Information about the Aspen Ideas Festival is here. I am scheduled for a session, The American Wellness Paradox, currently scheduled from 11:00-11:50 a.m., at the East Lawn Tent. This will be a discussion with senior HHS policy advisor, Calley Means. Here’s the blurb on it: “Americans are spending more than ever on healthcare, supplements, wellness trends, and “clean eating,” yet rates of chronic disease and metabolic illness continue to climb. As skepticism fuels the rise of movements like MAHA, debates over what Americans should eat have become deeply cultural, political, and economic. Two influential voices with sharply different perspectives on nutrition and food science explore how food systems, farming practices, consumer culture, and the wellness industry collided to create one of the defining public health debates of our time.”
by Marion Nestle
Oct
2
2017
Rodale introduces Regenerative Organic Certification
The Rodale Institute has a new Regenerative Organic certification program with four requirements that include but go beyond those for USDA Certified Organic:
- Increase soil organic matter over time, and potentially sequester carbon in the soil
- Improve animal welfare
- Provide economic stability and fairness for farmers, ranchers, and workers
- Create resilient regional ecosystems and communities
An Infographic illustrates how it works. It’s based on three pillars:
This program seems to address most of the major criticisms of USDA’s National Organic Program. I will be interested to see whether farmers sign on for it.
