August 3rd, 2007 by Leanne
Peakfood is delighted to announce that it has won a ‘Blogging for Positive Global Change Award’.
The award was originally created by Climate of Our Future to recognise bloggers who “are trying to build awareness among their readership 
in order to create a more sustainable and enlightened future.”
Our thanks go to Sara from Farming Friends who was kind enough to nominate us. Amongst other things, Sara writes a blog of everyday life on her 250 acre arable and livestock farm. Her video clip of a lamb being born is well worth a look.
We in turn nominate the following blogs for the Positive Global Change Award: Read the rest of this entry »
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June 30th, 2007 by Leanne
Yesterday the Chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission, Jonathon Porritt, gave this review of Famine in the West:
“As you might imagine, “Famine in the West” doesn’t beat around the bush. The combination of diminishing supplies of cheap fossil fuels plus the rapidly worsening impacts of climate change points to a future of food scarcity and possible famine in many parts of the world. Our un-preparedness in the face of such a threat is startling, and the institutionalised denial on the part of our media, political parties and business leaders defies belief. You would have thought that what is happening in Australia might have sent out a few warning signals. The fact that John Gossop is himself a farmer makes it all the more compelling, providing us with a robust and authoritative antidote to the dangerously irrelevant “business as usual” bullshit that dominates so much of today’s debate about the future of farming.”
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Today David Richardson wrote in the Farmers Weekly that Famine in the West was “impressive” and ”thoroughly researched with obvious vigour.” He also said:
“And although its academic content is excellent, it is written in language that can be readily understood by farmers and non-farmers alike. Indeed, I strongly recommend it, especially to Gordon Brown and David Miliband, who clearly have not yet appreciated its message.
“John Gossop pulls together the host of statistics on global warming, declining oil supplies and increasing demand for food that have been released, piecemeal, over recent years. He concludes that the world has been living on cheap energy created by photosynthesis and the power of the sun millions of years ago and that its availability and cheapness are drawing to a close.
“He believes the energy crisis will come much faster than most commentators expect and that this, combined with competition for land to produce food, will trigger famine, even in the wealthy west, within 12 to 15 years. He despairs at the culture of denial that rules in many countries and he calls for the pending disaster to be tackled urgently on a worldwide basis.
“He cites emergency measures taken during World War II that enabled the Allies to increase the production of armaments and food that were crucial in defeating the Nazis. He believes that the worsening crisis should be tacked on a similar war footing and start immediately. He proposes measures that he claims would enable farmers to make significant contributions to our survival.”
If you would like to read Famine in the West the ebook is available at the special introductory price of £2.50 (about $4.99). Alternatively you can order a printed version that becomes available in August, with no obligation to buy then.
