Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Are You Aware of Walmart's Power To Control Farm Production Practices?

Walmart wants Iowans to
farm by its principles


Never mind the government regulators. When it
comes to influencing the way farmers grow their
crops, the real power someday may be Walmart, the
nation's largest food retailer.

Walmart pledges to double sales of locally grown
food by 2015 and also is taking steps to ensure that
all the food it sells is produced in sustainable ways.
Walmart wants to measure and set farm-to-fork
standards for the energy and natural resource
impacts of food production.

The company hasn't been specific yet about what
these initiatives will mean for farmers in Iowa. Work
on the sustainability standards for domestically
produced foods has just started.

But Walmart says it is interested in improving soil
quality and conserving water and fossil fuels. In the
run-up to announcing the plan last month, top
Walmart executives flew into Iowa at least twice and
toured three Iowa farms that either follow organic
methods or are known for innovative environmental
practices.

"They seemed to get it," said Ron Rosmann, an
organic farmer near Atlantic. He said the Walmart
executives talked knowledgeably about hot-button i
ssues such as antibiotic usage in livestock and the
environmental benefits of organic practices. "They
were saying this is what we need more of," he said.

Farm groups are watching Walmart's plans
cautiously, given that the company has the market
power to force them to change practices without
compensating them for the higher production costs
that could result.

"I'm not under any illusion that farmers are going to
get premiums for these practices," said Russell
Williams, who is following the Walmart initiative for
the American Farm Bureau Federation. "It's going to
be a cost of doing business. If that's the case, we're
going to have to focus on how not to destroy farm
income."

I saw this article in the Des Moines Register and thought it is relevant here in Ontario as well.

Here is the link to the whole article: 

 

 

 

 

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101107/BUSINESS01/110703...

 

 

 

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by OntAG Admin on November 8, 2010 at 4:15am
Interesting article from New York state on consumer preferences influencing farming practices.

Farmers React to Changing Marketplace to Survive http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20101031/NEWS09/310310003

Also in the article::

Wegmans Food Markets Inc. requires its suppliers to provide documentation that they follow Good Agricultural Practices, or GAPs, a national program that Cornell University runs in New York that monitors risk-reducing procedures surrounding worker hygiene, water quality, manure and other factors. For years, Wegmans has recommended that local growers get GAP-certified; this was the first year it was required.
Permalink Reply by Bristow on November 8, 2010 at 6:37am
When do Monsato come into the picture. It will be soon than you think from production to the table. With the trend of government take over of some commersial enterprizes. As with the oil industry with opec countries holding lion shares in banks, car production and of course the shipping and production. It is only a matter of time before the producer of seed, chemicals for production will move into the transport, and distrubution of its production as it will be the only one produced. A push by Walmart to sell a organic product cuts into profits of large scale gm food production. But I guess they would have some cosely deal we don;t know. As for shares in these companys, I am quiet sure, your franked shares will be worth something one day, like the money producted out nothing but debt.

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