In the middle of the fertile Willamette Valley in western Oregon, farmer Bob Wilt walks the rows of his 75-acre organic blueberry farm critically plucking ripe fruit for analysis. What he’s looking for is not sweetness or pest resistance (though these factors are certainly involved), but the fruit’s nutrient density. Thus far, his berries measure up. Test.

Organic Connections magazine has published a story on blueberry grower Bob Wilt who found that the more efficiently he was able to get minerals into his berries, the higher the brix measurement went. Hence, he concentrated on doing that and still does to this day. And as the brix has gone up, so has the flavor.

Beginning in the 1950s, America’s farmers were told to get big, or get out. It wasn’t just a slogan, it was USDA policy, a mantra recited by several secretaries of agriculture. That mindset, combined with a post-WWII explosion in chemical fertilizer use, made our farms larger and more productive than ever — but at a high price, with many small farmers vanishing and the introduction of new kinds of environmental challenges.

Remineralize the Earth Announces:

2009 RETECH Conference

Las Vegas, NV, February 25th-27th,
Las Vegas Convention Center

RPM Ecosystems Fast-Growing Trees
The International Biochar Initiative
and Remineralize the Earth

"There is one way we could save ourselves and that is through the massive
burial of charcoal. It would mean farmers turning all their agricultural
waste - which contains carbon that the plants have spent the summer
sequestering - into non-biodegradable charcoal, and burying it in the soil.
Then you can start shifting really hefty quantities of carbon out of the
system and pull the CO2 down quite fast."

Is it possible to grow food with exquisite flavor, beautiful shine, extraordinary nutrition, and extended shelf-life? According to growers who have done it, not only can farm-sized growing operations do it, but with the right tools and knowledge, people can do it in their own backyards. Practitioners of this kind of growing say their goal is to maximize crop nutrient density - the amount of nutrition per volume of crop - and that this can be done in a manner entirely consistent with certified organic growing practices.

Barre, MA – When more than 100 farmers converge this February in Barre for a 3 day seminar, they'll be focusing on a topic of serious concern to a growing number of consumers: the nutrition and taste of our food. The Northeast Organic Farming Association, Massachusetts Chapter has arranged for the worldwide farmer consultant, Dr. Arden Andersen, to give this intensive seminar to farmers on how they can increase the nutrient density, taste, and yield of their crops.

On December 3rd and 4th of 2008 at ACORE in Washington DC, Real Food Campaign Director Dan Kittredge spoke at the Phase II of Renewable Energy in America Conference with Joel Salatin, a well-known player in the eco/sustainable farming movement, on the subject of food and fee.

RTE and the Real Food Campaign at NOFA Summer Conference 2008

Director of our Real Food Campaign, Dan Kittredge offered the first workshop in an exciting workshop series related to remineralization at the 34th Annual Northeast Organic Farming Association's Summer Conference held in Amherst, MA from August 8-10, 2008.

From left to right: Dan Kittredge, Director of the Real Food Campaign; Dr. Arden Anderson, Keynote Speaker; and Joanna Campe, President and Executive Director of RTE

The conference opened with keynote speaker Dr. Arden Andersen. Both a medical doctor and a world leader in sustainable agriculture, Dr. Andersen believes that health begins with healthy soil and is helping to lead an agricultural revolution that will improve our bodily health and the health of the environment by restoring real nutritional content to our food. Dr. Andersen is a key inspiration and proponent of remineralization and the Real Food Campaign.

Dan Kittredge in his workshop covered Nutrient Dense Crop Production and David Yarrow spoke on the Importance of Minerals, Trace Elements and Microbes for Crops and Health. RTE generated much interest as an exhibitor, offering information about Remineralize the Earth and its project, the Real Food Campaign.

For more information about the conference click here.

Organic Connections, a wonderful magazine put out by Natural Vitality, has recently won a design award. The magazine often carries articles on RTE and soil remineralization. The recent July-August issue featured an article with Dr. Arden Andersen titled How We Can Restore Nutritional Content to Our Food. The coming September-October issue will feature RTE Director Dan Kittredge and the Real Food Campaign. For a free subscription, go to Organic Connections.

Much of RTE's sponsorship for 2007-2008 has come through a percentage of profits paid by Natural Vitality through their Natural Revitalization program. To see a video and story about this program, click here.

The Potential of Remineralization with Rock Mineral Fines to Transform Agriculture, Forestry, Sustainable Biofuel Production, Sequester Carbon and Stabilize the Climate

Remineralize the Earth (RTE), an international nonprofit (NGO) based in Northampton, Massachusetts has been invited by the State Department to sponsor an Official Side Event at the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference 2008 (WIREC) on March 3rd. President Joanna Campe and Executive Director Dan Kittredge will be speakers.