Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
The Organic Consumers Association (OCA), a Minnesota-based non-profit organization advocating for organic and sustainable agriculture, has issued a list of six reasons why former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack should not be appointed Secretary of Agriculture by President-Elect Barack Obama.
In a release titled “Six Reasons Why Obama Appointing Monsanto’s Buddy, Former Iowa Governor Vilsack, for USDA Head is a Terrible Idea,” OCA points to Vilsack’s support of genetically engineered pharmaceutical crops, his ties to The Monsanto Co. and his support of corn and soy based biofuels, which the group says “use as much or more fossil energy to produce them as they generate, while driving up world food prices and literally starving the poor.”
Vilsack has a glowing reputation as being a schill for agribusiness biotech giants like Monsanto. Sustainable ag advocated across the country were spreading the word of Vilsack’s history as he was attempting to appeal to voters in his presidential bid. An activist from the west coast even made this youtube animation about Vilsack http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmoc4Qgcm4s The airplane in this animation is a referral to the controversy that Vilsack often traveled in Monsanto’s jet.
Despite Vilsack’s early and outspoken support for Obama’s rival for the Democratic nomination, Sen. Hillary Clinton, he has been mentioned in major national publications as potential selection for Secretary of Agriculture.
(h/t to Bleading Heartland)
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