HARRISBURG, Pa. - Many Pennsylvanians are deciding about now whether to buy a fake Christmas tree or a real one this season. It's a choice that has environmental and economic impacts.

Bill Ulfelder, director of The Nature Conservancy, says natural Christmas trees provide major environmental benefits, like capturing global warming emissions and preventing erosion. He says most fake trees are manufactured abroad using polyvinyl chlorides, PVCs.

"Folks use an artificial tree for about five or six years. So, energy intensive to produce, energy intensive to ship, and then it just sits there in a landfill and doesn't biodegrade."

Ulfelder says there are many environmental benefits to real Christmas trees.

"They capture climate-changing gases from the atmosphere, so they help abate climate change; they're putting oxygen into the air for us to breathe; they're good for wildlife, mammals, birds, insects."

He says there are more than 12,000 Christmas tree farms nationwide, and you can help farmers by buying a native tree.

"My family and I, we're always looking to make sure we get a local tree. The other thing that's starting to happen is more and more organic Christmas trees, trees produced with no pesticides or herbicides, also better for the environment."

He says one acre of Christmas trees provides enough fresh oxygen for 18 people.

The Pennsylvania Christmas Tree Growers Association says real trees clean our water and make it safe for drinking, boating, and swimming, provide vital habitat for wildlife, and save money by reducing the cost of stormwater runoff. Pennsylvania has more Christmas tree farms than any other state, over 2100 operations contributing in excess of $17 million to the state's economy.

More information is at bit.ly/twqCSF and www.nature.org





get more stories like this via email

Advocates for a fair, sustainable, and healthy food system have released a report showing that nearly all of the corn seed in Iowa is controlled by just four companies.

Economists say concentrations that large can lead to market manipulation.

Farm Action's report shows nearly 90% of the corn seed in Iowa is controlled by Corteva and Bayer. AgReliant and Syngenta control the rest.

Farm Action President Angela Huffman said that kind of control and concentration is happening all the way from seeds to the consumer's plate, and she warns it makes market conditions ripe for abuse.

"This is the scenario in almost every sector of the food supply chain," said Huffman. "Seeds, fertilizer, farm equipment - beef, pork, and poultry processing - and retail groceries. Every one of those sectors I just named has upwards of 60%, to even 85%, of those markets controlled by four corporations."

The same type of consolidation is happening in ag operations where livestock are raised in large confinements - and manure runoff is known to damage the air, ground, and surface water in rural Iowa.

Operators have said they're always looking for more efficient and environmentally friendly ways to raise livestock.

Huffman argued that monopolies like this can lead to collusion, price fixing, and other types of market manipulation.

She and other advocates have called on lawmakers in Congress to address the issue in the pending Farm Bill.

"We're calling on the government to reclaim its role as an enforcer of our antitrust laws, and break up these dominant corporations," said Huffman, "in order to free our economy to start working for the people who are producing, processing and distributing our food."

The current Farm Bill, which was supposed to expire in September of last year, has been extended - but debate still hasn't started on a new version.




get more stories like this via email

A federal bill could spell trouble for New York farmers.

The Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression Act would remove local and state governments' power to enact policies affecting farms. Studies show it could spell the end for more than 1,000 public health, safety and welfare laws.

Michael Chameides, a member of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors, said farmers do not want such vital farm laws terminated.

"There's a real urgency to pass a robust Farm Bill that really does support rural communities and support farmers and support people all around the country to get healthy, safe and affordable food," Chameides contended. "There's lots of reasons for Congress to take action to support farmers and the EATS Act is not it."

The measure began as a way to counter the animal welfare laws enacted through California's Proposition 12. The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court about Proposition 12. After the court rejected it, several Republican governors sent a letter to Congressional lawmakers urging the reintroduction of the act.

Recently, the Columbia County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution opposing the EATS Act.

Some lawmakers want to put elements of the act into the Farm Bill. But Chameides noted what farmers really need is access to land, loans and support from the federal government through the Farm Bill. He argued the bill's effects on New York would mean repealing laws ranging from controlling invasive species to animal welfare.

"Rolling those laws back you might see the spread of either diseases or invasive species which are going to have both public health impacts," Chameides pointed out. "But also that it could impact the viability of certain kinds of farming."

Chameides noted regional response laws are important because of the rapid and often unpredictable nature of certain invasive species and the spread of disease. He added passing the act could upend states' rights.

The growing season is winding down in New Mexico and experts want to make sure the people preserving green chile for the colder months are doing it right.

Amber Benson, Bernalillo County extension agent, said four food preservation techniques will be highlighted during online training workshops next month for the native New Mexico chile. They include drying, freezing, freeze-drying and pressure-cooking. She noted the presentations are free and participants may attend one or all.

"There's an increasing interest in home food preservation, with the cost of food, and during COVID we learned that our food supply chain obviously had some weak points," Benson recounted. "It's just a really great way for people to empower themselves over their own food."

She explained freeze-drying dehydrates food by freezing it and is different from older methods of food preservation. New Mexico State University will hold online training workshops on four Tuesday mornings in October. Capacity is limited to 50 people per session and advance registration is required.

Benson noted green chile can refer both to a plant and a prepared dish, which can vary in consistency from a thick, pork-laden stew to salsa. The series of classes on green chile preservation is the first of its kind, with extension agents in five different counties participating.

"Particularly in New Mexico, we're buying roasted green chile most of the time," Benson observed. "People need to know, 'Oh, do we take the tops off? Do we keep the seeds in? Will it get hotter over time?' People have tons of questions about freezing and drying, so we'll definitely cover both of those."

She added several extension offices across the state have freeze dryers available for the public to use. Last year, New Mexico lawmakers and the governor attracted loads of national attention for approving legislation that declared the smell of roasting green chile the state's aroma, the first state in the nation to adopt an official aroma.


get more stories like this via email