Hello. We're back on the proverbial horse. Those grant proposals that held us up last month are out the door (well, mostly) and we've got another timely update to keep you busy this 4th of July weekend.

Forget sparklers and fireworks. Celebrate your Independence by joining our latest Action Campaign:
The USDA is having a hard time believing that any buyer would boycott an organic product just because it may be contaminated with GMOs. Vanessa Bogenholm, Chair of the Board of Directors of California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) and an organic farmer, has an hour to convince US Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman and NOP Program Director Richard Matthews that organic markets will disappear if contamination isn't prevented.
ACT NOW! Preserve GM-free organic. Let Vanessa take your letter directly to Secretary Veneman and Richard Matthews.

Intern Journal Our newest addition to the NF family brings young blood and fresh insight to organic farming. In this first journal entry, four interns from across the US and beyond share their experiences with Mexican mud ovens, no-till pumpkin patches, cherry thieves and the demands of leading a double life.
The highs and lows of a job well-done

Alternative energy on the brain As our wind power series ends, we turn our eye to biofuels. Cleaner-burning biomass fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel are being touted as solutions to our looming energy crisis. But if the corporate giants continue to abuse Federal subsidies at taxpayers' expense, the current alternative fuels market will collapse. This is the first in a three-part series that confronts problems with the current industry, explores how family farms and local economies might play in a better model, and offers how-to advice for creating and sustaining that model.
Exploiting clean energy for profit

GRASS FARMERS:
2nd in a series on sustainable ranching in Wyoming

One set of guiding principles, a wealth of different practices
The key to Holistic Range Management is thinking creatively and independently, adapting its rules to the ever-changing conditions of ranch life. Lisa Hamilton talks with four ranchers about their translations of HRM.

NEWS FROM MARIQUITA: A CSA Journal
Keep Truckin'
Stop! Put that plastic truck (or other piece of marketing swag) down and back away. Think smart promotion to keep your small farm in the public eye.

Balancing farmland preservation and development
The 15 year-old Crystal Waters Permaculture Village near Brisbane, Australia, is forging a model for the 'sustainable suburb' by nurturing diverse, small-scale agricultural enterprises in the midst of residential areas.

Project Coordinator, the Michigan Land Use Institute
Entrepreneurial Ag Project Seeks Writer/Coordinator
Join influential land-use policy group's professional team

Family farm group seeks to expand consumer knowledge with free booklet
Farm Aid's 10 Ways to Ensure Healthy Food for You and Your Family outlines 10 action steps ordinary citizens can take.

op/eds

Study Confirms Safety of Organic Food, But Agrichemical Front Group Attempts to Twist Findings

READER MAIL
DEAR NEW FARM:
• Is there an OMRI approved control for Harlequin bug?

• I am interested in using wind to pump water for irrigation.Can you refer me to some information?

READER COMMENTARY:
Keep your politics off my food
New Farm reader and restaurateur asks us to get back to farming, food production and our family dinner tables, and leave the issues of social engineering to the academics.

Canadian sustainable ag professor takes issue with Percy’s detractors
Don’t believe everything you read, University of Guelph professor urges. After reviewing the actual court transcripts, you may see the "facts" in a different light.

ASK JEFF:
• What methods and equipment do you use to spread hay seed?

• Have you calculated the down-pressure on each blade of your cover crop roller necessary to crush the stems of rye?