www.ofa.org.au

2004 ended with one of the greatest natural disasters in recorded history. Having traveled extensively throughout the region over the last 30 years, I know many of the areas that have been devastated. With parts of Sumatra and large areas Myanmar still to be contacted, the final toll will never be known.

This is a region with a wonderful vibrant diversity of people and cultures. While many of them are materially poor by our standards, they had great riches in their families and communities. The saddest thing about this tragedy is that these have been taken from them in an unexpected moment.

Lets hope the whole world is united in 2005 to help the millions of people around the Indian Ocean to rebuild and recover. It would be wonderful to see the billions of dollars the world wastes on war redirected to alleviate poverty, hunger, disease and suffering.

The second bid for the Organic CRC has been unsuccessful. Two of the main reasons given by the government committee for deciding against an organic CRC was that there needed to be more benefits for Conventional Agriculture and that CSIRO should have been involved as a core partner.

The previous bid was not successful because it did not have enough commercial partners. This was addressed with significant commercial partners committing millions of dollars over the proposed life of the CRC.

The reasons given for the rejection of the bid are unacceptable however there are no avenues for appeal. Organic agriculture receives a pittance in research funding and an Organic CRC could have been a start to reverse this. It is an insult that the government is saying that the only way organic research can be funded is that this funding has to benefit conventional farming. They receive billions of dollars already. The sugar industry alone received over 400 million and the dairy industry has received a similar amount.

The issue about CSIRO being involved is ironic. One of the reasons why we need an Organic CRC is because CSIRO has either been hostile or indifferent to organic agriculture throughout its history. CSIRO had no interest in being involved in an Organic CRC bid because the bulk of its funds go into GMO research. In the last 7 years CSIRO has gone from being Australia’s leading scientific research organisation to little more than an annex of Monsanto and other biotechnology corporations. CSIRO is an example of government money subsidising huge multinational corporations.

IFOAM ensures the The World Conservation Union (IUCN) supports a Moratorium on GMO’s.
IFOAM World Board Member and OFA Vice Chair Liz Clay along with Bernward Geier, and Vitoon Panyakul participated at the IUCN World Congress in Bangkok, November 17-25.

A motion calling for a moratorium on GMOs was overwhelmingly supported by the 5000 delegates, including governments and NGOs alike. The IFOAM motion directing the IUCN to devote resources to the assessment of how GMOs impact biodiversity and to push for the implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety was approved.

IFOAM's defeats Greenwashing Proposal
IFOAM participated in the Ecoagriculture Conference, which took place September 27th to October 1st in Nairobi, Kenya at the World Agro forestry Center. IFOAM's expressed concerns about the suppression of discussion of organic agriculture, the inclusion of GMOs in the framework of Ecoagriculture, and the misuse of IFOAM's name and logo on the Ecoagriculture Partners website.

The proposal to institutionalize the Ecoagriculture initiative through a motion at the IUCN World Congress was one of only three motions out of some 120 to be defeated, demonstrating that IFOAM's view that Ecoagriculture as a concept is wrought with inconsistencies is widely supported by both governments and NGOs worldwide.

Greenwashing of GMO’s as sustainable systems combined with the suppression of organics is one of the major issues facing our industry.

Monsanto pays $1.3m fine for GM bribe
Monsanto has agreed to pay a $1.315 million ($US1 million) penalty to settle charges of bribing the Indonesian Government.

The company "agreed to accept responsibility for the conduct of its employees in paying the bribe and making the false books and records entries," the US Justice Department said in a statement.

The bribe made by a Monsanto employee was aimed at facilitating the cultivation of genetically modified crops and falsely certified as "consultant fees" in the company's books and records, assistant Attorney-General Christopher Wray said.

Mr Wray warned that "companies cannot bribe their way into favorable treatment by foreign officials".

Source ABC News 07-01-05

Hawaiian Papayas Contaminated with GMOs
Independent research has shown that most of Hawaii’s papaya plants have been contaminated with Genetically Modified DNA from commercially released GMO papayas.

China cannot find 1 million GMO Trees
Chinese authorities recently decided to plant 1 million GMO trees to halt the spread of deserts and flash flooding. Unfortunately no one thought to isolate them from native trees. The GMO trees cannot be individually identified, unless DNA testing is used, as there are no records of where they were planted.

Research in China is showing that the DNA from GMO poplars is showing up in native species. Scientists do not know what this will mean to forests and other natural environments in the future.

15th IFOAM Organic World Congress, September 19-23, Adelaide.
Over 450 paper submissions to the 15th IFOAM Organic World Congress have been recieved from all sectors: researchers, farmers, processors, traders, certifiers, policy makers, advisers and consumers.

The main Conference has received over 300 papers and the Scientific conference has received around 150 papers.

