-The Times of India Hooked to organic food for its supposed health benefits? Here's some food for thought. In the largest analysis of studies till date on organic food, researchers from Stanford University have said there is "little evidence of healthier benefits from organic food over those grown conventionally". The researchers found no difference in protein or fat content between organic and conventional milk. No consistent differences were also seen in the...

-Live Mint Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, the world’s biggest tractor maker by volume, cut its forecast for sales growth of the farm equipment in India as the worst rainfall in three years delays crop sowing. Mahindra estimates industry sales to expand as little as 2% in the year ending 31 March, Pawan Goenka, president of the automotive and farm equipment division at the Mumbai-based company, said in an email response on Thursday. Goenka...

-Frontline A recession-hit world is only just waking up to the prospect of the coming food crisis resulting in a period of political turmoil with unexpected consequences.  For the third time in five years, the world is braced for another food crisis. Bad weather conditions are leading to projections of major production shortfalls in some of the world’s leading food suppliers. Substantially reduced access and sharp price increases are, therefore, expected to...

-The Economic Times India's rice exports are likely to jump as much as 15% this year after the government scrapped the minimum export price (MEP) of $700 per tonne. "India's annual basmati exports will surpass last year's figure in the current fiscal," said Sumeet Saluja, managing director, Whitefields Overseas, which markets basmati under the brand name India Crown. Total rice shipments, including basmati and non-basmati, were 7.3 million tonne in 2011-12. Of this,...

-The Guardian US leaders worked hard to tackle the 1930s drought and food crisis. Today they are supine, offering the hungry only prayers If you're wondering whether the US drought will create a global food crisis, the answer's easy. It's yes, because there's a food crisis already. The latest year for which we have figures is 2010, when 925 million people were declared malnourished. Soon after the number was announced, the World...