Trade 2/8: United Press International. New RFS Law Already Under Fire 2/8: Foreign Policy in Focus. Mexicans Say - Integrate This! 2/6: Twin Cities Daily Planet. Farmer Agreement Offers Alternative to NAFTA's Failures 2/3: Mankato Free Press. Sustainable ag challenge: reap, sow - market |
Starring Peace Coffee 
IATP started Peace Coffee in 1996 to show that a 100 percent fair trade and organic coffee company could help farmers around the world and serve as a viable business model. Now, 12 years later Peace Coffee is thriving and staying true to its commitment to fair trade, farmers and environmental sustainability. A new video by filmmakers Gabe and Jacob of 612 Authentic Media captures the spirit of Peace Coffee. Cattle Abuse Highlights Systemic Weaknesses  On February 17, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the largest beef recall - 143 million pounds - in the nation's history. IATP's Steve Suppan writes in a commentary, which appeared in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, that the recall "is emblematic of a meat food safety system cracking at its foundation. . .While contamination outbreaks have increased, our food safety inspection system has declined."
Read "Cattle abuse, beef recall highlight systemic weaknesses." Global System Needs a Makeover 
As the World Trade Organization talks continue to stall, IATP is developing alternative proposals to better manage trade and development in a way that prioritizes people, communities and the environment. In the latest issue of the magazine Trade Insight, IATP's Carin Smaller identifies the problems with current global institutions and plots a path forward. Carin writes, "The past 60 years of multilateralism have been characterized by a deep disconnect between the international trade and investment regimes on the one hand, and the body of international norms that evolved out of the UN system on human rights, labour and the environment, on the other." Read "The Global System Needs a Makeover." New Agriculture Text at the WTO Falls Short - Again 
In February, the WTO released a new draft of trade rules for agriculture. But the proposal adds little new to a deeply flawed negotiating agenda, finds IATP's Trade Information Project. Following the release of the new text, IATP held a briefing for 23 developing country delegates with Ramesh Sharma of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to discuss, in depth, aspects of the new WTO agriculture text related to food security. Read IATP's press release on the new WTO agriculture text. Does Free Trade Solve All Problems? 
Over the past decade, free trade advocates have argued that further trade deregulation is the solution to nearly every major problem the world faces, including terrorism, climate change, and the instability of global financial markets. In a new commentary, IATP's Alexandra Strickner and Christian Felber of the Association for the Taxation of Capital Transfers for the Benefit of People (ATTAC) in Austria write that trade deregulation is exacerbating many of these global challenges, not solving them. Read "Is free trade an `insurance' against financial turbulence?" Mexican, U.S. and Canadian Legislators Meet on NAFTA  As the Democratic presidential candidates debate the merits of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), elected officials from the U.S., Canada and Mexico met with non-governmental organizations, including IATP, in Washington D.C. The March 5 conference, "Linking Agriculture, Development and Migration: A Critical Look at NAFTA Past, Present and Future," focused on NAFTA's impact on the rural landscape and initiatives to expand the agreement with the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP). The meeting was a follow-up to a conference hosted by IATP in October 2007 to identify the problems of NAFTA and prioritize solutions moving forward.
Read the press release on the conference. Minnesota vs. $100 Barrel Oil 
As oil rises to more than $100 a barrel, governments at all levels are looking for ways to develop renewable energy and fuel alternatives. In Minnesota, IATP and Clean Energy Minnesota are working to shift from corn-based ethanol toward energy and fuel powered by native perennial grasses. IATP's Don Arnosti writes in a commentary, appearing in Minn Post, about how biomass from native grasses could help Minnesota break from $100 oil "toward greener fuel and energy that creates jobs, protects the environment, slows climate change and establishes the state as a national and international leader." Read Minnesota vs. $100 Barrel Oil. Baby Bottle Study Spurs State Legislation 
A new study finds that the toxic chemical bisphenol A (BPA) leaches from plastic baby bottles as they age. BPA is a hormone disrupting chemical that is commonly found it baby bottles and sippy cups. The majority of baby bottles on the market are made with BPA, which is linked to obesity, diabetes, thyroid disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer and other illnesses - even at low doses. The good news is safer products exist and are already on the market today. There are currently no safety standards regulating BPA in the U.S. In Minnesota, IATP and the Healthy Legacy coalition are working to pass legislation to require a phase out of BPA and phthalates (another hormone-disrupting chemical) from products geared toward children ages three and under. Read the press release. Jim Hightower, April 3, 6:30-8:30pm, St. Joan of Arc Church, 4537 Third Ave., S. Minneapolis. 
Acclaimed author and activist Jim Hightower will talk about his new book, Swim Against the Current: Even a Dead Fish Can Go With the Flow. IATP is co-sponsoring the event, along with Peace Coffee, Wellstone Action, and St. Joan of Arc Church. The event is free and open to the public. World of Good IATP is partnering with World of Good and eBay on a new web site with a mission to create positive change through commerce, as part of a global community. IATP is one of several NGO media providers for the site, writing articles and blogs on fair trade and other issues of global sustainability. Check out the World of Good site. Radio Sustain 
Listen to the latest Radio Sustain podcast, where we talk with Mark Schapiro about his new book on toxic chemicals in consumer products, IATP board member Rod Leonard on the recent USDA meat recall and IATP's Jim Kleinschmit on Minnesota's efforts to convert to sustainable biomass production. Listen to Radio Sustain - March 10 podcast. Blogging on Globalization, Food Sovereignty and Climate Change 
At IATP's Think Forward blog you can read about Alexandra Spieldoch's meeting with Canadian Dairy farmers, Sophia Murphy connecting War and Peace and second-best economics, and the poultry industry's internal squabbles over antibiotic use. Read Think Forward. Donate to IATP! You can help. IATP does very important work to keep family farmers on the land, to ensure the safety of our food supply and to preserve biodiversity and the environment for future generations. We cannot do this work without you. Your tax-deductible contribution will help us secure a sustainable world. For more information about our programs, or if you would like to discuss different contribution options, please contact Kate Hoff, Development Director, at khoff@iatp.org or (612) 870-3404. We appreciate your interest in our work. Thank you for your support. IATP News is an occasional publication reporting on recent events and activities at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). It is sent to board members, supporters, partners and friends. Your comments and suggestions are appreciated. Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) |
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IATP's journal of fair trade, resilient rural communities, safe food and a healthy environment. (All files are MP3s.) More about Radio Sustain
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Ideas for a healthier food system, Beyond the USDA, Copenhagen wrap-up and more...
IATP's podcast on fair trade, resilient rural communities, safe food and a healthy environment.
February 22 podcast MP3
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Check out what the Star Tribune had to say about IATP's award-winning, 100% organic and fair trade coffee company, Peace Coffee.
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