GET DOWN AND DIRTY, Y'ALL!

Happy Spring,  Boys and Girls!       
April 11, 2012

Here we are, again, recapping just a few of the things we have seen in the last few exciting weeks in our zany food system. As you may remember in one of our last episodes, we were fretting over the failure of herbicide RoundUp, sprayed externally on food crops and all sorts of lawns, public places, etc., for beautiful green lawns and inserted into the cells of such food crops as RoundUp Ready corn, soy, and canola.

This failure means that the fossil fuel-derived chemicals both inserted INTO and sprayed ON these GMO (genetically modified organisms, AKA: GE, genetically engineered) crops…are no longer strong enough to do the deadly job of killing off the intended target “weeds.” Why? Because, like everything in nature, “weeds” and other living organisms, adapt to changes in order to survive. When RoundUp is inserted into and sprayed on a plant, this kills most everything but the RoundUp Ready plants, killing many insects and pollinators such as bees and butterflies, “weeds,” and soil organisms http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/2012/04/11/whats-the-buzz-study-links-pesticide-with-honeybee-collapse/ . When natural predators for the targeted “weed” are killed off, the problem “weed” is free to come back with a vengeance. So, these “weeds” have become stronger and more deadly to the plant, forcing farmers to use even deadlier chemicals to control them http://fieldblog.resistancefighter.com/  http://abcnews.go.com/WN/pig-weed-threatens-agriculture-industry-overtaking-fields-crops/story?id=8766404#.T4WW-tnk-uI .

What’s a farmer to do??? Simply bring on more deadly chemicals! No muss, no fuss, no nasty weeds! And, what chemicals are in the Generation Next for herbicides? The EPA has cleared the way for use of far more deadly Agent Orange component, 2,4-D, despite international bans of this substance, and national demands to ban its use in the USA http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/04/10-0. Agent Orange? You mean, the defoliant used in Vietnam that caused severe health defects in returning US soldiers and a large percentage of the Vietnam peoples, epidemic birth defects, reproductive disorders, deformities, sterility, and many other identified health risks? Yes, Boys and Girls, and they are planning to start inserting it and spraying it on our corn crops. But, how can our government allow this in and on our food? That is the question of our times, Boys and Girls. How, indeed?

Organic Seed Growers & Trade Association, et al. v. Monsanto, is a case filed in federal district court in Manhattan on March 29, 2011, on behalf of 60 family farmers, seed businesses and organic agricultural organizations, challenging Monsanto’s patents on genetically modified seed. The plaintiff group now represents over 300,000 members. On March 28, 2012, in Federal District Court in Manhattan, family farmers filed their Notice of Appeal to Judge Naomi Buchwald's February 24th ruling dismissing Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association et al v. Monsanto.  The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will hear the farmers' appeal, seeking to reinstate the case, which has received worldwide attention.

Our good friends at Monsanto (maker of RoundUp), are planning to sue the State of Vermont for demanding to have all GMO ingredients labeled by law http://www.care2.com/causes/monsanto-threatens-to-sue-vermont-if-gmo-labeling-bill-passes.html. Connecticut, Hawai’i and California are also pushing for laws to get GMO’s labeled. Do you think we need to know what is in the food we buy and that we should be clearly informed on the labels, as over 50 other nations currently mandate by law, to decide for ourselves whether or not to buy and eat GMO products, Boys & Girls? If you think so, you are amongst the 98% of Americans who agree with you. The FDA, EPA and USDA are supposed to work for us, Boys and Girls! Why do they refuse to protect us?

After an unprecedented 1.1 million comments delivered to FDA demanding that GMO’s be labeled, here is their official response: “…We have not been able to reach a decision on your petition….We hope to be able to complete the review of your petition and respond to your request in the near future.”

A few ways you can have your say and demand that we get labels on GMO’s: http://justlabelit.org/ , http://gefoodlabels.org/ , http://www.responsibletechnology.org/take-action , http://www.organicconsumers.org/monsanto/action.cfm , http://organicconsumers.org/monsanto/index.cfm , http://www.pbs.org/tradesecrets/problem/bodyburden.html ,

Other ideas:

·         -Get your hands dirty, forget the lawn and grown your own food!

·         -Join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm; there are many  http://www.justfood.org/csa . You pay a “share” for the season in advance, so the farmer has a good financial start for the growing season, and you get local food all the way through the Fall! Search by zip code: http://www.justfood.org/csaloc .

http://cleanfoodearth.blogspot.com
http://southampton.patch.com/users/kathleen-furey/blog_posts 
Hey, We've All Gotta Eat!  - Clean Food Earth Woman