This world congress is shaping up to be the most important organic event to be held in Australia and one of the largest to ever happen anywhere in the world.

It will be a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet hundreds of organic colleagues from all over the world. The main gathering of the international organic movements only takes place once every three years and it is unlikely it will happen in Australia again in the foreseeable future This is the equivalent of the organic olympics. It will be an experience that will bring enormous benefits in friendships, contacts and new information in organic systems that will assist our farms and businesses.

For further information contact:
Jan Denham
IFOAM 2005, c/o NASAA, PO Box 768, Stirling SA 5152, Australia
Phone/Fax: +61 8 8339 7800
Email: ifoam2005@nasaa.com.au
http://www.nasaa.com.au/ifoam/

Invitation to participate at the symposium "Yes to globalization - but value-oriented, organic and fair" at BioFach 2005

The Symposium, co-organized with the German Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture, will take place Wednesday February 23rd, 2005 in Nuremberg, Germany from 14:00 to 18:30 in hall Brüssel.

Themes: Aspects of globalization vs. regionalization: How can globalization become organic and fair?

The opening keynote will be given by Renate Künast, Federal Minister of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture, and Dr. Vandana Shiva, Director of the Indian based Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology / Navdanya and winner of the Right Livelihood Award (alternative Nobel Prize), will give the keynote address as the guest of honor.

The symposium is primarily intended for representatives of organic organizations, trade, processing industry and government. Participation is free of charge but limited on a first come, first served basis. Early registration is recommended. Please use the official registration form.

There has been a range of constructive comments about the proposed OFA restructure. These will be considered by the Industry Working Group when finalising the restructure proposal. Comments are welcome until the end of February.

The OFA is currently upgrading our website. Our previous Webmaster, Dom O’Brien, has kindly agreed to assist in this project.

When it is finished it will be a very useful resource for everybody interested in organics.

I’m Marlin Krieger, <krishna.4@web.de> a German girl of 19 years. This summer I finish school with A-level. I was on a `waldorfschool’ or ‘rudolf steiner school’ and at a DEMETER Farm in June 2000. In this case the work was very manifold. The normal day looked like this: I had to stand up early in the morning to feed the cows, chickens, horses, goats and pigs. If that was done, the cows’ box, needed to been cleaned. Mostly I had to work on the fields: earning, planting, searching for weed and so on.

I’ve got a Working & Holiday Visa for one year. This allows me to work for three month at the same employer. I really would do every job. I know that many farms in Australia (and all over the world) work with poison. Because of this I would prefer biological farms. So it would be nice to hear from you, because of a possibility to work.

If you are interested in giving Marlin a job she can be contacted on <krishna.4@web.de>.

Collingwood Children's Farm Farmers’ Market
When: 2nd Saturday of every month in 2005; 12 Feb, 12 Mar, 9Apr,14 May, 11 June, 9 July, 13 Aug, 10 Sept, 8 Oct, 12 Nov, 10 Dec
Where: St Heliers Street, Abbotsford (Mel ref 44 G5)
Time: 8.00 am – 1.00 pm.
The Next Veg Out St Kilda Farmers’ Market, Saturday 22nd January
For more information please contact: Miranda Sharp on 0429 146 627

BioFach Symposium "Yes to globalisation - but value oriented, organic and fair
February 23rd, 2005
Nuremberg, Germany
petra.lorenz@nuernbergglobalfairs.com
Registration closes February 4th

BioFach
February 24-27, 2005
Nuremberg, Germany
f.venjakob@nuernbergglobalfairs.com
http://www.nuernbergglobalfairs.com/

All Things Organic
Conference: April 30 - May 3, 2005>
Exhibits: May 1 - 3, 2005
Chicago, Illinois
lmurray@divcom.com
http://www.organicexpo.com/

BioFach America
September 16-18, 2005
Organic Products Expo
Washington, D.C., USA
f.venjakob@nuernbergglobalfairs.com
http://www.nuernbergglobalfairs.com/

4th International Conference on Organic Textiles - Intercot
"Global Approaches to Organic Textiles"
May 1 - 3, 2005 in Chicago, Illinois USA
dgagnon@ota.com
http://www.intercot.org/2005/portal/loader.php

15th IFOAM Organic World Congress
September 19-23, 2005
Adelaide, Australia
ifoam2005@nasaa.com.au
http://www.nasaa.com.au/ifoam/

BioFach Japan
International Organic Trade Fair
September 21-23, 2005
Tokyo, Japan
f.venjakob@nuernbergglobalfairs.com

BioFach America Latina
November 16-18, 2005
International Organic Trade Fair and Conference
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
f.venjakob@nuernbergglobalfairs.com
http://www.nuernbergglobalfairs.com