New Lawsuit Filed Over GMO Alfalfa
The next skirmish over genetically modified
foods is getting underway, pitting a coalition of environmental,
consumer and food-safety groups against the federal government. Early this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved
unrestricted planting of a type of GM alfalfa engineered by Monsanto. To
the average consumer, that might not sound like such a big deal-after
all, we’re not rabbits.
But rabbits aren’t the only animals that like to munch on the sweet
grass. Alfalfa is the primary food source for cows, too. No only that,
but alfalfa has a wily propensity to cross-pollinate across miles; over
time, opponents say, there’s no way to ensure that the GM variety
doesn’t intermix with the non-GM variety. What that means is that the government’s decision to approve the use of
GM alfalfa could spell the end of organic dairy products, ranging from
milk to yogurt. By law, no GM ingredients can be used in the production
of anything labeled “organic.”
Opponents also charge that widespread use of GM alfalfa will result
in the release of an estimated 23 million more pounds of toxic chemicals
into the environment. That’s because Monsanto developed its GM alfalfa
to withstand application of its Roundup
herbicide. Currently, more than 90 percent of the alfalfa grown in the
U.S. does not use any herbicide, according to the UDSA. Critics say that
planting GM alfalfa will not only lead to more herbicide use, it will
encourage an already growing problem of herbicide-resistant weeds,
so-called “superweeds.”
A broad coalition of groups, ranging from environmental organizations
such as Earthjustice to public advocacy groups such as the Center for
Food Safety, have filed suit in federal court to block USDA’s decision.
“Approving the unrestricted planting of GE alfalfa is a blatant case
of the USDA serving one form of agriculture at the expense of all
others,” says one of the plaintiffs in the case, in a press release
issued by the coalition. “If this decision is not remedied, the result
will be lost livelihoods for organic dairy farmers, loss of choice for
farmers and consumers, and no transparency about [GM] contamination of
our foods.”
Read more: http://naturalsociety.com/new-lawsuit-filed-over-gmo-alfalfa/#ixzz1so5pmqcs
Source: http://naturalsociety.com/new-lawsuit-filed-over-gmo-alfalfa/
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