Mark Kastel

Oct 13, 2024 | commondreams.org | Mark Kastel

Some of the oldest and largest U.S. Department of Agriculture-accredited certifiers have partnered with corporate agribusiness to change the working definition of organics, allowing large livestock factories; certified, uninspected imports; and soilless hydroponic produce grown in giant industrial greenhouses to be certified organic. Organic certifiers are mixing lobbying, marketing, and activism with their certification responsibilities, and taking payola from the clients they certify.

Oct 13, 2024 | commondreams.org | Mark Kastel

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Jun 19, 2024 | organicinsider.com | Cathy Siegner |Mark Kastel |Daniel Hernandez |Daniel Hernández |Elizabeth Crawford

(Photo credit to Sarah Anne Ward / Consumer Reports) How Organic Insider operates: We accept no advertising, we have no paywalls and we make our newsletters free to everyone because vital information about our industry needs to get out to as many people as possible. Please consider supporting our work, whether you are an individual or a company. Thank you so much.

Jun 11, 2024 | organiceye.org | Mark Kastel

Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America’s Food Industry by Austin Frerick is a factual account detailing the who, what, how, when, and why of the US food industry becoming sordid. He chose seven “robber barons” who control parts of our food production system (hogs, grains, coffee, dairy, berries, slaughterhouses, and grocery stores) to elucidate what the American food system has become.

May 4, 2024 | organiceye.org | Mark Kastel

OrganicEye Executive Director, Mark Kastel, and his shelter cat, Kovu, adopted Pippin who was abandoned as a kitten — all three enjoy an all-organic diet. Comments are due Friday, May 10 (11:59 PM Eastern)Note: The USDA proposed rule discussed below sets much-needed standards for both organic pet food and mushroom production. We are weighing in only on the pet food portion. The USDA has proposed rules to make the standards for certified organic pet food more consistent.