The Real Dirt on Farm Aid, Farmer John and Some Down Home Music
The 20th annual Farm Aid concert was a huge success this Sunday. Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Emmylou Harris, Kenny Chesney, John Mellencamp, Wilco and others performed for over 10 hours before a crowd of 28,000. Ticket sales grossed $1.3 million with a portion directed to aid Gulf Coast hurricane relief effort victims as […]
Corporate Arm Wrestling: Hain Spectrum Deal Not Finalized
Word from the street (some call it gossip) is that Spectrum Organics is still in negotiations over final details of the company’s sale to the Hain Food Group. While no one suggested that the announced purchase by Hain is on the rocks, some folks wonder if the independent minded (some call it stubborn) Phillips is […]
Kerry on Katrina, Bush and the Boy Scouts
John Kerry, from a speech delivered at Brown University: “Katrina stripped away any image of competence and exposed to all the true heart and nature of this administration. The truth is that for four and a half years, real life choices have been replaced by ideological agenda, substance replaced by spin, governance second place always […]
We’re Skipping The Expo and Heading to Canada
NBN’s Own ‘Deep Throat’ To Report From the Show As we noted a few weeks ago more and more manufacturers are deciding that the increasingly high costs of exhibiting at both New Hope shows isn’t worth it. NBN was planning on attending, but a better opportunity came up last month. Instead we are flying to […]
NYC Union Expands Campaign Against Whole Foods
‘Right Wing’ Views Of WFM CEO To Be Publicized If you read NBN regularly, you know we love calling Whole Foods, America’s glitziest non-union grocer. When WFM’s second store launched on Union Square the site of many important battles in America’s labor movement, that the ghost’s of labor past were likely shaking their heads. Well […]
While Wall Street Licks Its Chops, Union Works To Protect Albertson’s Workers
While we weren’t surprised by the recent announcement that Albertson’s is looking for buyers nor the news of so many investment types anxiously throwing their hats into the ring of potential buyers, we were happily caught off guard by the fact that Supermarket News noted the United Food & Commerical Workers union’s concern over the […]
Organic Trade Association Executive Director DiMatteo Steps Down
The Organic Trade Association announced that that Katherine DiMatteo will be stepping down next spring. DiMatteo, the OTA’s Executive Director for 16 years has been a leader in the creation of numerous victories for those committed to organic food, most notably the often contentious and sometimes mind-numbing bureaucratic battle for the USDA National Organic Program […]
They’ll Take Staten Island? Brooklyn Turns Back Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart is batting 0 for 2 in its quest to finally open a location in New York City. Plans this spring to open a store in the Rego Park section of Queens failed and recent efforts to open a store in Brooklyn were rebuffed by the same combination of union, civic and small business activists […]
Power To The Peaceful
Spearhead’s Michael Franti once again led the 7th annual 911 Power To The Peaceful concert and gathering in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park today. Over 50,000 people gathered in a suprisingly beautiful fog free day to the creation of a world that works for everyone. Amidst the bleak news, the power is growing, people connecting. […]
Robert Kennedy On Violence
Words of Robert Kennedy, one of NBN’s heroes, from a speech delivered to the Cleveland City Club on April 5, 1968 one day after Martin Luther King was assasinated. If you take time to read anything today, put this on top of your list. Mr.Chairmen,Ladies And Gentlemen This is a time of shame and sorrow. […]
