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10.  Trouble Brews For French Grower Using Vegetable Oil Fuel
A grower in France, Olivier Lainé, is in trouble with the law for driving a vehicle powered by an "unauthorized fuel"    pure vegetable oil, made from colza, or rape seed, grown on his own farm. He drove the truck on public roads.

A directive passed by the European Union last year instructs member states to encourage the use of pure vegetable oil as a form of fuel for diesel-powered vehicles. Paris, however, has failed so far to put the directive into law. On top of that, it is illegal to drive vegetable-powered vehicles on public roads because taxes have not been paid on the fuel.

Lainé, however, doesn't see himself as a criminal. He claims he is a revolutionary. Using pure vegetable oil as a fuel will contribute to solving problems, not making them, he says. 

Source: Independent News & Media Ltd., London, England

11. Special Talk

 

Dr. Cornelia Flora Butler

Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor of Agriculture and Sociology
Director, North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
Iowa State University
 

Socio-technical Regime and the Changing Agricultural Landscape

 Tuesday, October 3, 2006
Gold A Room MSU Union, 3:45-5:00 pm

Why do farmers do what they do?  The socio-technical regime, more than individual farmer characteristics, determines the agricultural landscape, often creating an industrial agricultural wasteland of corn and soybeans.  Illustrated by Iowa agriculture, the socio-technical regime is the rule set comprised in the coherent complex composed of

        Technical knowledge
        Engineering practices
        Product characteristics
        Skills and procedures
        Ways of handling relevant artifacts and persons
        Production process techniques
        Ways of defining problems

These are embedded in institutions and infrastructures.  Examples will be presented, along with discussion of how to change it.

Cornelia Butler Flora is past president of the Rural Sociological Society, the Community Development Society, and the Society for Agriculture, Food and Human Values. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.  She is author and editor of a number of recent books, including Interactions Between Agroecosystems and Rural Communities, Rural Communities: Legacy and Change 2nd edition, and Sustainable Agriculture in Temperate Zone, as well as over 175 articles and reviews.  She was appointed to the National Agricultural Research, Education and Economics Advisory Board in 2003, where she is on the Executive Committee.  Her research focuses on community-level interventions to bring about positive, systemic change that includes healthy ecosystems, vital economies, and social inclusion.

12. CSA Conference 2006

November 10-12, 2006: Second Biennial Conference for Community Supported Agriculture: Raising vegetables and civic values: The role of CSA in the 21st Century.

Join us at the Kettunen Center (just south of Cadillac, Michigan) to learn more about CSA – with speakers and workshops for the prospective, new or experienced CSA farmer. Speakers include CSA pioneers Steven McFadden and Scott Chaskey. Sponsored by CSA-MI (with help from the sponsors listed below). Information at 231-889-3216. 

 

****Check out the WEB site for registration and details about pre conference workshop to starting a CSA    http://www.csafarms.org/ ****

13. Mark your Calendar! the 18th Annual Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference

February 22-24, 2007

In downtown La Crosse, WI February 22, 2007 In La Crosse, WI

Held one day prior to the UMOFC, the

Organic University provides 9 intensive full-day

courses in organic agriculture.

The Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference & the Organic University

are projects of the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service.

More than 130 Exhibitors!

www.mosesorganic.org 715-772-3153

 

 

That’s all for this week. Hope your harvest is going well and your markets are growing!

 

Vicki Morrone

Organic Vegetable and Crop Outreach Specialist

Michigan State University

C.S. Mott Sustainable Food Systems

303 Natural Resources Bldg.

East Lansing, MI 48824

517-353-3542

517-282-3557 (cell)

517-353-3834 (fax)

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